Event Merch, Start to Finish, On a Fixed Date
Client: Black Label Invitational
Project: 2026 Event Merch Design & Production
The Challenge
Event merch has one rule that separates it from every other kind of production work. The date doesn't move.
Black Label Invitational came to us with a short lead time and a hard handover at the MCG. Everything had to be designed, sourced, printed, relabelled, folded, bagged and in their hands before doors opened. A delay at any point in that chain isn't a rescheduled delivery. It's a merch table with nothing on it.
They arrived with some print designs already in hand and needed two more created, plus the entire production pipeline run end to end.
The Process
We ran this as a single continuous pipeline rather than a series of handoffs, because every handoff between separate suppliers is a place where days get lost.
Key Steps:
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Print Design
Created two additional prints to sit alongside the designs the client supplied, keeping the full range visually consistent so it read as one collection rather than a mix of sources. -
Tech Pack & Collection Overview
Built the tech pack and collection overview so every garment, print, placement and spec was locked before a single blank was ordered. On a short timeline this is the step that saves you, not the one you skip. -
Blank Sourcing
Sourced all blanks to spec and to the timeline. (Which blanks, and how many units across how many SKUs? Worth naming, it shows the scale of what moved.) -
Screen Printing
Screen printed the full run, both the client's supplied artwork and our designs, across the collection. (Number of colours, any tricky placements?) -
Relabelling
Relabelled every garment so the product carried Black Label's branding rather than the blank supplier's. (Woven or printed labels?) -
Finishing & Packing
Every piece folded, individually bagged, and finished with a custom sticker label on the bag. Retail-ready out of the box, so the team could set up a merch table at the event without touching a single garment. -
Handover
Delivered complete and on time for the MCG event.
The Result
Everything landed before the deadline, packed and ready to sell.
This was the second event we've designed and produced for Black Label Invitational, and the relationship has kept building from there. They're a genuinely good team to work with, and we'll be producing more for their future events.
The reason a tight turnaround works is that we're not coordinating between four separate suppliers and hoping they all hit their dates. Design, sourcing, printing, relabelling and finishing all run through us. One point of contact, one timeline, one person responsible for it landing.
