It doesn’t get much bigger – or much hipper – than South by Southwest (SXSW). The massive festival that annually takes over Austin, TX for about 10 days in March is renowned for showcasing not only what’s hot now, but what’s cutting edge and poised to take off in film, music, emerging technology, comedy and gaming.

Naturally, branded merchandise is part of the festival. And, Top 40 supplier Next Level Apparel (asi/73867) has a big hand in that. The Gardena, CA-based company is the official T-Shirt sponsor of SXSW, which runs March 8 to March 17. It’s the fourth year in a row Next Level has been SXSW’s tee gurus.

“The merch component is huge, and we’re extremely excited to be part of that,” Mark Seymour, C.S.O at Next Level, told Counselor.

Official artwork from a 2018 SXSW T-shirt.

For 2019, Seymour and his team have some cool stuff in store for SXSW. First, they’ll be outfitting festivalgoers with official branded merchandise that can only be bought at SXSW. But that isn’t all. On March 15th and 16th, Next Level will be setting up shop at the SXSW Marketplace at the Austin Convention center to, among cool offerings, perform live demonstrations of direct-to-garment digital printing. “A lot of people haven’t seen digital printing before, and it’s really eye-opening for them when they do,” said Seymour, who noted Next Level will also be at booth #1236 at the SXSW trade show at the Austin Convention Center from March 10th through the 13th. “It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Official art from a 2018 SXSW T-shirt design.

Music aficionados are really going to dig the third prong of Next Level’s SXSW presence. The fashion-forward apparel maker is teaming up with global marketing agency COLLiDE to host a two-day “POP UP” event at one of Austin’s coolest spots – Clive Bar, located on super trendy Rainey Street. To be held March 14th and 15th, the event will feature a dozen up-and-coming musical acts. Plus, Next Level will be screen-printing on the spot with the help of partner AKA Printing, providing attendees with personalized T-Shirts.

Seymour is pumped for the POP UP. “One of the coolest elements is that we’re devoting a day to female artists – solo performers and female-fronted acts,” he told Counselor. In addition to domestic musical artists, there’s an international flavor to the line-up. For instance, Canadian singer/songwriter Cat Clyde and Wafia, an Australian singer/songwriter of Iraqi/Syrian origin, are on the bill.

Furthermore, in a nod to the POP UP and SXSW Rainey Street experience of music and revelry, Next Level is teaming up with COLLiDE to create a first-to-market NLA X #COLLiDEonRainey merchandise line featuring custom graphics, artist line-ups and SXSW logos. The collection figures to include tees, tanks, hoodies and raglan sleeve tops. Check ‘em out:

Next Level’s prominent role in SXSW came about naturally. The client in charge of festival merchandise was already a fan of the brand’s apparel, which is known for on-trend cuts and styling, along with a super soft-hand feel. Leveraging the love, Next Level provided some peripheral T-shirt work for SXSW, while another brand was the main sponsor. But when the other apparel company’s official T-shirt sponsorship ended, the door opened for Next Level to step in. The supplier was in pole position to do so thanks to the pre-existing relationship and the client’s preference for the brand’s apparel. “It started with love of the product and evolved organically into more and more opportunity,” said Seymour. Personally, we’re stoked to see more of the festival-only merch that Next Level debuts in the coming weeks.

Our only regret is that we won’t be in Austin to buy some – and take in a few tunes and inspiring keynotes.

Announcing Keynotes @PJRaval, @Spotify Chief Content Officer Dawn Ostroff and @Gimletmedia Co-founder Matt Lieber (@mlieber) and more Featured Speakers including Jodie Foster, Malcolm @Gladwell, @AshleyGraham for #SXSW 2019! https://t.co/lZPrDenAWu

— SXSW (@sxsw) February 27, 2019

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