This article talks about the rise of “food merch”

Remember when everyone though it was cool to wear your favorite cartoon on a graphic tee?  Traditionally a practice of fast fashion giants (Forever21 and H&M) high end retailers now want a piece of the pie.  However, that infatuation has shifted to food and to items of clothing that aren’t just t-shirts.

Designers like Kanye West and Collette, have been inspired by anything from grocery stores in LA (he called it “grocery store drip”) to McDonalds to trendy eateries that are not nationally well known. And the public is eating it up. The collaborations with the food industry have sparked a emergence of “rep your favorite food”. Honestly, it’s no different than wearing a t-shirt showcasing your favorite band or favorite place in the world–now it;s your favorite food.

This is a great trend for restaurants, because they rely heavily on branding and marketing. It’s a chance for the brand and restaurant to show a sense of familiarity either in their ethics or the customer experience. Whoever realized that the graphic tee/logo craze could shift to restaurants is brilliant. It’s a form of marketing that caters to the fashionable individual and food lovers .

Would you buy these? (collaboration with sauconyxdunkin donuts)