Have We Reached Peak Merch?

It used to be that merchandise was a sideline, a little extra revenue for brands tucked behind a tour or a product launch. Today, it’s something else entirely. A hoodie isn’t just a hoodie anymore. A tote bag isn’t just a tote bag. They’re symbols, statements and social currencies.

We live in the age of merchification – a world where every cultural moment, every micro-trend, every viral movement can be packaged, branded and sold back to us. Merch has quietly become one of the most powerful tools for shaping culture. It builds fandom, communicates values and translates lifestyle into language. When done thoughtfully, it transforms a passive audience into a participant in a larger story. But the stakes are high: in a landscape crowded with limited drops and collectible everything, it’s easy to mistake the object for the meaning. Are we buying community, identity or just a well-designed T-shirt?

The phenomenon isn’t limited to popular culture. Finance firms have embraced branded gear with an intensity that borders on obsessive: from cheese boards to golf balls, these objects do more than signal belonging – they reveal a company’s culture, priorities and even appetite for risk. Corporate merch has become so extreme that some have suggested it could function as a market indicator. Understanding it this way requires blending cultural forecasting, visual research and fashion anthropology, treating branded objects as a lens into the rhythms of corporate life.

Merch is more than a marketing trend; it’s a window into how culture works now. From the fandom economy to the ironic aesthetic, from collectible drops to branded activism, merch has become the medium itself.

Join us at 4PM UK time on 4th December for another lively discussion where we'll be asking:

• What are we really paying for in a world where everything can be bought?
• What does this say about the stories we tell ourselves?
• And how can brands navigate this landscape thoughtfully, creating merch that resonates culturally without tipping into cynicism or noise?

This is a free event and open to all, but the recording and analysis will only be available to MEMBERS.