A Frat Merch Chair’s Guide to Fall Recruitment
Recruitment is your chapter’s Super Bowl. Nothing grabs PNMs faster—or warns rival houses you’re organized—like having your frat recruitment merch prepared ahead of everyone. Fortune favors the prepared, or whatever they say.
Yet missed deadlines, smudged prints, and last-minute size hunts still trip up plenty of merch chairs. Ensure you’re not one of them with our guide to getting merch your members and PNMs will love, in the right sizes and deets, and arrive at your chapter house on time.
Why Locking In Your Merch Early Matters
We know you’re asking us, “We can order our frat recruitment merch any time before the sem, why should we stress ourselves out so early?” And here are our answers:
- Shipping delays = anxiety. Producing merch takes time, and “supply chain problems” ain’t exactly an excuse you can tell your exec team when they ask where the shirts are. Plus, why would you subject yourself to the anxiety of making merch arrive literally before Recruitment Week Day 1?
- You can check for errors and have shirts redone on time. Merch companies are careful about the quality of merch they produce for customers like your chapter. But things can happen, especially during delivery. If you spot issues with merch early on, you can report the problem and order replacements without worrying about it arriving on time.
- Rivals are watching. Panhellenic tables sit side-by-side. If your frat shows up in unmatched leftovers from previous events or, heaven forbid, last year’s Recruitment Week merch, PNMs assume the chapter’s standards match the shirts: low.
Convinced? The next step now is figuring out what merch to get.
The 4 Essential Frat Recruitment Merch
No matter what merch you get for your brothers, don’t forget these!
Recruitment Shirts
The requirement. The essential. No frat worth its name will skip wearing recruitment shirts customized specifically for the event.
There are two popular options: heavyweight and athletic-fit.
- Heavyweight legend: The classic Comfort Colors Adult Heavyweight T-Shirt and the more business-y Frocket are perfect when your chapter wants something that will last. It’s durable, comfortable, and has that legacy/heritage vibe that says, “We’re a frat with history, and you will be part of that.” Turnaround: ~10 business days once art is approved.
- Athletic option: Athletic-fit, like the A4 Men's Cooling Performance T-Shirt, wicks sweat when you’re giving 12 tours in August humidity. Plus, you can rewear it for the next gym sesh after Recruitment Week (or even during one ijbol). Turnaround: ~7–9 business days.
To make them even better, why not opt for unique print types to make your designs more eyecatching? Our How To Merch page has all the options and what they’re perfect for.
Frat Banners/Flags
Wanna make your frat seen at least 3 blocks away? Get a DC Custom Flag or The Banner Store Custom Flag. Put your chapter’s letters on it, hang it at your chapter house’s porch or as a backdrop for your table, and watch everyone turn their heads at you. No need for a megaphone, loud music, or crazy displays to get everyone’s attention. Plus, you can reuse it for other events.
- Turnaround: 12–14 business days; longer for double-sided flags.
- Pro tip: Keep letters huge and colors high-contrast. Nobody reads a paragraph from 50 yards away.
House Polos
Before you look at us weird, house polos are necessary, but not for everyone (thankfully). It’s recommended for members assigned to give PNMs a house tour, and maybe for the members facing the PNMs at every stage of Recruitment Week.
The Harriton Men's Foundation 100% Cotton Long-Sleeve Twill Shirt with Teflon™ is perfect for this year’s frat recruitment merch. It looks and feels country-club polished without sweating through a blazer, plus it looks even better with the sleeves rolled up. The girls will eat it up.
- Turnaround: 9–12 business days.
- Quality note: Ask for left-chest embroidery, not print—thread never cracks. Keep thread count under 10K stitches to stay inside rush timelines.
Stickers/Button Pins
Who doesn’t want free stuff? Not your PNMs. Certainly not us. Giveaways make conversations linger, which means more time for you to talk about what your frat is all about. Stick a pack of custom 3-inch round button pins and white die-cut vinyl stickers on the table and watch PNMs (AND your members) decorate tumblers, laptops, and dorm doors all semester.
- Turnaround: 7–10 business days for bulk digital print.
- Budget hack: One 3-inch circular design works for both pins and stickers—pay one art fee, print two products.
Mini Design Tutorial: From Idea to Mock-Up in 5 Minutes
- Open our Product Gallery. Filter by “Recruitment” and “Fraternity” to see products proven to convert curious freshmen into new members.
- Pick your base. Heavyweight tee? Performance tee? Both show live on-screen so you can compare fit and color.
- Customize in the Design Tool. Drop your design, swap fonts, and adjust Pantone colors. The preview updates instantly—no waiting 24 hours for a mock-up.
- Stuck? Click “Send to Art Team.” A real designer fixes low-res logos, centers everything, and returns a proof within 24 hours.
- Approve and relax. Your Campus Manager keeps the order on track while you worry about the playlist.
Recruitment Week will be here faster than you can say, “Who ate all the snacks for the guys manning our table?” Nail these four merch essentials now, and you’ll stroll into Recruitment Week looking organized, professional, and—let’s be honest—pretty sick.
Ready to start? Jump into the Design Tool or hit up your Campus Manager and lock down your frat recruitment merch today.
No delays. No misprints. No excuses.