Sale of Items
Meredith College does not permit the sale of items advertising or advocating the use of alcohol, drugs, or tobacco. Meredith reserves the right to deny permission to any group selling or distributing materials which are not in accord with the philosophy of the College.
Imprinted Merchandise Designs and Ordering
All imprinted merchandise, regardless of use, is subject to the Meredith College Trademark Licensing Policy for Student Organizations.
Please consider the below timeline as a guide for the production of all imprinted merchandise intended for resale or internal use. Remember the earlier the better!
Four (4) and more weeks prior to in-hand deadline
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Design artwork
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Gather quotes from licensed vendors
- in order to gather accurate quotes, be prepared to share with the vendor: the type of merchandise you are purchasing (e.g. organic shirt, coozie, etc.), the number of colors in your anticipated artwork, and the estimated quantity you will order
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Reserve space on campus for sales (if needed)
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Inform organization treasurer of sales dates, treasurer should coordinate financial transactions with the Office of Student Leadership and Service
At least three (3) weeks prior to in-hand deadline
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Decide the vendor with whom you will work, submit design ideas to vendor, and work with the vendor to finalize the artwork as you wish it to be imprinted
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Vendor will submit a proof of your desired artwork to Trademarx for final review and approval by the Office of Marketing and Communications and the Office of Student Leadership and Service (may take up to 5 business days).
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Sell merchandise and/or gather full order to submit to vendor
- note that your artwork is still subject to final approval at this point – please indicate as such on all promotional materials
At least two (2) weeks prior to in-hand deadline
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Place final order with vendor
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Meredith College Office of Marketing and Communications will decide final approval of design and application of royalties
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Once the design is approved and order is placed, vendor may begin production of merchandise (typically at least 7-10 business days)
Design Considerations: Designs which carry the name Meredith College should be considered so as not to be offensive to any member of the Meredith Community. Please be inclusive of all members of your organization and to the Meredith community. Designs must also adhere to the Meredith College Design Style Guide. The Director and Assistant Director of Student Leadership and Service reserve the right to deny approval to any design not meeting these standards.
Copyright Considerations: All copyright laws will apply. When choosing a design for your imprint, you must either use a true original drawing (not a re-drawing of a well-known graphic) or obtain a license from the company/publisher of the graphic wanting to be used. The general rule is to avoid using anything that undercuts the ability of the copyright holder to make a profit on something that is rightfully theirs such as using the name of a product, television or movie title or all the words from a song.
Ordering: Student organizations are required to purchase from licensed vendors for all merchandise. All merchandise should be sold on a pre-order, pre-pay basis. Obtain all estimates in writing and keep a copy of all written agreements.
Fundraising Ideas:
Try to be creative and have fun with your fundraisers. The Office of Student Leadership and Service have a number of catalogues with numerous ideas, and we get phone calls from vendors wanting to do business with student organizations. Please contact the Assistant Director for further assistance.
Some ideas include jewelry, candy, bake sale, car wash, pens, license plates, cups, coffee mugs, flashlights, key chains, sunglasses, water bottles, calendars, posters, greeting cards, discount books, candy grams at Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day, or other holidays. We have also put together some links to more sustainable fundraising efforts including fundraisers using fair trade products. See our Green Fundraising Tips for more information. No credit card promotions are allowed as a fundraiser on-campus.
Important Fundraising Guidelines (Please follow these guidelines as you plan any fundraiser):
1. To reserve a table in the lobby of Cate Center, contact the Office of Student Leadership and Service after you have registered your fundraiser. Tables in the Cate Center lobby may not be moved.
2. To reserve any other space on campus, contact Campus Events at 760-8533 after you have registered your fundraiser.
3. Due to the lack of space, we will not accommodate groups from other campuses to sell merchandise on our campus. Please ask groups who want to sell on our campus to make a flier that includes a phone number to call if Meredith College students are interested in purchasing their merchandise. The Office of Student Leadership and Service must approve the flier(s).
4. For all fundraising events, you must have a written contract. If your organization does not help with the fundraiser and does not provide publicity for the event you should receive at least 15% of total sales from the event. Your organization should receive at least 20% of total sales if you have to help with the fundraiser and/or provide publicity. The student organization is in charge of reserving on-campus space (Cate Center table or other) when using an outside vendor.
5. We recommend that you do your fundraisers on a pre-order, pre-pay basis. The Office of Student Leadership and Service reserve the right to deny approval for any group who does not sell an item on a pre-order basis.
6. Absolutely no door-to-door selling will be allowed in the residence halls.
7. Student organizations are not allowed to conduct raffles as fund-raisers.
8. Copyright Laws apply to fundraisers and the sale of items that are facilitated by student organizations.
