Understanding the Merch Boom

Merch continues to grow in popularity: more brands than ever are getting on board, from bookshops and sports teams to airlines and film studios. But why? We highlight the key lifestyle and cultural factors driving its ongoing success.

Hospitality & Lifestyle Pivots

Apparel from exclusive hotels and other lifestyle-led establishments has quickly become an athleisure go-to for aspirational luxury consumers. Meanwhile, cafés and grocery stores continue to capitalise on fashion’s food fixation. Also, a burgeoning market niche emerges in hobby-based elevated social clubs.

New Streetwear Status Symbols

The “if you know, you know” nature of niche merch makes it a natural successor to streetwear’s exclusive ethos – but it’s more about building cultural cred by wearing your tastes and interests on your sleeve than scoring the latest drop. Vintage references to films and music reign supreme, and the more elusive or intellectual, the better.

Expanding the Sports Landscape

Sportswear’s femininity focus is in full swing, with brands, leagues and teams alike increasingly catering for their expanding fan bases of women via playful designs, inspired collaborations and mashed-up styling cues. Meanwhile, more inventive takes on sports apparel continue to add aesthetic diversity to the market, appealing to our Sports & Active-Led cohort and providing myriad growth opportunities.

Beyond Cosplay: Method-Dressing Evolutions

While method dressing remains popular among celebrities and fans alike, brands are taking a more mature, nuanced approach to movie tie-ins, balancing escapist cosplay fantasies with real-world wearability and sartorial merit. Anime emerges as one of the most lucrative – yet untapped – areas of opportunity.

Fan-Made Merch & Meme Culture

While fan-made merch can be a pain for brands, its crafty and often irony-laden aesthetic is a hit with fans. They’ll pursue unofficial avenues to find it, creating some surprising opportunities. Elsewhere, memes and pop culture find their way to political merch, emphasising a continued affinity for humour-led products even in serious spaces.