Insiders Share What’s Selling on Campus

by Dan Angelo

Snoopy gear, just about any plushie, and itty-bitty shorts are flying off the shelves in college stores these days. Neato!, Smiskis, and plastic squishy food stuff are also doing well, according to information from the “Merch Mixer: Ideas, Insights, and Innovations” at CAMEX26 in Phoenix, AZ.

The Sunday morning education session, hosted by Carol Dreste, director, University of California, Santa Barbara, and clothing buyer Susan Norris, presented the many popular items in their store, along with contributions from those NACS members in attendance.

“One of the things that we’ve learned from Gen Z and Gen Alpha is that they like exclusivity,” Dreste said. “So, the idea is to bring in one-hit wonders. The thinking is that they will have to buy it now because we're going to rotate to something else.”

Neato!, a squishy fidget toy, comes in a variety of bright colors and shapes, while the food toy items come in many forms, such as croissants and sticks of butter. The Smiski is another fidget-style toy that is available in a wide variety of shapes that glow in the dark, but the customer doesn’t know which figurine is in the container that is being purchased.

“The Smiskis are insane,” said April Deminie, assistant buyer, Swarthmore Campus & Community Store, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA. “It’s just a little block with a tiny little figurine inside. They are collectible, have different series, and the students go wild for them.”

Coloring books and puzzles are also quite popular on campus. In fact, the UC Santa Barbara store set up a small space inside the location to give students, their families, alumni, and young visitors, the opportunity to relax a bit and color.

“It’s a very small footprint on our floor, but it has just been super fun,” Dreste said. “It’s something really simple, but a really fun addition. What we’re finding with this generation is they are looking for their third place. They have home, they have work, so why not let them have the campus store?”

All plushies, such as Chubby Wubby, a stuffed animal usually wearing the school colors and logo on its shirt, Beanie Bouncers, soft squishy collectibles from the makers of Beanie Babies that actually bounce, and Palm Pals are also doing well. Other items that sell are anything that can be used with a student’s phone or laptop, backpacks, keychains, and even their pens and pencils.

Hello Kitty and Julia Gash merchandise are proven winners, but another popular brand has been the Peanuts gang, which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2025. Snoopy is particularly popular and even made a special guest appearance at the session.

“The clothing is pricey,” Norris said of Peanuts gear in her store. “The shirt retails for $44.95 and I wondered who’s going to pay $45 for a tee shirt. I went with 48 and I sold out in three days. I was blown away. I’ve never sold out of something in three days.”

Apparel was actually the first thing discussed during the session. Sweatshirts in an array of colors, Oxford clothing items, tube tops, and goalie shirts, available from a variety of vendors, are all styles that have been selling well.

Soffe cheer shorts and mock neck apparel have been top sellers in the UCSB Campus Store, especially in many colors and with a hibiscus logo. One thing that doesn’t sell well is items featuring the gaucho mascot used by the school’s sports teams, while items with a hibiscus flower on them are hard to keep in stock.

“We’re not a very sports-driven campus,” Norris said. “So, by all means, use the icon that works great for you.”

Norris also sees a robust market for flannel shirts and the large shorts for men, known as jorts.

“I have an 18-year-old son, and he loves wearing jorts, so I’m going to try that,” Norris said. “Mocks are great sellers. I was hesitant but got in 48 pieces and thought I would give it a try. It blew out with the sorority girls. I’ve been out for weeks now, and they come in daily asking when it’s coming back.”

Stationery, journals, and Christmas merchandise, particularly ornaments, do well at most stores. Stickers, decals, and easy-to-grab food and snack items should also be on the radar of campus stores because students love to personalize their gear with the stickers and do get hungry at all times of the day and night.

“We remember a time when everybody at a show would bring in something to share,” Norris said. “If you were a newbie, you saw how many people brought something in, and the next year, you were bringing something. We wanted to bring that back and were trying to do that here.”