{"id":434,"date":"2025-06-25T17:33:27","date_gmt":"2025-06-25T21:33:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/?p=434"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:33:27","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T21:33:27","slug":"what-smoked-fish-can-teach-you-about-branded-merchandise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/what-smoked-fish-can-teach-you-about-branded-merchandise\/","title":{"rendered":"What Smoked Fish Can Teach You About Branded Merchandise"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What does a <em>love poem to smoked fish<\/em> \ud83d\udc1f have to do with branded merchandise Everything\u2014if you\u2019re Zabar\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"854\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-25-at-5.31.58-PM-854x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-25-at-5.31.58-PM-854x1024.png 854w, https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-25-at-5.31.58-PM-250x300.png 250w, https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-25-at-5.31.58-PM-768x921.png 768w, https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-25-at-5.31.58-PM.png 934w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 854px) 100vw, 854px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The iconic Manhattan grocery store just dropped a <strong>limited-edition T-shirt<\/strong> for their 75th anniversary. It\u2019s simple, nostalgic, and hyper-specific. And it\u2019s paired with a delightfully oddball poem that reads:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\ud835\ude08\ud835\ude24\ud835\ude2e\ud835\ude26 \ud835\ude22\ud835\ude2f\ud835\ude25 \ud835\ude21\ud835\ude22\ud835\ude23\ud835\ude22\ud835\ude33\u2019\ud835\ude34<br>\ud835\ude1a\ud835\ude2a\ud835\ude35\ud835\ude35\ud835\ude2a\ud835\ude2f\ud835\ude28 \ud835\ude2a\ud835\ude2f \ud835\ude22 \ud835\ude35\ud835\ude33\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude26<br>\ud835\ude1a-\ud835\ude14-\ud835\ude16-\ud835\ude12-\ud835\ude10-\ud835\ude15-\ud835\ude0e<br>\ud835\ude0d\ud835\ude2a\ud835\ude33\ud835\ude34\ud835\ude35 \ud835\ude24\ud835\ude30\ud835\ude2e\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude34 \ud835\ude27\ud835\ude2a\ud835\ude34\ud835\ude29,<br>\ud835\ude1b\ud835\ude29\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude2f \ud835\ude24\ud835\ude30\ud835\ude2e\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude34 \ud835\ude23\ud835\ude22\ud835\ude28\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude2d\ud835\ude34,<br>\ud835\ude1b\ud835\ude29\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude2f \ud835\ude24\ud835\ude30\ud835\ude2e\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude34 75 \ud835\ude3a\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude22\ud835\ude33\ud835\ude34 \ud835\ude22\ud835\ude35 \ud835\ude35\ud835\ude29\ud835\ude26 \ud835\ude35\ud835\ude30\ud835\ude31 \ud835\ude30\ud835\ude27 \ud835\ude15\ud835\ude20 \ud835\ude35\ud835\ude22\ud835\ude23\ud835\ude2d\ud835\ude26\ud835\ude34<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s the kind of <strong>branded swag<\/strong> that actually sells out\u2014not because it screams <em>LOGO<\/em>, but because it whispers <em>legacy<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why This Tee Works: Identity Over Advertising<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the perfect example of what good branded merchandise should do:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2705 Celebrate your brand story<br>\u2705 Align with customer identity<br>\u2705 Create something people <em>want<\/em> to wear<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This shirt says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cI know where to get the good bagels.\u201d<br>\u201cI\u2019m a <em>real<\/em> New Yorker.\u201d<br>\u201cI\u2019ve been shopping here since before you were born.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>It taps into something deeper than branding\u2014it taps into <strong>belonging<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Great Swag Is Personal, Not Promotional<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The best <strong>custom merch<\/strong> isn\u2019t just a walking billboard. It\u2019s a souvenir. A status symbol. A conversation starter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Branded merchandise strategy<\/strong> is about more than slapping your logo on a shirt. It\u2019s about asking:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>What <em>story<\/em> does this tell?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Who will this resonate with?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Would someone wear this twice?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Zabar\u2019s didn\u2019t make a shirt that said \u201cZabar\u2019s.\u201d<br>They made a shirt that said, \u201c<em>You\u2019re one of us.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s the magic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Make Merch That Makes People Feel Something<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether you\u2019re a startup or a legacy brand, the lesson is clear:<br>Your <strong>company swag<\/strong> should make your audience feel seen.<br><strong>Custom branded merch<\/strong> works best when it aligns with:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Identity<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Taste<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Nostalgia<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Shared experiences<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s not just about what you\u2019re selling\u2014it\u2019s about what it <em>means<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Would you wear a grocery store tee?<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert What does a love poem to smoked fish \ud83d\udc1f have to do with branded merchandise Everything\u2014if you\u2019re Zabar\u2019s. The iconic Manhattan grocery store just dropped a limited-edition T-shirt for their 75th anniversary. It\u2019s simple, nostalgic, and hyper-specific. And it\u2019s paired with a delightfully oddball poem [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"hide_page_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=434"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":436,"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434\/revisions\/436"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=434"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=434"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotomarket.studio\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=434"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}