Put on your party boutfit. Roller derby turns 82 this year and we’re celebrating in a big way during the inaugural World Roller Derby Week (August 13-19). Join us at two exciting events in Chicago or come out in summer and fall to donate at one of our Red Cross roller derby blood drives. How
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I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: “The moment you sell your first ticket, you are no longer a club; you are a business.” Because leagues are volunteer organizations, it’s easy to lose focus on business responsibilities. Don’t confuse business with boring. I promise this post on fundraising will not put you to
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(Part two of a series on roller derby fan retention.) In the previous blog post on fan retention, I suggested changing the notion of “by the skater, for the skater” to “by the skater for the fan.” The post received an outpouring of comments, questions and ideas. Thanks everyone for ringing in. Nothing is more
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(Part one of a two-part series on fan retention). For nearly ten years, derby enjoyed amazing crowds with little marketing. We were a viable entertainment option. So why, in the last few years, have so many leagues cut back on travel, lost money or their venue? They are not catering to the fan. Rat City’s
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Last month, I posted insights from my first week in Argentina’s derby community. During my near 12 years in derby, I’ve documented, well … almost nothing of my whereabouts. Friend and New York Shock Exchange (NYSE) skater, Harm’s Way made me aware that I have “derbied” on four continents. Argentina felt different than other places
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Sometimes heroes wear capes. Sometimes they wear fishnets and roller skates. For the fourth year in a row, the American Red Cross, Brown Paper Tickets and roller derby leagues will team up to encourage donors to give Blood for Life. Summer is one of the most challenging times for the Red Cross to collect blood
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“Find passion and develop a lust for life with others who celebrate every day.” No, this is not a personal ad; this sentence sums up my feelings on the Argentine roller derby scene. Argentina, a new hotbed for derby, is forging the movement in South America—the number of leagues is growing almost too quickly to
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I’m excited to announce that with Brown Paper Tickets’ help, we’ve been able to collect and send merchandise to a burgeoning roller derby league in Lebanon—Roller Derby Beirut (RDB). And now, we have new tools in place to collect more supplies and raise funds so this league can continue. The funds will be used to
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Roller derby is out for blood (yours). Brown Paper Tickets and the Red Cross team up again for the third annual Make ‘em Bleed blood drives. The efforts expand this year with New England leagues rolling into town and rolling up their sleeves. From August 2 to December 31, athletes from California, Massachusetts, Connecticut and
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Whenever someone tells me that there’s no money in merchandise, I want to scream. Merchandise programs can become your league’s greatest return on investment. Especially once your merchandise program is established. This is the first of a three-part series on derby merchandise programs and the best use of your merch committee’s time. Although this series
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