Back in mid-April, the internet was ablaze over a surprise drop of a new concert tee: solid black fabric, oversized fit, with song lyrics printed on the front and cities listed in each corner. And at the center of it all: a tall succulent in a turquoise vase and a name in capital letters — HwaBoon.
HwaBoon isn’t an arena headliner, or even a recording artist. Rather, the plant is from the Broadway show “Maybe Happy Ending,” and merch., the musical’s merchandise agency, designed the shirt to capitalize on audiences’ growing obsession with the beloved breakout character.
Upon release, the tee immediately became the show’s second-best seller out of 30 items. Rarely does a production release new products when already months into a run, let alone concert tee design when the onstage narrative has nothing to do with an actual concert. But it’s all part of the merchandising startup’s strategy: challenging how unconventional — and lucrative — Main Stem merchandise can be.
“People are spending their hard-earned money on this product, after maybe saving up to buy a ticket to the show and even traveling to New York from around the world," said merch.’s CEO Brandon Gloster. “If you’re spending that extra $15 or $30 on something, and you’re happy about it when you get home and every time you see it thereafter, it’s meaningful to us to be able to give them that experience.”
The “Maybe Happy Ending” merchandise expands well beyond the expected souvenir selection of window cards, hoodies, magnets and tote bags. In addition to the concert tee, the show also sells pet sweaters, socks, MacSafe chargers and phone grips. There are three different hat designs — not all of which tout the show's title — and three collectible HwaBoons: a four-inch bag charm, a six-inch replica and, yes, a real potted plant.
