College athlete Paul Mulcahy is spreading gratitude with merch. Spreadshop is giving the Rutgers basketball player a platform to inspire others.

Other college athletes with merch have taken a similar approach and have chosen to use their platform for change. Amari Carter is a safety for the Miami Hurricane. His nonprofit is helping to provide food for the homeless community in Florida. Paul’s mission: lead with gratitude.

His nonprofit  – the Grateful 4 Foundation – is all about spreading gratitude and inspiring a chain of selfless acts. Merch is a way for him to raise money for his cause and promote what we should feel everyday.

It’s a Chain Reaction

Everyone is capable of feeling gratitude. Our everyday lives can be so busy and stressful that we fail to take time and acknowledge how thankful we are. It can be easy to get caught up in what we don’t have that would make our lives “better” or “easier.” And Paul himself has a lot to be grateful for.

He’s an all-star player on the court, but he’s dealt with troubles off the court that have impacted his life. In 2015, a fire displaced his family and burnt nearly all of their possessions. Paul and his sister were in the house when the fire started. They were lucky to get out when they did.

A loss like that can make you angry and want to turn your back on the world. Instead, Paul opened up his heart to the things in life that really matter. Five years later, he started a foundation with that kind of intention.

The Big Picture

The Grateful 4 Foundation seeks to create a community based on the idea of gratitude and selflessness. Big things can happen when you think about others rather than yourself. Just like gratitude, there’s something in Paul’s shop for everyone!

The definition of gratitude adorns t-shirts, hoodies, hats and more. Your merch purchase will help support 6 different nonprofit organizations on behalf of the Grateful 4 Foundation. Rep your gratitude and feel confident knowing you’ve helped spread an important message.

What makes you grateful? Turn your passion into merch. Open a Spreadshop today!

The post NIL Athlete Paul Mulcahy Shows Gratitude appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

Amari Carter – safety for the Miami Hurricanes – is creating change thanks to newfound NIL opportunities. Amari is using merch to benefit his nonprofit, the Survive Foundation, which provides food and resources to underserved, homeless communities. 

College athletes can now monetize from their name and build a brand through NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) deals. While this money is nice pocket change for a hardworking student, many of these athletes, like Amari, are donating it in service of charitable organizations.

Amari’s Spreadshop is bringing awareness to the issue of hunger, something that means a lot to him. He’s making big moves on and off the field. And both parts of his life are inspirational.

Merch For Good

Amari was moved to start the Survive Foundation while enjoying a lunch date with his girlfriend, Emilee. They realized how fortunate they were to afford food and be provided service at a restaurant. So many people are struggling out there wondering when/how they’ll get their next meal.

Amari wanted to do something about it. After lunch, they went to Aldi’s to prepare baggies to hand out to people in Downtown Orlando. This kind  gesture was the launching pad for The Survive Foundation.

But the foundation is more than providing food to these communities; it’s about creating a real human connection.

“The biggest thing is seeing them and acknowledging them,” Carter told the Palm Beach Post. “I feel many times we’ll see someone on the side of the road or someone who could use help, sometimes people act like they don’t see them.”

Amari is an inspiration on and off the field. Help support his fight against hunger when you buy his merch. All proceeds go directly to the Survive Foundation!

Launch your Spreadshop today to start making a change.

The post Amari Carter Creates Change With NIL appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

Tre Tipton is an inspiration on and off the football field. Helping college athletes with their mental health struggles is a big passion of Tre’s. And his apparel is bringing awareness to this cause in a big way!

As Spreadshop’s first NIL-sponsored athlete, Tre (who plays for Pitt) has the opportunity to build a brand. But Tre’s shop is more than just about promoting his name and image; it’s about supporting his nonprofit, LOVE: Living Out Victoriously Everyday. LOVE helps college athletes facing the pressures of performing well in sports and in school.

25 percent of t-shirt and sweatshirt sales from Tre’s Spreadshop will directly support LOVE. Tre Tipton’s apparel and message make him the shop of the moment.

Trauma Makes You a Warrior

LOVE is a program that helps “empower, provide hope and build a community for collegiate student-athletes who are dealing with mental, emotional, and physical struggles.” Tipton wants to help people dealing with these experiences and break down the stigma behind mental health, especially in sports. And he knows the struggle all too well.

The Pitt athlete has endured depression, suicidal thoughts and serious injuries that have taken him out of the game. Athletes have a tougher time opening up about mental health, but it’s incredibly important to start those conversations.

“Athletes don’t really get an opportunity to speak up about (mental health). We really don’t get the opportunity to speak up about our situations,” he told TribLive. “And if we do, we get looked at differently.”

There’s this misconception that because an athlete takes hits on the field, they should be tough enough to handle anything. No one is above struggling. Putting on a tough persona to get through things is part of the problem.

“Everybody claims that we’re superheroes. We’re just normal people, just like you,” says Tipton.

Adversity is a Comma in the Sentence of Life

“Adversity is a comma in the sentence of life, not a period.”

This is just one of the inspiring quotes you can find on Tipton’s apparel. He’s more than just an athlete: he’s a motivator and mentor. Tre Tipton’s apparel is more than just growing HIS brand. It’s about creating a community and letting other athletes know they’re not alone in their struggles.

These are the quotes that speak to Tre and reflect his journey. And everything comes back to LOVE.

“Anything I make from Spreadshop I’m going to give back to LOVE and try to make it into something bigger than it already is,” he says. “The goal is to eventually put LOVE on a bigger scale.”

Tre plans to play football as long as his legs will carry him, but his heart lies in helping athletes. He knows he has the power to make a difference in their lives and he’s giving it all he’s got.

Launch your Spreadshop today to fuel your passion and purpose with merch!

The post Shop of the Moment: Tre Tipton Apparel appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) is a burgeoning market for college athletes and relates to merch in more ways than one. Merch not only has the power to earn athletes money, but help set them up for future success.

Having control of your name, image and likeness is a powerful thing. College athletes have been shut out of these rights for too long. Legislation has only recently started to turn the tide in favor of college athletes.

NIL rights allow athletes to express themselves, build a brand and make a profit. College athletes are now considered a singular voice with the ability to make decisions in THEIR best interest.

Learn how Spreadshop is empowering athletes to take control of their image while saying something worthwhile!

What is NIL?

NIL gives college athletes the chance to take advantage of professional athlete opportunities. They weren’t able to endorse products or accept sponsorship deals before. Newly passed legislation will finally allow college athletes the right to earn compensation and brand themselves like the pros do.

With NIL rights, athletes decide how they want to market themselves. The college no longer holds all the cards and can stifle their voice. It’s up to these college athletes to rep what they’re passionate about.

Owning your name, image and likeness is crucial for a professional or would-be professional athlete. But what does that mean? How do you own yourself?

NIL allows students to step in the spotlight. A student athlete doing commercials for a chain restaurant, a student athlete wearing a brand’s clothing on Instagram in a sponsored post, a student athlete creating their own merch and selling it to their fans. These are all the things a student athlete can do that relate to their name and image.

NIL allows athletes to express themselves and earn some money, but at the end of the day, it’s about building a brand. The deals these athletes now can impact their professional standing for years to come. And they don’t even have to still be playing sports.

College Students Can Build Their Brand Now

What if there was a more personal and direct way for athletes to grow their brand? That’s where print on-demand merch comes in. Athletes can earn a percentage of the profits when they launch their own fashion brand through e-commerce merch sites.

Spreadshop is leading the way in the print on-demand space through official partnerships with NoCapSports and Fanword. These partnerships aim to educate student athletes and guide them as they launch merch for the first time.

Merch development is a fun and creative process, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be profitable. When you market it that right way, merch is an essential brand builder. Spreadshop is a free and easy option that creators, businesses and now athletes can use to develop their merch line. It’s valuable in helping fans new and old alike understand who you are and what you stand for.

Your brand is how people will come to identify you. The increase in NIL opportunities has signaled an emphasis on branding to build a career. College athletes no longer have to hide behind the symbols of their college – they can create their own.

Merch sets college athletes up for life-changing and money-making opportunities.

How College Athletes Are Making Money With Merch

Restaurant and car dealership deals are standard for locally renowned athletes, and are a natural entry point. But sometimes athletes just need to have complete ownership of their name. They need to be the one making the decisions.

Merch allows college athletes to market directly to their fans and create a close bond with them. It’s an engaging and interactive process that makes both parties feel represented. NIL rights allow college athletes the chance to build a merch brand. A merch brand gives athletes power and professional backing. That might sound like a lofty thing, but it means a lot in an industry associated with uncertainty and instability.

Less than 2% of college football players will go pro, so what are the options for those that don’t? NIL relates to merch in that it puts a plan in place for an athletes’ future while they’re still in school.  They’ll learn how to market themselves and figure out what they have to offer, whether that’s in sports or not.

Merch is more than just promoting an athlete and their brand, though. It also helps to raise awareness of important issues.

More Than Just an Athlete

Tre Tipton has been through a lot on and off the football field. The Pitt athlete has endured depression, suicidal thoughts and serious injuries. But the love of the game helped pull him through and reignited a new purpose for him.

Tipton founded L.O.V.E. (Living Out Victoriously Everyday), a program that helps “empower, provide hope and build a community for collegiate student-athletes who are dealing with mental, emotional, and physical struggles.” Tipton wants to help other people dealing with similar experiences and break down the stigma behind mental health, especially in sports. His newly launched merch line is a great way to raise awareness.

“Adversity is a comma in the sentence of life, not a period.”

This is just one of the inspiring quotes you can find on Tipton’s merch. He’s more than just an athlete: he’s a motivator and mentor. His merch is more than just growing HIS brand. It’s about creating a community and letting other athletes know they’re not alone in their struggles.

NIL just doesn’t relate to merch in a business sense, but in a deeply personal sense, too. It has the power to boost an athlete’s brand and confidence, and create meaningful conversations.

Open your Spreadshop today to start putting your voice above the noise on the field!

The post What NIL is and How it Relates to Merch appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

If you’re at all invested in college sports, you’ve seen the word NIL tossed around a lot recently.

NIL – Name, Image, and Likeness – gives college athletes the opportunity to turn a profit by essentially being themselves.

For too long, laws have prevented college athletes from branding themselves, accepting sponsorship deals and setting up their future.

Recent legislation sent waves through the industry and the biggest changes are yet to come – so be ready.

College athletes need to know what NIL is and how they can use it for their benefit when the ball drops.

What Does It Mean?

Having control of your name, image, and likeness is a powerful thing.

But what does it mean to OWN your image?

With NIL rights, you decide how you want to market yourself and, in turn, make money:

• Become a spokesperson for a local restaurant or car dealership
• Accept deals from national brands and do sponsored posts on social media
• Make your own merch and market it to fans.

Your voice won’t be stifled by your college anymore. You’ll have control of your name and future.

What Can It Do For You?

NIL rights allow college athletes the chance to build a brand.

That might sound like a lofty thing, but it means a lot in an industry associated with uncertainty and instability.

Under 2% of college football players will go pro, so what are the options for those that don’t?

NIL helps put a plan in place for your future while you’re still in school.

Learn how to market yourself and figure out what you have to offer, whether that’s in sports or not.

This all ties into your brand.

Learning these business skills and growing your confidence is only going to help you later in life.

Start exploring ideas for your FREE merch and take your name to the next level today!

Open your own Online Apparel Store!

The post What Does NIL Stand For? appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.