On this thread, Frank shares that he has suffered the tragic loss of his SDMB mug.
Amongst the heartfelt condolences, and grateful utterances of “I’ve still got mine!”, came the voice of reason, asking about purchasing the goods, which moved me to start this thread.
Will the SMDB swag ever be available for purchase online? Shirts and mugs, say? Would a strong showing of advanced interest help the cause? I’d be willing to start few threads, run a few polls, if that would help.
You may also put me down in the “yes” column. I’d buy one of each.
They once had hideous shirts, over a decade ago now, I think. Nothing as elegant as just the mast head, because people might like that. Having apparently purchased a zillion, they refused all efforts to expand inventory to something people might want to buy. They give mugs to the moderators, along with their jackboots, I believe.
All pleas, for pleasing merchandise have fallen on deaf ears to date. Pointing out that even scummy bar bands manage to profit hawking t shirts, fails to impress them.
Also, I own a lovely light blue t shirt with the masthead, enlarged on the back, smaller and to one side on the front. And I get a lot of comments on it too! (I made it myself, using my inkjet printer and that iron on stuff you get at staples! In the end it was just easier than trying to convince TPTB!)
So…pretty much what I said. They already invested in unattractive stuff, have still hordes. Aren’t terribly interested in venturing into something sellable. 'Cause Ed still thinks it’s not hideous. (The Sistine chapel? Good lord!)
Of course, that was over 15 yrs ago now, but my money is on: They STILL got the old merc, it’s STILL not selling and Ed STILL thinks it’s not hideous.
And, of course, they STILL cannot be swayed that moving merc could possibly positively affect their bottom line.
The Cafe Press stuff prints on demand is my understanding, so there is not inventory sitting around. I don’t know if there is a lot of inventory of the old stuff sitting around, but the items linked to shouldn’t be.
Ummm, yeah. We have some work to do. “Cute SMDB Trucker Hat” (which I get is a type of hat, but WTF - trying to picture a trucker shopping and thinking, what I need to get is a cute hat).
Good news is that Cafe Press will print things for us.
