ELLIE STANBURY | MERCHANDISER SPOTLIGHT

One minute, you're offering to help sell merch for your partner's band at a show; the next, you're heading out on tours across UK & Europe. At least, that's what happened to Ellie.

Merchandiser & designer, Ellie Stanbury's talents range from setting up an epic merch table to eye-catching merch designs, and we had the pleasure of catching up with her to chat about how she got started and the lessons learned along the way.

To kick us off, can you share a little bit about yourself and your experience in the music/merch industry, as well as what prompted you to pursue this as a career?

I started as the cliche! My partner was in the band, and they were self selling. When they went for changeover I noticed people were still browsing and leaving as there was nobody there to sell to them. I suggested that as I was there, I may as well be useful and sell during those times. That then became the pattern whenever I visited on tour, and subsequently became my job! It was a weird moment of kismet though, because I actually love doing it and fell into a career that fits me well.

What were some of your earliest gigs in the industry, and how did those shape your approach to managing merch today?

It was for L1nkn P4rk; technically you could say I started by shadowing their bassist as he was doing the selling. It was a great way to understand the niches of the industry and how to adapt the selling. Once they decided to have me as their official merch seller, I was thrown in the deep end and managed everything from ordering, designing, stock management and selling.

You’ve worked the merch table for bands like As Everything Unfolds, L1nkn P4rk, and Trophy Eyes. Any particular gig that has been a highlight of your career, and can you share why?

There one that stands out for me was selling for As Everything Unfolds at The Roundhouse in London. They were touring with Bury Tomorrow, Make Them Suffer and Thornhill. Typically, Roundhouse is a concession sell – but the powers that be persuaded them to let Thornhill and As Everything Unfolds self sell, which I was told was unheard of. It is also an iconic venue and it was a special gig for the band themselves, so to be there for that, and to have that on my CV was a real moment.

You’re currently managing merch for L1nkn P4rk who tied up a big UK/EU tour last year. How do you like to prepare for a tour like that and what does that process look like? 

Personally, it is panic-packing the day before and hoping I have everything. Professionally, I tend to over prepare. For this tour specifically, I wrapped each tee in size coded, colour coordinated electric tape, and do the first stock check. I took extra boxes on tour and decanted the stock to sell a set amount daily, so that I wasn't bringing all the boxes in to each venue, then the count is smaller daily too. A strong spreadsheet is your best friend for this job too. I like to do as much as possible ahead of time. If it’s a new venue or a shorter day to prepare whilst out on tour, then it is less to worry about.

For anyone else’s tour where I don’t have 12 boxes of merch in my living room ready to go out – I like to at least know the rough items of what I am going to sell, get the POS set up etc. but it doesn’t always work out that way. Sometimes it’s getting thrown in on the first day and figuring it out on the go, but that has it’s own fun in it too.

In your experience, what are some of the most challenging aspects of managing merch for a tour, and how do you overcome them?

It can be daunting spending someone else’s money. It isn't an exact science but there is a logic to what sells and why. This is where the spreadsheet can come in handy; you can look at historic sales, how much sold, how many tickets/venue sizes on upcoming tours etc. It honestly depends on where the band is on their journey too and how much they want to spend.

Other small things depend on how you tour, what is available to you in the venue. The day-to-day issues are space and storage. My dream set ups include being in a thoroughfare, power points, wifi, space for the boxes, and space to lay out the stock not just for display, but also to be able to grab it easily for customers. It can be chaos sometimes by the end of an evening.

How important is a good merch table set-up for sales? What would be your top piece of advice for merch newbies when it comes to setting up for a show?

Massively important. People can form an opinion within 3 seconds, and I look at my tables as I would if I were attending the gig. If there’s some people in front of the table, can I hang anything for people to see at a distance? I make price lists and tags so if someone is queuing and looking over shoulders they can think about their purchases and answer their own questions before they get to me. That also benefits when you have a long queue, because when the customer is in front of you it speeds up the transaction, and you don’t lose the interest of people queuing who are maybe unsure and willing to leave if it takes too long.

Mostly you just need to show off the wares, as long as it is clear and attention-grabbing.

What common misconceptions do people have about the life of a merch manager, and what would people be most surprised to learn about this career path?

I think there’s more misconceptions about touring as a lifestyle generally, I don’t think I have felt it with my job in particular. Every band at every level has different attitudes towards their merch and how high it is in their priorities, and they are all valid. But in my experience, for a lot of bands, merch can be the best way to make a profit whilst on tour, so just don’t underestimate it. Whether you self-sell to keep costs down, or get someone in to maximise selling time and take the work out of your hands, make sure your merch is worth buying!

You also run your own design studio (@stanterburydesignstudio). What inspired you to start dabbling in the creative side of the music merch industry?

I started by being a photo editor for a studio, then moved into working in marketing departments, and the graphic design grew from there. I used that when I had my own business for the best part of a decade and made my own marketing materials, which was a massive help because outsourcing was expensive. Rightly so, but it was a cost I couldn’t afford. And now in the music industry there are a lot of bands who want to build that brand, but can’t afford to whilst they are starting out. I know that feeling, and wanted to be the person that I needed with my own business.

Rapid-fire round – finish the sentence:

a)  I’m currently really enjoying listening to… As Everything Unfolds, even listening to them daily on tour I’m still not bored of them.

b) A favourite piece of merch I own is… my Continents hoody. They had a design with a lil’ ghosty design on it and I will wear that until it falls to pieces

c) If I wasn’t working in the music industry, I’d be… sad. But also I probably would be working in a bakery. I used to run my own cake business, and one of the parts of my job that I love is the customer interaction, so that would be the best of both (and the snacks would be great).

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Follow Ellie on Instagram here.

Work with Ellie - elliestanbury@hotmail.co.uk