The Evolution of YouTuber Merch | Internet Analysis

– Hello, my dudes. My name is Tiffany. Welcome back to my series, “Internet Analysis,” where I like to research and discuss things relevant to social issues and media. Today, I just wanna talk about the evolution of YouTuber merch. YouTuber merch started as simple t-shirts and printed products, but it’s evolved into massive businesses.

These days, creators are collaborating with established brands or starting their own companies and designing and launching their own products. As creators, we are often encouraged to pursue multiple streams of income, which is important because YouTube AdSense revenue can be very unreliable. So, things like sponsorships or Patreon can really make a difference

And allow creators to earn a more consistent living. But merch has always been a part of this equation as well. Early YouTube merch was very straightforward, literally just a YouTuber’s face or name or catchphrase, a little inside joke, on a product. T-shirts, hoodies, hats, plus phone cases, pins, mugs,

Tote bags, and pretty much anything else that can be printed on. And of course, this kind of merch is still very much around. YouTuber merch is just one subset of the merchandising industry. These days, though, the designs for YouTuber merch are usually better. Fun fact.

Over the years, Hot Topic has sold some YouTuber merch Going way back, they sold Fred, Dave Days, Shane Dawson, a sign of the times. And Hot Topic was a great choice because it’s a go-to store in every mall for pop culture merch. And its brand often involves a lot of quirky

Or alternative interests. Both of those in quotations. And especially back around, say 2010, if you were going to claim liking YouTube as a personality trait, you were probably a bit weird. Awkward, rawr, random. In 2010, I was in this era. So, I get it. It was kind of exciting

And rare to see YouTubers merch in stores. It felt legitimate and kind of validating as a fan. Though now, of course, you can find tons of branded stuff for internet figures in stores. There was Hype House merch in Target. Jojo Siwa stuff is everywhere.

So, this video is gonna be a little bit critical of merch because that’s how all of my videos go. But of course, I don’t think all merch or YouTuber designed products are bad. Well designed, thoughtful, ethically made merch is awesome. Buying merch can be a really great way

To support the creators or the artists that you like. Plus wearing merch can potentially help you meet other people who have shared interests. Nathan just met one of our neighbors because they happen to both be wearing Liverpool hats. But when merch feels cheaply made, poorly designed, or just like a shameless cash grab,

That is a different story. So, briefly, I wanna mention my own history with merch. Of course, as a fan, I have purchased merch. Though, I don’t know if bought specifically for many YouTubers. I have a ton of my friend Haley Blais merch. Though that’s more musician merch than YouTuber merch.

But still, love to support. By the way, Haley has a new song, “Coolest fucking bitch in town,” streaming now. I made my first merch for myself in about 2012. Let me grab it. Okay. This a tank top. It’s for the internet. Signed by Tyler Oakley at VidCon? This is a piece of YouTube history. I only made one of these because I wanted to wear it to VidCon. Actually, I think I have two. My sister had the other one. I would have never considered selling this

Because frankly, the design is hideous. This is wild. So then, my first actual merch drop, selling to the public. I made this in 2014. I took a screen printing class in high school, which was very cool. So, I designed this vector myself. And then, I went to Forever 21, bought some blanks,

And I screen printed these on my own. And it’s the little peace sign and a k thanks, bye that I still do. And I’m realizing it’s been way too long and I should stop because it started as an ironic joke, but I continued. I was a small channel at the time,

So I’m sure I only sold a handful. But it felt really nice to do the whole process myself. And then, my next and last merch drop was a few years ago, maybe 2017, 2018. I worked with an artist to make these designs. And then, I just got them printed

And shipped through a standard merch company. Earth tones only. Hello, my dudes. Another ironic phrase that I still say. And this one does not make sense. Junk food vegan. Still love that. But this design takes up way too much of the shirt. And this is not me. So, why?

I think I was going for that like Cara Delevingne like eating a burger kind of look. But for merch, it was a choice. So anyway, same thing. I didn’t sell very many of these either, but it was fun. And I will be keeping all of my merch as family heirlooms

For my distant descendants to cringe at. Anyway, in this video, I wanna cover things like how most YouTubers make their merch, some merch controversies, the other sorts of products that YouTubers have been moving onto, and discussing whether merch is sustainable, economically and environmentally. But first, this portion of today’s video

Is sponsored by thredUP. thredUP is the world’s largest online thrift store and I absolutely love using them to get my secondhand goodies. Almost all of my closet is secondhand at this point and I like to keep it that way. This time I went shopping,

I was looking for some winter, but also transitional pieces. And as per usual, thredUP’s tools that let you filter by exact size, color, brand helps me be a lot more specific in this search. So, I could find exactly what pieces I need. This is a long sleeve Henley from Aeropostale

I’ve been obsessed with Henley’s lately. I don’t know why. Retail, $30, thredUP price, 12.99. I’ve gotten a few compliments when I’ve worn this shirt. I feel like it’s just a cute color on me. Hence, the icy blue eyeshadow today. And I have this top paired with these Reformation jeans. Look how fun.

I love the two-toned denim. I was so excited when I first put these on. They fit really well. They’re the perfect length for me. These retail for 148, I got them on thread up for 49.99. And we’ve got another pair of wonderfully fitting jeans. These are from the brand NYDJ.

And they really do fit me so well. They’re very stretchy, very comfy, like standard go-to pair of blue jeans. I’ve got them paired with this like yellow, knit halter top. I know fashion words, okay. This is called the Anthropologie Sleeveless Top. Absolutely, love yellow. Love the fit. Throw a little cardigan over it

And you’ve got a cutie simple outfit. Catch me around town. This is the brand SO. As in, yes, I got another Henley, so? But this one is in a lovely dark green, a forest green. As the others, incredibly comfy. Perfect for layering. An easy breezy winter top. A staple.

If you are looking to buy something new, some new clothes soon, I would say run to thredUP. Maybe get the app. It’s very easy. And if you would like to get up to 60% off your first order, you can use code TIFFANY, you’ll get free shipping as well.

Go to the link in the description. Thank you very much, thredUP. Now, back into it. Let’s talk about how merch gets made. Most YouTubers have their own storefront or website, but production and order fulfillment are handled by a merch company. Many of these specialize in working with influencers.

And at least in my experience with my last merch drop, it’s a very easy process. You just upload your design or you can even just type in whatever you want, pick your product options, and they will handle all of the printing, shipping, and customer service.

You may be wondering what does the profit margin look like for creators? It varies based on the products that you pick. But according to this page, a Hanes t-shirt, for example, has a base cost of about $10. That includes the garment, printing, fulfillment, customer service, and the website.

On these sites, the influencer gets to pick their pricing and decide their profit margin beyond the base price. They could sell that shirt at $15 and profit five of that each. Or they could try to price it at something like $40 and make $30 each.

But of course, most people would not be down to spend $40 plus tax plus shipping on a Hanes t-shirt. So just from the ease of that business model, you can probably see why merch is so common. For creators, aside from the effort and the work involved in designing the actual merch

Or hiring someone to do so, they don’t have to do much else. That’s what I call passive income. I’m not bringing that back. Creators don’t have to take the risk of printing a thousand t-shirts and then keeping the inventory. And then, dealing with whatever doesn’t sell.

Most of these companies print in batches or print on demand. So, there is no excess stock. I do like that this business model limits waste. Again, not printing excess shirts that aren’t gonna be sold to anyone. And also, that it allows smaller creators to make merch who wouldn’t be able to

If say a large purchase order was required. Now, let’s get into the nitty gritty. Merch controversies. As per usual, I asked you all on my Instagram what you think about YouTuber merch if you’ve ever bought it. So, I’m gonna be sharing and highlighting some of those thoughts.

One of the main complaints is that YouTuber merch is just a cash grab. – Something that I was finally proud to call my merch. And here it is. What better way to show that you’re a fan than a shirt that fucking says merch right on it. – Another major complaint is, of course,

About the design of the merch itself, especially when we’re talking about this simple printed t-shirt and other things. For example, the YouTuber Dream. According to this article, “Dream’s brand is very simple. His recognizable logo is a plain smiley face on a white background that he drew himself in Microsoft Paint.

His merch follows this branding, but some fans have been disappointed with the simplistic designs.” He also said, “At the end of the day, it’s merch and it’s to support your favorite creator. I like the smile because it’s happy and simple and you can wear it without it being obviously YouTuber merch.”

Unless, people recognize the super famous logo of YouTuber Dream. And that was basically the most common response was the issue of wearability and people saying that they don’t want to wear merch that screams YouTuber merch. And that they’re much more likely to buy something

If it is subtle and low key, and does not look like merch. We’ve also seen various questionable merch designs, especially kind of insensitive designs that involve mental illness. That’s a whole bit of discourse that we don’t have to get into today. But like the line between how you cope

With your own mental illness through humor and perhaps being a little too lighthearted when creating a product for people to buy that’s about mental illness, to what extent is it acceptable to blatantly monetize your own mental illness? And the mental illness of your followers who identify with you.

Leave your thoughts on the comments down below. I wanna give a quick side note about good designs because they do exist. Specifically, I wanna shout out Kel Lauren. They are a graphic designer and a YouTuber. They make videos about design. They’re always sharing helpful information and trying to fight against the gate keepiness

Of the design industry. They’ve designed for major brand and artists, and even some YouTubers, including Kurtis Conner. And in my Instagram questions, a few people specifically mentioned this merch as being their favorite and most wearable. That’s merch done right. Next complaint, merch that is bad quality

And/or too expensive like plain hoodies for over $60. Again, plus shipping and tax. Depending on where you live, just the shipping cost alone if it’s gonna like double the cost of your item, that’s already pretty pricey that it’s just not gonna happen. Of course, the quality of the garment really factors in.

So, like is this something that has been sustainably made? Has it been ethically made? It makes sense to pay a higher price for a higher quality item. But again, some people are just messing with that profit margin and going, hmm, how much can I possibly charge my fans for this basic item.

I wanna highlight a couple of examples. I remember Emma Chamberlain’s first merch launch. I think it was in 2018. People were pretty upset about this launch because basically she created a store and then she put up products, and blurred all the pictures of the items.

So, you couldn’t really even see what you were buying. – [Sierra] There was a lot of backlash and criticism for a couple of reasons. First, the items were pretty expensive. This scrunchy for $6.50, which is pretty expensive for a little scrunchy. And second, every item only came in a size small.

This is $28 and it only comes in a size small. – But yeah, it was a miss. Though, it probably sold out. Successful, but anger inducing? Maybe. YouTuber merch also has a reputation for being sold to kids and teens. Nerd City did a really great video on this a couple of years back

About how Jake Paul marketing to children should actually probably be illegal according to the laws and regulations that we have about marketing to children. – [Nerd City] Then, a plug for the song again. Then, back to a merch plug again. Two more plugs for the song. Then, a long merch plug.

That’s 23 separate ad reads built into one video. Out of the 13 minute and 50 second video, nearly seven minutes of that time is devoted to advertising products. – [Tiffany] Finally, we get into the sustainability section. Is mass-produced merch wasteful? I haven’t made merch in years, but when I’ve considered it,

Do I want to consider making merch again? This is something I’ve thought about. Does the world need more t-shirts made like involving a design that features or references me? So, one element of this is the production of the merch itself. Where are you sourcing the clothing from? Where is that clothing, those blanks,

Where are they coming from? What are the conditions for those garment workers making that clothing or even operating the printing press? The screen printing, do they use printing presses? Is the fabric sustainable and ethically sourced. These can all be tricky questions. Again, often many creators opt for kind of the most affordable options

Either because they want their viewers to be able to afford it more easily or because they just figure, okay, if I get the cheapest option, I can maximize my own profits. But like a Hanes shirt is probably not going to be the most ethical or sustainable choice. But anyway, it’s very similar

To the problems of the fast fashion industry, which I’m sure many, if not all of you, are aware of. If we want to mass produce clothing at the cheapest possible prices, what corners are being cut and at whose expense? It’s all more stuff we don’t need that will probably end up in landfills.

So, we have the fast fashioness of the production. And then, we also have that element of disposability or not placing so much value on the products. Because frankly, as a lot of the replies on my Instagram echoed, many people who have purchased merch don’t end up wearing it very often

Or maybe it ends up being their pajamas. And merch that doesn’t get used or worn often reminds me of the freebies problem. You know when you go to a conference or an event, or back when we did that pre-pandemic, and then you’d end up with a bag

Of a bunch of branded notepads, pens, and USB drives stuffed in a cheap tote bag. Most people only use some of these items, and then the rest go to waste. So then, I fell down a rabbit hole and I was reading about this. And this article recommends stop the freebie bags.

Maybe instead corporate events could offer experiences like a free massage, a class, a free headshot, a free mail. And obviously, a big problem with waste is buying or being given stuff that we just don’t need. We really should be practicing our reduce and refuse skills. So, allow me to rant for a moment,

As if this whole video’s not already a bit of a rant. Let’s talk about gift giving, for example. I personally am not a fan of a white elephant gift exchange or Secret Santa. Of course, gift giving is supposed to be thoughtful and fun. But really,

Especially in the case of these random gift exchanges, most of us end up with stuff that we don’t want and won’t use. But then, we still feel too guilty to throw it out or give it away because it’s a gift and it’s waste, and you don’t wanna throw it in a landfill.

So, we just keep it and it contributes to our constant growing clutter. I just don’t want to bear the responsibility of more stuff. Free stuff sounds fun until you bring it home. And then, you realize you’re just gonna throw it in a junk drawer or a dark corner of your closet.

I will actively stress about what to do with that beer koozie. So, the same thing happens with merch often and other clothing like sentimental things, t-shirts. We collect so much of these in a lifetime and they feel like they carry important memories. So, we feel obligated to keep them.

But they don’t really bring us joy anymore or they don’t serve a purpose. They just sit and collect dust or take up space. And one of the biggest problems is, especially for merch or like very specific printed shirts, those can be very hard to resell or donate because who wants a t-shirt

From your family reunion in 2009. So I propose first, no white elephants. Let’s just stop it. Second, normalize wish lists for holidays, birthdays. I love getting my family exactly what they want or need. And then, I’ll just add a little homemade card for a little personal touch.

But that’s way better to me as a gift giver and probably for them as a receiver. And three, practice your refuse skills. Because it’s better to prevent stuff from coming into your house and into your life than it is to accept the things that you don’t want,

And then have to keep him around for years to come. And finally, if you do buy merch as a way to support your favorite creators, that is very sweet. And believe me, creators appreciate it. But before your next merch purchase, I would recommend asking yourself, “Will I really wear or use this thing?”

Because if you don’t think you’re gonna wear or use it very often, or if it is just gonna end up in your pajama collection, you might wanna consider supporting them in a different way. Maybe join their Patreon, send ’em a coffee donation. Join YouTube premium so that everyone you watch

Gets a slightly higher cut on their AdSense. Also, you never have to feel obligated to financially support the creators that you like. It’s much appreciated but we also love a good, old fashioned like, comment, subscribe, baby. Continuing on. Finally, the evolution of merch. Remember, that was our whole point.

Beyond just printing stuff on t-shirts and things, what about those product collabs with established brands? These have become very popular in recent years. Basically, you can co-design something or drop a collaboration with the company. Do a little curated line. Examples would include Wildflower or Casetify cases, Ana Luisa or En Route jewelry.

I can give a little bit of a personal perspective on this one, because I did have a jewelry collaboration with Ana Luisa. These are my earrings. I still wear them all the time. They’re no longer available, so I’m not trying to sell you anything, but it was really fun. I love that brand.

I still love all their jewelry. And so, I worked with them to co-design that piece of jewelry. So I got to pick what type of jewelry I wanted, the design. I pitched some ideas. They would draw them out. I would work with the designers to refine details and stuff.

So, I really enjoyed it. I can’t speak in detail about the deal, obviously, but basically I got a commission of every pair of my Tiffany earrings that were sold. Again, once the initial design stuff is done, the company handles everything. That’s great. Then under this umbrella, we also have the massive beauty launches.

The makeup and beauty sphere of YouTube had this era, which is kind of ending now or it might be over, where like every beauty creator released a palette or like some kind of a product with a makeup company. And that is a totally natural choice, especially for a creator whose audience loves beauty.

But the market became oversaturated because it was like every week somebody’s launching another palette. And as we know, how many eyeshadow palettes can one consumer have or actually use is the question. Overall, I think that these collab deals can be really great for the creator, the brand, and the consumer.

The creator is partnering with a brand that’s already well established, so you can expect pretty good quality and customer service. And these products do not feel like merch, which is very important. They’re a product that the creator either helped to design or curated, but they don’t scream YouTuber or catchphrase.

Next era is creating a clothing line. Creating a clothing line is kind of considered to be a more mature or elevated form of merch. Like it’s not like this kind of merch. These tend to be, again, a lot more wearable than that first era of YouTuber merch.

It can be low key and stylish. One of most popular and probably most successful YouTuber clothing lines is Teddy Fresh, Ethan and Hila Klein. – And then, this is actually embroidered on. We also have some embroidery on the sleeves here. This is impressive. This looks great. – [Doctor Soles11] But listen up,

Oh, this feels nice. It’s like heavy, but not really. It’s like the perfect spring, cold, darkness type of hoodie. – Now, when it comes to YouTuber clothing lines, again, some of these are more in that kind of merch realm where the creator is just getting blanks

And putting their name on it or slapping a logo on. But this time, they’re joggers versus other YouTubers creating clothing lines are really getting a lot more involved in the production. I got lost in trying to explain this issue of like involvement. There are too many variables. But one of the main distinctions

Is, of course, the purpose of the clothing line is not to promote the YouTuber unlike merch, or at least the promo is less direct. It’s more of a passion project, typically. And lastly, we get into the era of creating an entirely new brand or company. This is the evolution baby.

You start with merch. Oh, a t-shirt. That’s cute. Oh, a little clothing line drop. That’s cool. I am a CEO of my company now. I am selling products. Again, YouTubers are constantly told you’ve gotta diversify. You’ve gotta make multiple streams of income. You’ve gotta develop a product or a brand or something

That is beyond you. And that can be sustainable beyond your popularity as a YouTuber, which yes, I agree. It can kind of help address that existential dread that a lot of YouTubers feel, including myself. Well, we do worry, like what are we gonna do with our lives?

What kind of career can we have when YouTube stuff slows down or dies? So getting a start and creating a company, creating a brand, or product line while you’re still successful as a YouTuber, gaining a customer base, is something that not only feels very satisfying like creatively and in a business sense,

But also does comfort you in terms of like a little bit more security. But again, these might feel more mature, more elevated, more involved than the previous forms of products or merch. The question remains, how involved are the YouTubers in this? Or is something being developed for them? Are they slapping their name

On like a white labeled wholesale product and calling it something brand new? It depends. And I don’t have all the answers. I’m fairly certain this is very common with all types of celebrities, literally slap your name and face on some kind of product. And this tends to be pretty successful

Because people are buying that face, that association, rather than really caring about what the product is. But anyway, I think a recipe to a good YouTuber product is first of all, make it fit your brand. And second, make it a good product. Don’t rip people off. So for example, Chamberlain Coffee.

Emma Chamberlain loves coffee. It was a big part of her brand. And apparently, the coffee is pretty good though it is pretty pricey. But as far as YouTuber products go, it seems pretty solid. To name another example, I wanna mention Holo Taco, which was created by Cristine of Simply Nailogical

Now, I will say I am wearing Holo Taco right now because Christine did ask me if I wanted a PR box. And I said, yes, I do like nail polish. So thank you, Christine. This is actually the first one I’ve tried out so far. So, I can’t give my full review.

Don’t judge the nail polish by my hasty application because I literally painted these minutes before filming. But again, Holo Taco totally makes sense for Simply Nailogical. It’s a channel built around nail polish. Then, we get into some worse products. I have to mention Tana Mongeau,

One of the greatest YouTube scammers of all time. Nearly every business venture that Tana has embarked on has been shamed for being just terrible. TanaCon, disaster. Literally dangerous to the health and wellbeing of attendees. Tana made a fragrance called TANA by Tana, and she claimed that she designed this custom bottle,

Which was found on the wholesale website AliExpress. And here’s the kicker, she was selling it for $48. I don’t know why anyone would trust that Tana would like reliably create anything or that she was actually even involved in this because I assume that she has a team that just worked

To put together the cheapest, quickest product. And then, slap her name on it. What’s wild is that this perfume launch came after many of her other scams, including when Tana released a lingerie line. Tana was charging over $30 for the set, which was found on an AliExpress for $5.

So Tana Mongeau’s business model allegedly is just buying from AliExpress and marking it up by however much. And one last note about how involved YouTubers or other celebrities making products should be, I think we all like the integrity of, oh, I worked really hard on this, I built this myself.

But, honestly, many celebrities and YouTubers aren’t qualified to do that, to build a whole product or company from scratch. So maybe it is better if they work with pros to design something that’s actually good and worth their fan’s money rather than trying to DIY it and having it be disastrous, kinda like TanaCon.

But it does make me wonder, will a true fan just buy anything that their favorite creator puts out? Even if they have a well-established history of being a complete scammer. And I think this is one of the worst, most manipulative parts of the whole cash grab issue.

These creators know that their most loyal, dedicated fans just love them in everything they do and will always support no matter how bad the thing is. So, they continue to launch products for the sake of taking their fans money. Finally, we reached the end of the video. And I just wanna end with

How we could possibly make more thoughtful, more sustainable merch. This is just an idea I’ve had in the past, again, when I was thinking about, would I ever wanna do merch again, how would I wanna go about that. This would be my dream. I would want to work with a designer,

Make some sick-ass designs. And then, I would want to go buy thrifted blank pieces, print it at a local shop with eco-friendly inks. And that’s it, boom. We’ve got some merch that at least is reusing clothing. It’s rescuing some clothing from a thrift store, and then giving it a new life.

Now, I acknowledge that this idea would be very tough logistically, like taking the time to try to find similar pieces at a thrift store of a whole range of sizes would be tough. It would have to be a smaller drop because every single piece would be unique.

So, you’d have to list them individually. I’m literally going through the logistics. It would be a pretty tedious process. And again, it might be hard to source all the sizes that I would like to offer because, of course, I would want my merch to be size inclusive. But then the question is,

Do I make them in advance and risk having an excessive stock? Or do I print on demand? And every day I’m like, I got an order. I’ve gotta go to the thrift store and pick up that size, and print the thing. This is just my dream,

My dream of being a very inefficient merch creator. Anyway, that’s my idea. It might never happen. But if you wanna take that idea, if that sounds feasible at all to you, please run with it. That sounds so fun. Again, I just wanna circle back to the idea that I think as consumers,

We should be very considerate of what we buy. I know that we have to buy things and we can’t always be perfect consumers, and we can’t always buy the perfect, most ethical, sustainable stuff. But at least be more thoughtful, trying to shop secondhand when we can, making sure that the things we buy,

Whether it’s from fast fashion or it’s thrifted, or it’s vintage, whatever, as long as those are things that we are going to wear and get use out of, I think that that is good. Thank you guys so much for watching. I wanna give a shout out to my patrons,

Including OwO face, Abby Hayden, Geoff, Jaden, kaesi luck, Mardi Schmeichel, vivianolodun.com. And again, I wanna thank thredUP for sponsoring part of today’s video. You can get up to 60% off your first order on thredUP with my code, TIFFANY. And stay tuned. I do have more videos coming.

I actually spent the last month since my last upload, this is the third video I’ve been working on. But I also moved. We adopted a dog. There’s been so much going on and I have been all over the place. So, I’m glad that this video made it to your eyes.

And I’m gonna go now. K thanks, bye.