Background
Shutterfest is an annual educational conference and expo for professional photographers, hosted by Sal Cincotta and his team in St. Louis, MO. Over its 10+ years, it has built a passionate following, with 2,000–3,000 attendees eagerly seeking new branded merchandise each year. Having collaborated for years with one of their key sponsors, PhotoFlashDrive, on other projects, we were brought on to expand the merch offerings for the 10th anniversary in 2024.
The Challenge
Starting with just a few pieces of digital artwork and a handful of wishlist apparel styles as our creative guide, we set out to build a merchandise program with a wide range of products to suit all sorts of personal tastes. Our goal was to offer such variety that attendees would be tempted to grab more than their usual picks, boosting overall sales.
Our Solution
Using the artwork they gave us, we tweaked some designs to craft new but related products. For instance, we took the standard horizontal Shutterfest logo, turned it black, and printed it on dark and black items for what we called a “midnight” effect. Thanks to our unique printing techniques, we could also hit spots traditional screen printers usually can’t. We picked out some standout products that we thought would vibe with the Shutterfest crowd while staying on-trend—like the Tailgate hoodie with its built-in koozie pocket. For the 10th anniversary, we had no artwork to start with, so we built fresh designs from the ground up, printing and embroidering them on premium items to amp up their perceived value.
The Results
When it was all said and done, the results were unreal—the best they’d ever seen! We smashed records for total items sold, average items per order, average order value, and overall sales. The client was over the moon, and the attendees couldn’t stop raving about the quality, variety, and one-of-a-kind vibe of what we brought to the table.
