Bear Grips Pro ShopsOvernight Camp Apparel Revenue Math by Session Size
- Camp apparel breaks into three revenue streams: tuition-covered welcome bag, parent-funded camp store, and closing-day souvenir.
- Profit comes from the camp-store and closing-day pieces, not the welcome bag.
- A 120-camper session typically nets $4,000 to $7,000 in apparel profit.
- Math below for 60-camper, 120-camper, 200-camper, and 300-camper sessions.
Overnight camp apparel is one of the few line items that can move from cost center to profit center without changing the staffing model. The welcome-bag tee is absorbed in tuition. The camp store and the closing-day souvenir tee both run at retail prices well above POD cost. Below is the math by session size, with the assumptions and a per-piece breakdown, so directors can compare against their current screen-printer setup.
Assumptions used in every table
- VIP plan ($59/month) with $19.88 cotton tee, $36.88 hoodie, $34.88 crewneck, $25.86 hat, $26.88 short, $29.88 long sleeve base prices
- Retail markup of $10-15 per piece, default $10 on tees and $15 on hoodies and crewnecks
- 50 percent of campers buy at least one camp-store piece during the session
- 30 percent of camper families buy at least one souvenir piece on closing day
- Counselor and CIT apparel covered in the staffing budget, not in this profit calculation
60-camper session revenue math
| Stream | Pieces sold | Avg profit per piece | Session profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camp-store mid-session sales | 30 pieces (50% of campers) | $12 | $360 |
| Closing-day souvenir sales | 18 pieces (30% of camper families) | $13 | $234 |
| Sibling/parent add-ons closing day | 10 pieces | $14 | $140 |
| Session profit total | $734 |
120-camper session revenue math
| Stream | Pieces sold | Avg profit per piece | Session profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camp-store mid-session sales | 60 pieces | $12 | $720 |
| Color-war tee sales | 120 pieces (sold to camper families) | $10 | $1,200 |
| Closing-day souvenir sales | 36 pieces (30% of families) | $13 | $468 |
| Sibling/parent add-ons closing day | 25 pieces | $14 | $350 |
| End-of-session hoodie sales | 20 pieces (older campers) | $18 | $360 |
| Session profit total | $3,098 |
200-camper session revenue math
| Stream | Pieces sold | Avg profit per piece | Session profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camp-store mid-session sales | 100 pieces | $12 | $1,200 |
| Color-war tee sales | 200 pieces | $10 | $2,000 |
| Closing-day souvenir sales | 60 pieces | $13 | $780 |
| Sibling/parent add-ons closing day | 45 pieces | $14 | $630 |
| End-of-session hoodie sales | 40 pieces | $18 | $720 |
| Alumni / pre-season parent pre-orders | 20 pieces | $12 | $240 |
| Session profit total | $5,570 |
300-camper session revenue math
| Stream | Pieces sold | Avg profit per piece | Session profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camp-store mid-session sales | 150 pieces | $12 | $1,800 |
| Color-war tee sales | 300 pieces | $10 | $3,000 |
| Closing-day souvenir sales | 90 pieces | $13 | $1,170 |
| Sibling/parent add-ons closing day | 70 pieces | $14 | $980 |
| End-of-session hoodie sales | 60 pieces | $18 | $1,080 |
| Alumni / pre-season parent pre-orders | 35 pieces | $12 | $420 |
| Session profit total | $8,450 |
For a camp running three 300-camper sessions per summer, the apparel program nets roughly $25,000 in profit annually with zero upfront inventory cost.
How POD changes the camp math
Under the old screen-printer model, the camp committed cash in March for the full-summer apparel inventory and absorbed any leftover sizes as a loss. Under POD, the camp pays nothing until a parent or camper orders. The cash that used to sit in inventory now stays in the operating account. Surplus risk goes to zero. The same revenue math runs but the working-capital line drops to zero.
Run the Numbers for Your Camp
Set up the shop, run one session, compare against your current screen-printer cost. Most camps recover the monthly fee in the first week.
Start FreeFrequently Asked Questions
What if the camp does not want to mark up apparel?
Many camps run apparel at cost or near-cost as a service to families. Pricing at $5 profit per piece instead of $12 still pays for the platform monthly and any administrative overhead.
Do payouts come monthly or per-order?
Payouts run on a regular cadence and are tracked in the shop dashboard. Each session is straightforward to reconcile against camper rosters.
Can the camp use the apparel profit toward scholarship or program costs?
Yes. Many camps direct the apparel profit specifically toward scholarship funds, equipment upgrades, or new program lines.
How does the math change for two-week vs four-week sessions?
Longer sessions raise the mid-session camp-store volume since campers visit the store more times. Four-week sessions typically generate 20-30 percent more per-camper than two-week sessions.
