Melbourne Merchandise- There is hope!

[Jaded No More 67,609]

Hello all,

So after years of complaining about the very ugly and uninspiring range of merchandise available to us long suffering Melbourne supporters, I have decided to finally do something about it... hopefully.

My final undergrad CAD project involves designing a range of merchandise for a company/label/organisation of my choice, so I figured this is a good way of killing two birds with one stone.

I'm looking to design a range of casual merchandise, not necessarily the sort of generic stuff all other clubs have, but products you would want to wear outside of the footy as well. My theory is, that if you design a versatile, fashionable range, supporters will be more inclined to purchase.

Because of trademark issues, and the fact that everyone wants a cut, AFL merchandise is often expensive, disproportionally so. However since we all have to buy and wear clothes, if a casual fashion range was on offer by the club, you might think twice about spending $60 on a cotton shirt, if it's not completely hideous and you could wear it say when out and about. This means no large logo placement, a better use of details and trims, and nothing that scream "I really want to let you all know that I barrack for Melbourne so you can laugh at me".

The better and more widely appealing the range, the higher the sale volume, the more money the club makes, the happier we all are.

Merchandise really is a huge revenue stream for AFL clubs, but ours seems to be seriously lagging behind.

Hopefully, despite the time constraints, I can come up with a range that is good enough to send through to the club, for ideas and inspiration if for nothing else, and the more members who have their say and get involved, the more the club is likely to listen. There is life outside of a polyester red and blue polo!

So this is where you come in, take a minute, fill the survey (I've got visual aids as well), make sure you select multiple options if available, and leave notes/comments/ideas (but no silly remarks about me failing this assignment because my lecturers is a Collingwood supporter).

Thanks!

P.S.- female Demonlanders, please do not be shy, because I will be designing us ladies some stuff too!

P.P.S.- I don't have a Demonology account, but if you do, and you know of Demonology posters who might want to have a say, get them to come on board.

Colours:

Logos:

Edit: Grey marle is not the sort of vomit colour that came out in the picture... so don't be put off. Grey marle is more of a light grey, the sort that you see used by most sportswear brands

[Lord Travis 10,455]

Navy cardigan with a classy little MFC logo kthxbai

[Trisul 664]

pics not loading for me

Edit: F5'd and Ctrl-R'd, still no pics. Only mentioned really in case others had issues.

Edited July 22, 2009 by Trident

[Jaded No More 67,609]

Navy cardigan with a classy little MFC logo kthxbai

Haha.

You are exactly the sort of sample demographic I'm going for. Shame there is only one of you! <_<

If a basic range takes off, we can look into Ralph Lauren inspired cardigans and skinnies, just for you.

pics not loading for me

Try pressing F5 and refreshing the page?

[beelzebub 23,191]

Jaded...hopefully you will think outside the square and include some in your range that incorporate Melbourne elements in a subtle way. Not everything has to look like a Letterman Jacket ( nothing wrong with them either )

Good luck

[Einstein 1]

My wife just said she want's some MFC lingerie.

[True Believer 1]

My wife just said she want's some MFC lingerie.

I tried doing the survey on MFC website, but it didn't work. Haven't tried again

[Gorgoroth 12,695]

LOL, sure she said it mate

[Trisul 664]

I tried doing the survey on MFC website, but it didn't work. Haven't tried again

It does work, but doesn't present well. On page two, you have to use the mouse wheel button to scroll the survey part down so you can continue.

Edited July 22, 2009 by Trident

[Jaded No More 67,609]

I tried doing the survey on MFC website, but it didn't work. Haven't tried again

I did notice that Melbourne put a merchandise survey on their website a couple of days ago, but it seems to die half way through.

It also doesn't seem to have many design/item specific questions, so what's the point?

Einstein, lingerie is a whole other dimension, and not my area of expertise, so I might leave that one alone

[Einstein 1]

On the topic of the MFC website survey, it does work now folks. I just completed it.

At the end it asks you to submit any comments on the issue of MFC merchandise. I think it would be a good idea for us to stress that MFC gear isn't widely available at department stores and that the club should try to do something about that especially out Casey way.

[45HG 1,539]

MFC logo Hoody with 45 on one side and 16 on the left

[dee-luded 2,959]

Thats a great Idea Jaded. Oh by the way, Do you like the Idea of a darker "Red", I find that orangy red just too nothing but bright, sickly. In todays colour technology, can't we have a more serious, darker Red, yet brighten it with a higher reflection content, ie: darker but a bit fluoro? If you know what I mean.

[Daemn 2]

My theory is, that if you design a versatile, fashionable range, supporters will be more inclined to purchase.

Because of trademark issues, and the fact that everyone wants a cut, AFL merchandise is often expensive, disproportionally so.

Like your work Jaded. I reckon there is a ground swell happening at the moment with MFC supporters over having the [censored] taken out of them. Good initiative. Merchandise, if you get it right, is actually a highly profitable venture. I have an idea for a T....Red T, with the MFC logo on it in navy blue with the words 'I believe' also in navy blue underneath logo.

Simple yet effective. This type of T could be sourced for as low as $3 a garment from O/S and sell for $40rrp. Give the AFL their licence fee (25%) and it starts to look inviting for the club. Volume is the key, which is sometimes hard to forecast.

Idea is to maybe mock-up a few samples of your potential merchandise range and get Demonlanders to vote on their favourites etc then you could validate demand.

Edited July 22, 2009 by Daemn

[dee-luded 2,959]

Like your work Jaded. I reckon there is a ground swell happening at the moment with MFC supporters over having the [censored] taken out of them. Good initiative. Merchandise, if you get it right, is actually a highly profitable venture. I have an idea for a T....Red T, with the MFC logo on it in navy blue with the words 'I believe' also in navy blue underneath logo.

Simple yet effective. This type of T could be sourced for as low as $3 a garment from O/S and sell for $40rrp. Give the AFL their licence fee (25%) and it starts to look inviting for the club. Volume is the key, which is sometimes hard to forecast.

Idea is to maybe mock-up a few samples of your potential merchandise range and get Demonlanders to vote on their favourites etc then you could validate demand.

Jaded, if this site is the unofficial, supporter website for the MFC, then why can't we design an unofficial demonland range, donating the proceeds to the DEES?

[Jaded No More 67,609]

MFC logo Hoody with 45 on one side and 16 on the left

I've long loved the idea of 'customised' merchandise, so just as you can choose what number you want on your jumper, you can choose what number application to have on your hoodie/jumper/jacket. Price and logistics wise this is probably a very difficult thing to coordinate, especially if you're looking at fabric number trims, transferable appliques etc... but who knows.

1964, 12 and 1859 will all be numbers that I'll look to feature in some form, as they are not obvious but they would mean something to Melbourne supporters.

Thats a great Idea Jaded. Oh by the way, Do you like the Idea of a darker "Red", I find that orangy red just too nothing but bright, sickly. In todays colour technology, can't we have a more serious, darker Red, yet brighten it with a higher reflection content, ie: darker but a bit fluoro? If you know what I mean.

I'm going to guess that because we need to use the same red on all of our merchandise, there is a discrepancy that comes across in some merchandise. Some items do appear to have a darker, deeper red (the track jacket for example), but the full synthetic items, particularly the jumpers, are a brighter red. This is an issue to do with fiber properties, since each fiber has a different level of dye absorbency, so you'll have some items coming up brighter and some absorbing the dye a lot better and having a more intense, darker shade.

If you're going to create a completely separate casual range,and you're going to use cotton as your primary fiber (or at the very least a 70-30 cotton/poly blend), than you could set one dye tone and you'll get a consistent colour across the range.

However you will always get some colour discrepancy if you use the same shade on different fabrics. Everything from fiber content, weave or knit structure and any finishes that are applied, will impact the final colour. If you want to get the exact shade across every item, you need to do separate lab-dips for each garment, which can be done, but is a costly process.

[Sir Why You Little 36,587]

I've long loved the idea of 'customised' merchandise, so just as you can choose what number you want on your jumper, you can choose what number application to have on your hoodie/jumper/jacket. Price and logistics wise this is probably a very difficult thing to coordinate, especially if you're looking at fabric number trims, transferable appliques etc... but who knows.

1964, 12 and 1859 will all be numbers that I'll look to feature in some form, as they are not obvious but they would mean something to Melbourne supporters.

.

I would prefer 2010 & the No. 13 Myself. No offense to Froggy at all.

[maximum bob 462]

Like your work Jaded. I reckon there is a ground swell happening at the moment with MFC supporters over having the [censored] taken out of them. Good initiative. Merchandise, if you get it right, is actually a highly profitable venture. I have an idea for a T....Red T, with the MFC logo on it in navy blue with the words 'I believe' also in navy blue underneath logo.

Simple yet effective. This type of T could be sourced for as low as $3 a garment from O/S and sell for $40rrp. Give the AFL their licence fee (25%) and it starts to look inviting for the club. Volume is the key, which is sometimes hard to forecast.

Idea is to maybe mock-up a few samples of your potential merchandise range and get Demonlanders to vote on their favourites etc then you could validate demand.

I admire your spirit but there are so many things wrong with this post.

$3.00 a garment o/s means poverty wages for the workers who actually produce the T. The UN and the International Labour Organisation are working hard to eradicate sweat shop practices in so-called third world countries. Looking to profit from this is unethical and exploitative.

[Jaded No More 67,609]

Idea is to maybe mock-up a few samples of your potential merchandise range and get Demonlanders to vote on their favourites etc then you could validate demand.

I will do my best to get the initial specs up, so that I can get opinions regarding the basic shapes and structural details. This is pretty much the most important aspect because this is what I think the club is most likely to adopt.

I'll also try and put up some trim details and printed appliques that I'm thinking of using.

Hopefully I can get about 80 voters on the poll by next week, then I can close it, gather the data and start moving. I've got 3 other subjects at the moment, plus a thesis that needs finishing, so I need to make sure I don't give all of my time to this and get completely behind on the other stuff.

Jaded, if this site is the unofficial, supporter website for the MFC, then why can't we design an unofficial demonland range, donating the proceeds to the DEES?

For one, this will involve us having to find overseas suppliers, and not just overseas suppliers, but ones that are willing to make very small runs. If anyone has the contacts or the time to do that, great, but the idea is to get the club to use their contacts and their volume discounts to produce a substantial range that can be updated on an ongoing basis.

You're also looking at the issue of distribution. How many sales can we possibly generate on Demonland, when compared to all the avenues where Melbourne merchandise are currently sold? It's just not going to have the same kind of financial impact, and that's the bottom line.

I can design a range that Demonlanders might love, but if it doesn't generate large volume sells, it's not going to help anyone.

[Demon Disciple 11,607]

I am the type of supporter that, no matter what the merchandise looks like, i will always wear my colours to the football. Therefore, i voted no to 'would you be more inclined to purchase and wear Melbourne merchandise to games, if a better range was available'.

Also, what ever happened to those Melbourne head bandannas that were skinny and long and you tied around your forehead (nothing like the bandannas worn by bikie gangs).

I had 2 of them ages ago, one red and one white, i loved 'em and have since been devastated as i still can't find them. Get them into the Demon Shop now!!!

[dee-luded 2,959]

I will do my best to get the initial specs up, so that I can get opinions regarding the basic shapes and structural details. This is pretty much the most important aspect because this is what I think the club is most likely to adopt.

I'll also try and put up some trim details and printed appliques that I'm thinking of using.

Hopefully I can get about 80 voters on the poll by next week, then I can close it, gather the data and start moving. I've got 3 other subjects at the moment, plus a thesis that needs finishing, so I need to make sure I don't give all of my time to this and get completely behind on the other stuff.

For one, this will involve us having to find overseas suppliers, and not just overseas suppliers, but ones that are willing to make very small runs. If anyone has the contacts or the time to do that, great, but the idea is to get the club to use their contacts and their volume discounts to produce a substantial range that can be updated on an ongoing basis.

You're also looking at the issue of distribution. How many sales can we possibly generate on Demonland, when compared to all the avenues where Melbourne merchandise are currently sold? It's just not going to have the same kind of financial impact, and that's the bottom line.

I can design a range that Demonlanders might love, but if it doesn't generate large volume sells, it's not going to help anyone.

Thanks jaded, & I think doing a fantastic job.

By the way, Demon Deciple's posts with his picture of Bails, see the MFC orangy/red, & please note the darker red of the wording, thats the red I like, what do you think?

[Jaded No More 67,609]

Thanks jaded, & I think doing a fantastic job.

By the way, Demon Deciple's posts with his picture of Bails, see the MFC orangy/red, & please note the darker red of the wording, thats the red I like, what do you think?

I also prefer the darker, deeper 'blood' red and I will definitely use that. The navy is also going to be a very very dark navy. That's why I don't think I'll use much black.

When I send it all to the club I'll attach the colour codes so that if they do want to take some of the ideas on board, they'll be able to use the same colour tones.

I've got so much to do before this project is due, because as well as garment designs, we're required to come up with marketing and merchandising ideas for the range, so packaging, visual displays, tags, fabrications etc... then put the entire collection into a catalogue. The finished catalogue is what I'll (hopefully) send to the club.

[deestroy08 0]

Wowwww. Only two girls? Don't I feel special!

Was in the Demons shop before the Port game. The photo portraits of the players are hysterical.

I quite like some of the stuff they have at the moment but it really is pretty expensive.

Good luck Jaded! Sounds like a huge task is ahead of you.

[Trisul 664]

Also, what ever happened to those Melbourne head bandannas that were skinny and long and you tied around your forehead (nothing like the bandannas worn by bikie gangs).

I had 2 of them ages ago, one red and one white, i loved 'em and have since been devastated as i still can't find them. Get them into the Demon Shop now!!!

Good call DD!

[Rogue 585]

Nice to see you using your skills for good

I'm looking to design a range of casual merchandise, not necessarily the sort of generic stuff all other clubs have, but products you would want to wear outside of the footy as well. My theory is, that if you design a versatile, fashionable range, supporters will be more inclined to purchase.

Because of trademark issues, and the fact that everyone wants a cut, AFL merchandise is often expensive, disproportionally so. However since we all have to buy and wear clothes, if a casual fashion range was on offer by the club, you might think twice about spending $60 on a cotton shirt, if it's not completely hideous and you could wear it say when out and about. This means no large logo placement, a better use of details and trims, and nothing that scream "I really want to let you all know that I barrack for Melbourne so you can laugh at me".

Fwiw, this was discussed at the Melbourne Youth Summit. The Dees had someone there who works at Globe and a 'hoodie' was specifically mentioned, so you might find the Club are open to these ideas and/or already have something in the pipeline.