Bear Grips Pro ShopsAerial Arts Costumes: What POD Can and Cannot Cover
- Aerial costumes split into two categories: true performance unitards and lifestyle showcase apparel
- Print-on-demand does not include sublimated unitards or competition leotards
- POD does cover the warm-up jackets, branded tees, and bottoms students wear before and after performance
- Most studios use both: a specialty costumer for the on-apparatus piece, a Pro Shop for everything else
Aerial arts costumes split into two distinct orders most studios place every year. The first is the performance unitard or leotard worn on the apparatus, which still has to be sublimated by a specialty costumer. The second is the lifestyle showcase apparel, branded warm-up jackets, performer crews, troupe tanks, and matching team hoodies, which print-on-demand handles cheaper, faster, and with no minimums.
The Two Costume Categories Every Studio Buys
Walk into the green room before any aerial showcase and you will see two costume layers on every performer.
Layer 1: The on-apparatus costume. This is the unitard, leotard, bodysuit, or stretch bralette-and-bottom combo that goes on the silks, lyra, or hammock. It has to handle the load of inversions, sit flat against the body, and survive sublimation graphics or rhinestones without losing stretch. This piece comes from a specialty aerial and dance costume maker.
Layer 2: The off-apparatus apparel. Performers wear branded warm-up jackets, troupe tees, joggers, and hoodies before and after they go up. This is what the audience sees during emcee transitions, what performers wear in green room photos, and what they wear to load out at the end of the night.
Studios that run a full showcase plan both layers six to eight weeks out. Print-on-demand makes the second layer dramatically cheaper than it used to be.
What Print-on-Demand Covers for Aerial Performance
Print-on-demand cannot make a sublimated competition unitard. It can make almost everything else a performing troupe needs.
POD handles well:
- Matching troupe warm-up jackets. Zip-up hoodies or quarter-zips with the troupe name embroidered on the chest or printed on the back.
- Performer crew tees and tanks. A printed tee for green-room photos and travel days.
- Matching joggers or sweatpants. Troupe joggers with the studio or production name printed on the hip.
- Audience and family merch. A small tee run for the families, friends, and fans in the audience. This is one of the highest-margin items at any showcase.
Browse our hoodie catalog for warm-up jackets and our sweatpants catalog for matching bottoms.
Bear Grips Pro Shops: Custom Apparel for Your Team. No Minimums. Free Shipping.The Showcase Apparel Math Most Studios Miss
A single aerial showcase usually has 60 to 120 performers, instructors, and crew on the production side, plus 200 to 500 family members and friends in the audience. That total audience is a captive group with strong emotional connection to the performance.
Most studios print 10 to 20 audience tees as a thank-you for the production team and never list them publicly. The studios that open a public shop and sell branded showcase merch typically earn $500 to $2,000 in extra revenue per performance.
| Item | Audience Sold | Profit per Item | Show Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Showcase commemorative tee | 40 | $12 | $480 |
| Performer crew tee (sold to fans) | 15 | $15 | $225 |
| Studio hoodie | 10 | $17 | $170 |
| Lifestyle sweatpant | 8 | $14 | $112 |
That is just under $1,000 in extra profit per show with no inventory risk. Studios that run four shows a year see this as found money on top of ticket sales.
How to Plan the Apparel Side of a Showcase
The simplest playbook for a studio launching its first showcase apparel run:
- Six weeks out: Open a Bear Grips Pro Shop, design a showcase-specific tee and hoodie, list them in the shop.
- Four weeks out: Share the shop link in the performer family email and announce it on social. Pre-orders close one week before the show so everything ships in time.
- Show night: Pin a QR code to the lobby easel. Late buyers order on their phones at intermission.
- Two weeks after: Send a final order link in the post-show recap email. Late orders typically add 20 to 30 percent on top of the show-night total.
For the on-apparatus unitards and leotards, work with a specialty aerial and dance costumer in your area. POD does not replace them. POD replaces every other apparel order you used to place at a screen printer.
Run a Showcase Apparel Drop With Zero Inventory
Open a free Pro Shop, list a showcase tee and hoodie six weeks before the performance, and earn profit on every pre-order and post-show purchase.
Start FreeFrequently Asked Questions
Can print-on-demand make aerial competition leotards?
No. Sublimated competition unitards and leotards still come from specialty dance and aerial costumers. POD covers everything else: warm-up jackets, troupe tees, joggers, and audience merch.
What apparel can a studio sell around a showcase performance?
Showcase commemorative tees, performer crew tees, matching troupe hoodies, sweatpants, and family-and-friends merch. All of it prints when ordered with no inventory.
How much extra revenue can a studio earn from showcase apparel?
Studios with 200 to 500 audience members typically clear $500 to $2,000 in extra profit per show selling branded commemorative merch through a Pro Shop link shared in pre-show emails.
