Merchandising company SCP, which provides merchandise for musicians like Father John Misty, Carly Rae Jepsen, T-Pain, Pharrell Williams’ Something in the Water music festival, and various record labels; as well as online content creators like podcasts and YouTubers, reportedly owes more than $4 million to its more than 300 clients.
According to Billboard, SCP abruptly shut down in December, and planned to file for chapter 7 bankruptcy, meaning that those big-name clients are unlikely to receive the money they are owed for merchandise sales.
After the company’s staff were informed they were being laid off via email on Dec. 17, clients learned about the shutdown through word of mouth until they were notified two days later in an official capacity.
Merch Company SCP Owes Millions to Clients Like Mitski, Brent Faiyaz & Brand New After Shutting Down https://t.co/X5pqrC0FSe
— billboard (@billboard) December 28, 2023
Any artists who operated a webstore through SCP saw their e-commerce operations shut down during the holiday shopping season. According to Billboard, some artists such as Mitski and Milkly Chance are owed figures in the hundreds of thousands, while others like T-Pain and Joywave are owed tens of thousands.
Aside from the artists themselves, the people who purchased merchandise were now left wondering whether their orders would get to them. SCP reportedly said that none of the customers would receive refunds for unfulfilled orders.
“I ask for everyone’s patience as time is of the essence for me and my team to organize and transition to an orderly window and put all available resources into fulfilling obligations to all constituencies,” SCP owner Steve Hopkins posted on LinkedIn on Dec. 18, according to Billboard.
In an effort to recoup merchandise, one artist’s manager reportedly drove a cargo van from New Jersey to SCP’s Batavia, IL, warehouse to get his client’s merchandise.
Others who managed to receive their unsold merchandise are now turning to platforms like Merchtable, Overcast Merch, Downright Merch, and Seen Merch to re-sell the products.
