Aaron Landry

Frattallone’s Ace Hardware T-shirt, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

Three short stories about local T-shirt marketing:

Frattallone’s Ace Hardware

The other day bundled with a local newspaper was a T-shirt for the new Ace Hardware store that moved in two blocks from my house. The photo on the back is kinda strange and the logo on the front isn’t aligned very well. On the back is a “coupon” saying that if I’m wearing this shirt “visible for everyone to see,” I get 10% off any private labeled items I purchase. I thought it was a humorous marketing ploy.

Fashion is certainly not my forte but I don’t think I’ll be caught wearing this one. One never knows when you’ll show up on Flickr. Oh, by the way, a shoutout to Voltage: Fashion Amplified for thinking of me despite my lack of fashion sense and sending me an advance copy of their 2008 compilation CD.

Anyway, while I am happy to have new businesses in town, and to see fun marketing ideas, I am a bit concerned that they moved in just four blocks from River Lake True Value Hardware, a locally run hardware store that usually has my business. Ed has more on Frattallone’s.

I wonder how many people I’ll see around town getting their T-shirt discount.

East Lake Liquors

East Lake Liquors is also two blocks from me and sometimes I’ll see neighbors wearing an East Lake Liquors T-shirt with a logo that resembles that of a softball team. For a liquor store, they’re not bad shirts. In the store there’s a sign hanging in the back corner saying “T-shirts” and the price. Ignore that you noticed that though. Here’s a tip: show up to buy beer a few times some month and on the third time ask, “say, what do I need to do to get one of those cool t-shirts?” and I bet they’ll only ask you one question in exchange: “what size you want?”

Stook

When Stook had his latest CD release at the Varsity Theater he came up to me at some point in the night and asked if I got the T-shirt. I asked, “what T-shirt?”

“The one I gave you!”
“I didn’t get one.”
“I put it in your mailbox.”
“I didn’t see it.”
“You’re at thirty-two hundred forty-third avenu….”
“Forty-first.”
“I thought forty-third.”
“I live on Forty-first.”
“Oh shit! Well, if you ever see your neighbor wearing a cool shirt while he’s out mowing the lawn…”

I’ve yet to follow up with my neighbors and ask if they got a cool T-shirt in their mailbox. Maybe they’re new Stook fans though.