#MyMerch Campaign Launch
Touring in 2022 has been brutal for musicians – the financial risks of COVID-19 and heightened costs from inflation have made touring an uphill battle just to break even. To add insult to injury, many venues and festivals require merch cuts. A merch cut is when a venue or festival takes anywhere from 15% to 35% of the artist’s merch sales. This is an exploitative practice that interferes with one of the few ways fans can directly support artists in this challenging economic climate, and it must stop.
Today, the Featured Artists Coalition (FAC), Union of Musicians and Allied Workers (UMAW), and Cadence Weapon are teaming up to launch the North American leg of the 100% Venues campaign, #MyMerch. We call on North American music venues and festivals to join the #MyMerch campaign and sign on to end the practice of taking merch cuts. Join the #MyMerch venue database and pledge not to take merch cuts at the link below.
Artists carry the financial burden of designing, producing, and shipping merch, and selling merch is one of the few ways artists can make a profit on tour. It’s time for North American performance spaces to join the 400+ UK venues that have already committed to not taking a merch cut, and be part of a growing effort to transform the music industry for the better.
Venues and festivals: sign up here to be part of the 100% Venues campaign and take a stand against merch cuts!
