...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!
By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
One of the supposed selling points to UFC fighters on the new uniform deal with Reebok is that they'll be getting a cut of merchandise sold in the Reebok store with their name on it. However, with today's unveiling, it seems that may be a tough way for them to actually see much money.
At upwards of $95 per "replica jersey," not to mention numerous inaccuracies, the shirts may not be an easy sell to begin with, and could mean few if any wind up benefiting from that aspect of the deal. For those who don't see the Reebok shirts as an acceptable addition to their brand, and for fans who want a more affordable way to support their favorite fighters, there may be another option.
The crew behind ProWrestlingTees.com, a site for wrestlers to create and sell their own merchandise and take home most of the profits, has launched ArmBarApparel.com for MMA fighters, and will launch this summer. They're calling for sign ups from fighters now, with the following message:
"For the past two years, ProWrestlingTees.com has given pro wrestlers the opportunity to sell their own merchandise all over the world. By allowing wrestlers to sell t-shirts online without the hassle of stocking inventory or shipping, ProWrestlingTees.com has become the largest independent wrestling merchandise site on the internet.
Now we are bringing that service to the world of mixed martial arts. If you are interested in setting up an apparel store, please fill out the form below and we will reach out to you via email with more details before our launch.
At no cost to you, our staff will work with you to create your page. You do not need to stock inventory or worry about what designs will sell or not. We will take care of everything including customer service, shipping, packaging and of course...PRINTING!
You will earn anywhere from $7-$11 per shirt sold based on a $19.99 sale price. Any increase in the sale price will be your own to profit. We offer your design on many differnet styles and sizes all the way up to 5XL. Once approved, you will receive a username and password to log into our backend to track sales.
Thank you for your interested in Armbar Apparel!"
The only requirement right now for fighters to join is that they are on Twitter and have at least 2,000 followers. So for those looking for a way to make money off their own name (provided they have a way to do so without the UFC's involvement), they can sign up now.
Penick's Analysis: I'm not sure, given the likeness rights issue in UFC contracts, what fighters can get away with legally on that front, but so long as they're selling their name and not the UFC, this may be a viable and more affordable option to get them some more money. For those who want to support a specific fighter, a $20 shirt is probably a lot more of an appealing deal than dropping $95 on one "replica jersey" for a sport in which that isn't actually worn in the cage.
DON'T GO YET... WE SUGGEST THESE MMATORCH ARTICLES, TOO!
Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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