Meet merch
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Anonymous
| My kid has been getting more into swimming and just went to JOs for the first time this weekend. We were going to buy merch and found it to be crazy expensive!! I obviously still bought it as it is his first time going, but I don’t know if I want to spend that much money every time I go. I was wondering if meet merch is something people buy every time they go or if it’s more of a once in a while thing. Do kids normally expect merch every meet? |
Anonymous
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I think every family is different - we maybe buying if the design looks good. But as my kid is getting older, we almost never buy.
Get merch or use the money for college fund .. lol |
Anonymous
| There is no such thing as merch. |
Anonymous
| It is expensive! We only buy for special meets, like JOs. Otherwise the bag tag is enough. |
Anonymous
| We try to limit it to one item per season. So if we do 4 -5 travel and/or qualifying meets in a season, they get one sweatshirt at the meet of their choice. We aren’t that explicit about it, but it’s worked out that way. They switch it up each year so they have a collection of items from lots of meets. Our team also does “free” shirts for all the big meets, which is nice, so they usually end up with something anyway. Agree, it’s crazy expensive!! |
Anonymous
Long live merch! |
Anonymous
| It is crap and expensive. They eventually outgrow it and the. Want lululemon and vuori instead. |
Anonymous
| Ncsa swag is so expensive it makes the Jo swag look cheap. It’s crazy. Same quality of stuff. Still a line a mile long. |
Anonymous
I was going to ask people’s experience with the NCSA swag. Do they allow pre-order? This is our first time going so I know my kid will want it. |
Anonymous
Wait until your kids get to college. So. Much. Merch. |
Anonymous
| We will buy it for major meets/big achievements- first time making JO's or NCSA, but never buy it for minor meets like Turkey Claus. |
Anonymous
Merch at Turkey Claus, the horror! *clutches pearls* (Yeah, merch is expensive. It can also be a fun motivator for kids and a reminder of the benefits of their hard work, including their participation at Turkey Claus.) |
Anonymous
+1, I think it’s great that meets like Turkey Claus have merch options so that kids that aren’t super fast can also have sweatshirts, bag tags, etc. There already is a division between the kids making champs meets and those that aren’t, merch doesn’t need to be another part of that divide. |
Anonymous
Not sure why you took that so personally and felt the need to *clutches pearls* OP asked what others do and I stated what we do. I didn't comment or judge those who buy merch at every meet. Just stated what we do and when and where my kids ask for merch/care about buying it. I know families who have insanely fast kids who qualify for all the big meets and buy merch at meets like Turkey Claus. No judgement. You do you. |
Anonymous
I’m also the parent of a fast kid and I think referring to a meet like Turkey Claus as “minor” when that is the winter champs meet for a lot of kids gives the impression of being too good for a meet like that. |