bootleg TGA t-shirts, hoodies, etc.

Your friendly forum admin says ...

PLEASE DON'T BUY BOOTLEG GASLIGHT ANTHEM T-SHIRTS, HOODIES, ETC.

1) because the band get nothing from the sale

2) because the designer gets nothing either (if the the items incorporate an official design)

3) because "the trade in counterfeit goods is based on sweatshops, virtual slavery and child labour in developing countries, mostly in Asia [and] is controlled by the same criminal gangs who are involved in drug smuggling, people trafficking and money laundering."
[from http://www.moneyweek.com/news-and-charts/economics/what-counterfeiting-means-for-the-world.aspx]


bootleg shirts were seen on sale at UK venues

Dude, that's messed up


Seriously about to just go on TGA's site and buy a few Tshirts...

Thats why I buy all my shirts from their official site...Support TGA!

O:
I buy mine at shows.
:3
inside the venue.
merch table.
ah.

What price are shirts going for now a days at TGA shows anyways?

I get a little annoyed when bands put their shirts up for more than $15. Like, twenty bucks is a lot for a t-shirt. I know it "supporting the band" and all that, but not everyone can afford a 30 dollar concert ticket and a twenty dollar shirt. Bands shouldn't abuse fans goodwill towards supporting them. Just because you're popular doesn't mean you should sell your shirts for more simply because they'll sell.

CluckyB wrote:

What price are shirts going for now a days at TGA shows anyways?

I get a little annoyed when bands put their shirts up for more than $15. Like, twenty bucks is a lot for a t-shirt. I know it "supporting the band" and all that, but not everyone can afford a 30 dollar concert ticket and a twenty dollar shirt. Bands shouldn't abuse fans goodwill towards supporting them. Just because you're popular doesn't mean you should sell your shirts for more simply because they'll sell.

Yeah man I agree that's why I bought a couple of bootleg t shirts in June. I would buy the official t shirts if they weren't so expensive.

It is not always the band that dictates the price. Venues take a large cut, the band has to support a merch person (who are usually pros), you have to pay for design and production, as well as shipping. Some venues like Radio City charge a big fee basically negating any profits. Usually when one sells a product you sell it for 4x the amount it takes to recoup expenses. In most band's cases they aren't doing that, they are lucky to make $5 on a $30 shirt. So if you are buying a bootleg shirt, not only are you supporting a criminal and purchasing a crappy product, you are giving them more money than the band. And trust me, if Gaslight could sell them for five bucks they would.

They were selling shirts for 10 € back in early 2009, and now they're charging twice as much. That isn't exactly overpriced, but pretty steep. Especially since, for example, Bad Religion, a popular band that's been around for 30 years, still charge only 15 € for their shirts.
By no means I condone buying bootleg shirts, but I do understand people who buy them if they're just half the price.
On a side note, I've never encountered street vendors with bootleg shirts at any venue. I always thought this to be a problem only at huge concerts, like for example The Rolling Stones or AC/DC.

This is why I hate bootlegs:

http://ywruimei.en.alibaba.com/product/362256005-210634428/Genuine_leather_wallet_with_the_printing_design.html

Some guy rips my poster and the band name and neither one of us gets a lick of money. On top of that, it is a crappy product. Say what you will on the varying degree of being "rich", I live pretty much paycheck to paycheck and this doesn't help. When I get the excuse of "it's PUNK ROCK" I look at my two kids and try to figure out how to pay for daycare and college.

Supply Ability: 100000 Piece/Pieces per Month - oh crap.

El Jefe wrote:

When I get the excuse of "it's PUNK ROCK" I look at my two kids and try to figure out how to pay for daycare and college.

I never got that line of reasoning. Having your stuff stolen and used so someone else can make money off of it doesn't seem "PUNK ROCK" to me. It seems like stealing to me...

Also, El Jefe, I'll have a new addition to your "Posters In The World" album in about 3 weeks. It's getting framed right now.

People say it to me all the time as an excuse - like I am selling out because I won't allow my stuff to be ripped off or for me to accept being lied to. Punk to me is DIY and a strong work ethic not being a jerk and using PUNK as an excuse. Hey, we all make mistakes and do stupid things (I know I have) but to say it is "Punkrock" is just lame.

El Jefe wrote:

This is why I hate bootlegs:
http://ywruimei.en.alibaba.com/product/362256005-210634428/Genuine_leather_wallet_with_the_printing_design.html

That's really terrible! Can't you sue them - or is it too complicated and/or cost-intensive because they are in China?

On the topic in gerneral:
I honestly can understand if people are pissed because they can not afford some stuff. But it's more a matter of price/value ratio rather than just saying something is too expensive. In my opinion it's never a solution to go for the cheap imitation - the quality is poor and you rip off everybody else in the process except the dealer of the fakes. And I suppose they even earn more money on the cheap stuff than everybody else involved in the original process would have. Everything that's created whether it's a yoghurt or a piece of art needs time to develop and most probably a lot of people to realise the idea. And it's just not fair to betray those people who put their hearts and even their own money into it. It's easy to be glad about the bargain you just made but if force yourself to think what that actually means to the artists you might choose differently. And in the end if everybody would just buy the imitiation there will be no more originals available because nobody can afford to create and produce them.

So sometimes it might just be better to save some money, maybe abstain from buying something else and buy the *good* stuff and value it instead of going for the cheap second rate version of it. I think everyone can transfer this to his/her own work - no matter what you're doing. Nobody likes to be replaced by somebody because they're doing nearly the same only cheaper, do you?

Sorry, I went off on that topic but this is really important to me. That not only goes for pieces of art or music but as well for local/organic food, clothes etc.

Enola hit the nail on the head. If you can't afford it, don't buy the knockoff. By purchasing the cheap one, you devalue the real thing.

El Jefe wrote:

People say it to me all the time as an excuse - like I am selling out because I won't allow my stuff to be ripped off or for me to accept being lied to. Punk to me is DIY and a strong work ethic not being a jerk and using PUNK as an excuse. Hey, we all make mistakes and do stupid things (I know I have) but to say it is "Punkrock" is just lame.

Completely agreed. A huge part of 'punk rock' (if you can even define what it means) is to respect other people's art. Jacking your hard work for profit is not respectful of your art.

El Jefe wrote:

Punk to me is DIY and a strong work ethic

great line

Why don't you make those wallets picasso???

add this one to the hall of shame , TGA might want to shut this ebay seller down.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/The-Gaslight-Anthem-Handwritten-BLACK-LOGO-T-SHIRT-SIZE-S-TO-XL-/170891884185?pt=Other_Sports_Fan_Shop&hash=item27c9f33699