• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, April 8, 2020

It’s no secret the financial side-effects of COVID-19 are staggering. The virus has slammed companies of all sizes across most categories.

Especially hard-hit have been thousands of local, community-anchoring small businesses forced to shut their doors as state and local governments try to flatten the curve.

Now some enterprising folks at New York-based R/GA are doing something to help those businesses weather the storm with the creation of a new platform called MerchAid.

The idea is to help them generate revenue by selling merchandise online. But many of the impacted businesses don’t have the design resources or knowledge to create and market the goods.

MerchAid, which launched this week, connects artists and designers with businesses that have closed due to the pandemic. Those creatives then illustrate designs for businesses to be placed on T-shirts and tote bags and sold on the Merch Aid site. All proceeds go back to the businesses to help cover costs. 

A trio at the agency are credited with spearheading the effort: senior copywriter Chloe Saintlan and associate creative directors Zack Roif and Matt Woodward.

Go to the site to get a sense of the work being created and the individual creatives and businesses working together. Send a message from the site if you want more details about volunteering your services or getting help if you’re an afflicted small business.

Initially, the collaborations are New York City-centric, but the plan is to open the platform up to the design world at-large so that businesses across the country can participate.