Merch for coffee shops
Your regulars already carry your cup around town. Give them a mug for home, a tumbler for the commute and a tee for the weekend, without buying a single box of stock.
Free to open · no inventory · 20% of each sale, nothing else
Why coffee shop merch works
A coffee shop sees the same faces most mornings, and regulars feel like part of the place. That feeling is exactly what people pay for when they buy merch: a shirt from their café says they have a usual.
Coffee also has its own merch built in. A mug or tumbler with your logo gets used every day, in kitchens and offices you would never reach otherwise. It is advertising your customers pay you for.
And coffee is a gift. Around the holidays, people who love your shop buy for other people who love your shop. A mug, a tote and a bag of beans is an easy present.
What you’d earn
The products that suit a coffee shop best, at our suggested prices. You set the price; the dashboard shows what you earn on every size before you list.
| Product | Customer pays | Printing and blank | Our fee (20%) | You earn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enamel MugMugs | $32.00 | −$12.67 | −$6.40 | $12.93 |
Stainless Steel TumblerTumblers | $59.00 | −$23.25 | −$11.80 | $23.95 |
| Unisex Basic Softstyle T-Shirt | Gildan 64000T-shirts | $25.00 | −$9.63 | −$5.00 | $10.37 |
| Eco Tote Bag | Econscious EC8000Tote bags | $45.00 | −$17.75 | −$9.00 | $18.25 |
 Embroidered Apron | Liberty Bags 5502Aprons | $45.00 | −$17.64 | −$9.00 | $18.36 |
 Unisex Garment-Dyed Sweatshirt | Comfort Colors 1566Sweatshirts | $77.00 | −$30.59 | −$15.40 | $31.01 |
Today’s catalog at our suggested prices. Larger sizes cost a bit more to make; your dashboard shows every size before you list, and you can price higher or lower.
Ideas to start with
The logo mug
The one every café should start with. Clean logo, white or black mug, priced like the mugs on the shelf by your register.
Your house drink, by name
The drink your regulars order by nickname, printed on the back of a tee or the side of a mug. Insiders get it; everyone else asks.
The barista apron
The same apron your team wears. Home brewers love it, and when your baristas wear it, every shift shows it off.
A bean tote
For customers who buy coffee to take home. Roasters especially: a tote with your roast names on it is useful and good-looking.
A tumbler for the regulars who bring their own cup
Pairs with a bring-your-own-cup habit at the counter, and earns more per sale than a mug.
How to sell it
- 1Put a QR card on the pickup counter, where people stand waiting for their drink.
- 2Serve a regular’s order in the mug you sell, so they see it in use.
- 3Have baristas wear the tee or apron for launch week, and after.
- 4Post a photo of a regular with their drink and the mug on Instagram, with the link in your bio.
- 5From November, put the mug and tote in front of gift buyers: “Gifts for the coffee lover.”
What we handle
- Printed to order, usually within 2–5 business days
- Shipped across the US, with tracking emails in your shop’s name
- Checkout, payment and sales tax handled
- Misprints and damage reprinted or refunded at our cost
- Your own shop at yourname.themerchcounter.com
- A QR counter card and stickers, ready to print
Questions coffee shops ask
- What coffee shop merch sells best?
- Mugs are the most reliable, then a soft tee or sweatshirt. Tumblers sell well where regulars bring their own cup, and totes suit roasters who sell beans.
- Can I sell my coffee beans through The Merch Counter?
- No. The Merch Counter is for printed merch: apparel, drinkware, bags, stickers and pins. Keep selling beans the way you do now, and link to your merch shop from the same places.
- How much does a coffee shop earn on a mug?
- It depends on the mug and your price. The table above shows today’s catalog at our suggested prices; your dashboard shows the exact figure for every product before you list it.
Guides for coffee shops
Merch ideas
15 Coffee Shop Merch Ideas Your Regulars Will Actually Buy
Coffee shop merch ideas that sell: mugs, tumblers, tees, totes and aprons, with design ideas, example prices and how to launch with no inventory.
2 min read
Marketing your merch
Using a QR Code to Sell Merch in Your Store
Where to put a merch QR code in your shop, what the sign should say, how to print it and how to tell whether it's working.
3 min read
Pricing and profit
How Much Should You Charge for a T-Shirt?
Price a t-shirt with your logo at $25–$35, about 2.5× what it costs to make. How to pick your price, what you'll earn, and how to handle bigger sizes.
3 min read
Open your coffee shop merch shop
Fifteen minutes, nothing up front, and a link you can share tonight.
Open your free shop