At the beginning of the year we published our 2021 Year in Review, highlighting the most notable concert merchandise statistics and insights. With summer coming to an end we want to share an update into how concert merchandise stats have changed from last year and what those trends could mean.
With over 75,000 shows through our platform thus far in 2022 and over 9,000,000 items sold, what does the data show? Let’s dive in.
Our resumé thus far in 2022 (through mid-August)
10,000,000
Merchandise Items Sold
Let’s start with what the average $/head is for 2022.
Compared to last year it has declined, going from $8.49 to $7.70. Although having declined it doesn't mean we are seeing lower interest in concert merchandise or lower sales for that matter. The increased volume of shows across all genres, primarily those that have lower merchandise sales, are driving that decline. Most genres had over 200% more shows year to date compared to 2021. Some of the largest growth in show volume are genres like Blues, Classical, Reggae, Folk, Religion & Gospel, and World which predominantly have lower $/head averages. So yes, the overall $/head average is lower than last year but it isn't a bad thing.
Looking at the top genres of 2021 their average $/head, some have continued to increase while others have slightly declined.
2022 high-level artist trends
Curious as to where your bands’ merch business stacks up against the industry at large? Below are a few of the industry averages for concert merchandise to date.
2,421
Avg. Attendance Per Show
$18,684
Avg. Total Gross Merch Sales
$7.70
Avg. Dollar Per Head
249
Avg. T-Shirts Purchased Per Show
Country
Genre With Most Shows
K-Pop
Genre w/Highest Avg. $/Head
Pop
Genre With Highest Avg. T-Shirts Purchased Per Show
Hip Hop/Rap
Genre w/Highest Avg. Attendance
Top Selling Item: The T-Shirt
Unsurprisingly, the top selling merch item continues to be the t-shirt. Since that is something that is not likely to change, the price has. Increasing from $32 to $35 on average in recent years, the average price of a T-shirt in 2022 is $34. Breaking it out by genre it varies from $25 to $39. See where your band falls on that spectrum based on your genre.
When we get to the end of the year be on the lookout for a full year in review where we go into more detail around concert merchandise. Stay tuned!
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