Super Bowl XLIX is less than a week away, and that means two things: one, you’ve got about 144 hours to mentally prepare yourself for the ridiculous amount of Buffalo wings you’re going to eat, and two, sales are skyrocketing for Seattle-area custom merchandise businesses.
According to Puget Sound Business Journal, Kirkland, Washington-based Image Source has seen a 10 percent increase in sales over its normal January figures, mostly due to the number of local companies ordering co-branded Seahawks gear. Even big corporations like Microsoft are hopping aboard the Super Bowl bandwagon, with the tech giant ordering co-branded merch for incentive programs and events.
“The Seahawks’ performance and going to the Super Bowl has really, really raised their brand equity in the community,” Image Source founder and CEO Brian Haner told the Business Journal “It’s at an all-time high. A lot of our clients want to align themselves with the Seahawks brand.”
Still, the boom in custom merchandise orders has been tempered some by the NFL’s strict licensing regulations. Another article in the Puget Sound Business Journal reported that the Seahawks have told several businesses to stop producing products featuring the “12” theme (representing the “12th Man,” the nickname for the Seahawks’ crowd), citing trademark violations.
