Last month we printed some great tour t-shirts for ChangingAging. We were really interested in what they were doing. Their charismatic spokesperson is Dr Bill Thomas. He started with the idea that “what we need is a radical reinterpretation of longevity that makes elders (and their needs) central to our collective pursuit of happiness and well-being“.
In other words, society’s attitude to old-age is messed up and we could do much better.
Check out his TEDx talk here:
To spread the word, ChangingAging is touring around the US. The show involves Dr Bill Thomas showing up “with a guitar, a bass player, a theater set, costumes, music, art, mythology, storytelling, biography, and neuroscience all mixed up“. There are frank discussions about what we can do about serious issues like dementia, as well as comparing western attitudes to age to those of other cultures. In other words, the kind of things we tend to brush under the carpet, but probably shouldn’t.
They needed custom screen printed t-shirts for their tour. So they came to us, and we were happy to help. We helped out with the artwork, and printed these really great premium, American Apparel 50/50 tour t-shirts in Heather Imperial Purple, with a white screen print, front and back.
We wanted to find out more about how they were using their t-shirts, so we spoke to Kyrié, who organised the purchase of the tour t-shirts.
Hi Kyrié, can you give us a very quick summary of what ChangingAging is?
ChangingAging is a pro-age movement challenging conventional views on aging. We believe aging is a strength, rich in developmental potential and growth. It is a very popular blog (18K+ subscribers which is amazing given we are talking about something people don’t like talking about) and it is also a nationwide perpetual non-fiction theater tour.
Do you think building community is important to your business?
Absolutely! In fact during one of our performances Disrupt Dementia we highlight the transformational power of love, partnership & community to not only make the world a better place to live with dementia but a better place to be a human. We believe that change does not come from lone rangers or super heros or empirically validated studies or experts (all of these are useful). However true change comes from community.
Do you sell or give away your tour t-shirts?
Sell – however we are a non-profit so they help us raise funds rather than turn a profit.
Who buys them and for what reasons?
Attendees to the tour and enthusiasts. They are a great piece of activism, wearing them always starts conversations and is a way to protest agism and start the conversation about what a pro-aging world would look like.
Can you measure the value of t-shirts for what you’re doing?
Not empirically, but we have great anecdotal feedback. People love them – they sell better than any other merch.
We have lots of customers who use t-shirts for community love, and we believe that t-shirts make the very best swag. Do you agree with us? And if so, why? If not, what do you think would work better?
I agree, we all have to wear clothes and t-shirts seem to be having a resurgence as a great way to say what you believe with your clothing. It is a great way to visually see your community.
You can find out more about ChangingAging at ChangingAging.org
You should buy a t-shirt from the ChangingAging store
