You’ve probably seen the news (or memes) about the Trump Campaign press conference, led by the president’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani, that took place this weekend at Four Seasons Total Landscaping in Philadelphia.
At first, there was some confusion that the campaign meant to book the upscale hotel, located in Center City in the Comcast Technology Center building, but it actually turns out it was booked on purpose for its proximity to the I-95 off ramp and gated parking lot.
Regardless of why it was booked, the internet was aflutter at the admittedly strange choice of venue, and the landscaping company, previously not well known beyond Northeast Philadelphia, is now a household name.
Big press conference today in Philadelphia at Four Seasons Total Landscaping — 11:30am!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 7, 2020
So, what do you do in that situation? What any smart business would do: Look to monetize it through branded merchandise and hang on for as long as the ride will take you.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping announced in a Facebook post on Sunday that it would release a line of merchandise today, while clarifying that it “would have proudly hosted any presidential candidate’s campaign at our business,” and that it “strongly [believes] in America and its democracy.”
After teasing a new merchandise tab up by Monday morning, it signed off the way any business looking to ingratiate itself with the local community does: “Go Birds!”
As promised, the company now has a fully stocked merchandise store, complete with stickers, three T-shirt designs and a hoodie. The stickers and one of the T-shirts look like any other landscaping company’s merchandise. They’re green. They have plant imagery. Pretty standard, really.
But the hoodie and two of the T-shirts are definitely aimed at people looking to commemorate the event, with red, white and blue color schemes, and a little American flag above the company name.
https://t.co/UsbGt2j5wz pic.twitter.com/e3tBlaifbp
— Four Seasons Total Landscaping (@therealfstl1992) November 9, 2020
Demand was high enough that Four Seasons posted on Facebook again to reassure people that there would be more designs in the future, and that their order might take a little time.
“We are using the same small Philly business that has always printed our shirts, and coordinating this has taken some time,” the post said. “We appreciate your patience as we work to get more merchandise options.”
The consumer response is interesting for its bipartisanship. Based on Facebook comments alone, there seem to be a few people buying the merchandise because they support Trump, and want to support a business that gave his campaign a space for the press conference. On the other side, there are a few people commenting that they’re glad that Four Seasons Total Landscaping was part of the “end game” of the campaign, and that they can look back on the event and have a laugh.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping now exists in a rare space in the political zeitgeist. If it chooses its words very carefully (or, better yet, says absolutely nothing verging on political), it can appeal to Trump and Biden supporters alike with its merchandise. It’s somehow managed to hold a Trump Campaign press conference but give Biden supporters a reason to get down with it.
We’re at a point in time right now, though, that news could break literally any minute that sucks all the air out of the FSTL story, and when that happens, we’ll all move on. Maybe we’ll look back in a month or a year and laugh about it. Or, maybe we’ll forget about it entirely.
This was a fairy tale boost for a small business that no one could’ve ever seen coming. Promotional merchandise is already integral to getting the word out about small businesses, but now it’s a way to keep the name in people’s brains after something truly extraordinary happened.
So, the best thing for FSTL, a small landscaping company on the outskirts of Philadelphia, is to just make merchandise for as long as demand exists, and enjoy the ride.
