The Irvine-based California Avocado Commission has its first line of branded merchandise, in the latest example of the T-shirt and related fare that’s no longer relegated to concert souvenir status.
The collection includes T-shirts, sweatshirts, socks, totes, stickers and other items retailing from $5 to $58. The avocado-themed collection is being sold directly to consumers through a recently launched online shop run by the CAC, which represents more than 3,000 avocado growers in the Golden State.
The move is in line with a general shift among brands and organizations in recent years that have taken merchandise that has traditionally lived as an offering to grab after a concert or an event giveaway into something much more mainstream and fashionable.
The industry saw that notably with musicians turning their concert merchandise into full-fledged fashion lines sold at retail. That includes Kanye West with his multi-city pop-up shop blitz upon the release of his collection for his seventh studio album “The Life of Pablo.” There was also Justin Bieber selling merchandise from his Purpose Tour, including an exclusive with Anaheim-based Pacific Sunwear of California LLC.
The commission’s collection had design help from its consumer marketing agency MullenLowe. The pieces are being produced domestically with vendors for this initial release from states such as California, New York and Colorado
The CAC told the Business Journal there are plans to release more collections seasonally based on what sells well with this first offering and future campaigns.
A marketing plan around the initial launch has been placed on hold as a result of the wildfires and was to include social media, email blast and work with influencers to help promote the product.
The Commission said it’s monitoring the situation and would resume those plans once “we feel the timing is right.”
