Fringe Holidays and Amazon Merch on Demand – Do They Make a Good Match
In a world filled with traditional holidays that dominate our calendars, there exists a hidden realm of celebration where lesser-known festivities take center stage. These fringe holidays, often overlooked by the masses, possess a distinct charm that captures the hearts of those seeking something extraordinary.
But what happens when these unofficial holidays collide with the vast potential of Amazon Merch on Demand? Can this dynamic combination ignite a sartorial revolution that embraces the spirit of these unique celebrations?
Let’s find out together with the help of Merch Informer.
Are unofficial holidays a lucrative option to explore?
As a merch creator on Amazon, you’re probably accustomed to prepping for some of the most popular seasonal trends. These include Christmas, St. Valentines Day, St. Patrick’s Day, the 4th of July, and more. But few sellers are aware of the vast range of unofficial holidays that can easily transform into money-making niches.
We used Merch Informer’s Merch Calendar tool to do some digging into the topic. We discovered an enormous amount of fringe holidays to explore. Think of anything from Clean Up Your Room Day and Onion Ring Day to Emoji Day or Middle Child Day.
Although not all unofficial holidays create waves in terms of merch sales, there are plenty that can help you gain an advantage as a merchant. Despite their short peak performance period, lesser-known celebrations attract the interest of specific audiences. They can, without a doubt, generate sales and help you raise your popularity on the platform.
But let’s look into the numbers.
The unofficial holidays that create the biggest waves
Our research helped us identify five fringe holidays that generate more sales than most others:
- Autism Day
- Pi Day
- Pistachio Day
- Pet Day
- Hamburger Day
While the majority of these holidays are present on Merch Infromer’s Merch Calendar tool, Autism Day and Pet Day are not. Yet, we noticed that sales in these niches pick up around the unofficial holiday. For this reason, they have been included in this list.
Now, let’s dive into each one to reveal what sales volumes these niches achieve and how bestsellers are positioning themselves.
Autism Day
As mentioned above, Autism Day isn’t listed as a holiday on Merch Informer’s Merch Calendar tool. However, using Merch Archive, we noticed that there were a lot of top-selling listings from the autism niche around the end of March and the beginning of April 2022.
We investigated further to discover that Autism Day is on April 2, proving that it triggers Amazon shoppers to purchase related merch.
One of the bestsellers that we saw on April 1, 2022 is the “Puzzle Rainbow In April We Wear Blue Autism Awareness Month T-Shirt”. Selling for a price of $19.95, this listing enjoyed a BSR of 8 180 at the time, with nearly 293 estimated sales for the month.
Considering Amazon’s $4.89 royalty per t-shirt sale at this price, the seller can enjoy around $1,432 in monthly profits from this listing alone.
To confirm whether the event is truly opportunity-rich, we looked at another chart-topper from Merch Archive – “Be Kind Autism Awareness Leopard Rainbow Choose Kindness T-Shirt”. Sold at a similar price ($19.98), this listing also had an incredibly low BSR at the beginning of April (8 526) and attracted around 288 sales. This is a clear signal that sellers exploiting this niche can dramatically increase their Amazon earnings.
We also checked the average BSR of bestsellers ranking for “autism day” to find out that it’s 30 448. In other words, this niche turns out to be a lot more strategic than some of the official holidays (we’ll offer a comparison later on in this article).
Pi Day
Another attractive unofficial holiday to create merch around is Pi Day – an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π or pi that takes place on March 11.
How do we know that this event generates merch sales?
Based on Merch Informer data, a lot of listings in the niche register higher sales volumes around the start of March. For example, the “Pi Day Shirt Spiral Pi Math design for Pi Day 3.14 T-Shirt” had a drop of BSR from 1 079 441 on February 28 to 44 368 on March 11. The price remained consistent throughout these periods ($18.98), which excludes it as a factor for the sales rise.
In addition, Merch Archive reveals that Pi Day-related listings even made it to the bestsellers on March 5, 2022. The “Funny Pi Day Shirt Spiral Pi Math Tee for Pi Day 3.14 T-Shirt”, for example, was one of the top performers on this day. With a price of $19.98, the t-shirt had a BSR of 13 228, which translates into monthly estimated sales of 216.
A quick calculation of royalties tells us that the seller has made roughly $1,056 for the month thanks to this listing alone.
To top it all up, the average BSR of bestsellers in the niche all year round is 59 387. This positions Pi-inspired merch on the list of successful Amazon products.
Pistachio Day
If you’re fond of pistachios, you have an exciting opportunity to turn your taste preferences into a remunerative machine.
Held on February 26, Pistachio Day warms up the hearts of Amazon users around the start of the year. Historic sales records from Merch Informer prove that.
Let’s take the “Funny Pistachio Day Just A Girl Who Loves Pistachios T-Shirt” listing. It went through a sudden drop in BSR from 9 035 730 on March 28th to 536 423 on March 2. Interestingly, the sales elevated a few days after the unofficial holiday. Examining other listings from the pistachio niche, we noticed a similar trend.
We always advise to prepare for seasonal trends in advance. At the same time, data like this indicates that shoppers sometimes behave unexpectedly and purchase merch after the event it’s made for. To maximize your chances of profitability, keep this in mind and adapt your strategy accordingly.
When it comes to the average BSR of bestsellers ranking for “pistachio day”, it’s 431 617 or much higher than the previous two niches.
Pet Day
The second unofficial holiday that is not on the Merch Calendar, but is creating waves, is Pet Day on April 11.
Pet-inspired merch is one of those evergreen niches that offer consistent sales. They’re not limited to a seasonal trend but are year-round attractive. However, based on our analysis, we concluded that there is a boost in sales around the start of April.
For instance, the “Cats and Dogs Mom Mother’s Day Puppy Pets Animals Lover T-Shirt” listing dropped in BSR from 1 037 106 on February 6 to 228 924 on April 8. These numbers show a significant pickup in sales volumes as the unofficial holiday approaches.
As you can see from the title, pet-related listings are not necessarily linked to the holiday. They can target different audiences and have unique purposes. Despite this, their popularity skyrockets at a specific time. Adapting your product portfolio when the moment is right will double your chances of record-breaking sales.
Similarly to the other niches from this list, best-selling listings ranking for “pistachio day” have an average BSR of 16 079. This means that you can count on some level of sales throughout the whole year.
Hamburger Day
The final unofficial holiday we identified as profitable on Amazon Merch on Demand is Hamburger Day on May 28.
With an average BSR of 525 140, this occasion is possibly the least profitable of all the fringe holidays discussed so far. However, we do believe it can offer value around the start of May.
Putting our theory to the test, we inspected the “Cool Burger Art For Girls Women Hamburger Cheeseburger Lover T-Shirt” listing. Our discoveries show that BSR dropped from 2 007 179 on April 28 to 325 674 on May 10. This substantial decrease translates into a rise in sales at this particular time.
If you’re looking for a way to stabilize your earnings around this period, Hamburger Day can come in handy.
Comparing unofficial holidays to official holidays
There’s no doubt that official holidays dominate unofficial holidays in terms of popularity and sales. After all, they’re usually associated with traditions of gift-giving and love-showing. From this perspective, they’ll always be more fruitful than fringe holidays.
For example, Christmas t-shirts like the “Dr. Seuss Grinch Sleigh T-shirt” achieve BSRs of as low as 1 719 around the start of December. This number translates into exceptionally high sales.
But at the same time, these niches are often characterized by aggressive competition. To stand out from the crowd, you’ll need a truly well-crafted strategy and experience. On the other hand, unofficial holidays can be considered a low-hanging fruit for those looking to gain a competitive edge.
How to maintain profitability in the unofficial holiday niche
So how can you achieve the same profitability from unofficial holidays as from official celebrations?
It all comes down to diversification. Since both official and unofficial holidays are seasonal, it’s essential to strive for ongoing sales by tapping into different markets.
Using the Christmas listing example from above, you may need to penetrate a few fringe holiday niches to achieve a similar amount of profit. For example, Pi Day merch will land you sales around March, while Autism Day will sustain your profitability in April. Tapping into both secures your earnings for two months of the year and will bring you closer to the sales numbers of some of the most popular official holidays.
Wrapping up
The best way to approach the decision of which unofficial holidays to enter is to carefully examine how listings in the space have performed historically. This will give you an idea of how many sales you can expect to score. Don’t forget to utilize Merch Informer to your advantage and to rely on accurate data when crafting your strategy.
