Need a band tee? Goodfellas Merch has got you covered
A bunch of local bands and musicians, several notable local breweries, at least one local candy shop and an iconic local clothing line are all sewn together with one common thread. They share the same screenprinter, a locally-owned and locally-grown outfit known as Goodfellas Merch, a longtime member of Local First Arizona.
From tees to beanies to bags and caps, there’s a good chance Valley residents have come across products by Goodfellas Merch at some point.
What began as a cool side hustle for Joe and Jana Matarazzo in the early 2000s as Joe gained traction with a punk-themed piercing outlet has grown over the years to a full-scale production facility in Glendale that handles bulk and wholesale orders for a number of local outposts and acts that Arizonans would recognize.
We recently caught up with Jana to talk about the evolution of their business, their relationship with Local First and crop tops — because … those tiny tops are everywhere right now.
How did Goodfellas Merch come to be?
Jana Matarazzo, co-owner of Goodfellas' Merch
My husband started a body piercing business out of high school, and he had a little spot in an indoor swap meet, but he wanted to have a bigger location. So he started selling punk rock T-shirts and band shirts and unique things people could get locally.
Back then, it was hard to find those things and band shirts were limited to whatever Hot Topic was selling.
That morphed into a cool shop in the West Valley. He was a musician in a band, and other bands were asking him to make them shirts. So he bought a screen printer and was able to grow that into our main business.
How did you come up with the name?
There are multiple origins. I will say that partly, yes, he’s Italian.
The Maine is one famous local band GoodFellas Merch has worked with
But, a lot of it was because we first started doing screen printing for friends and bands, and they were like, ‘You’re good fellas,’ because we got the stuff done on time and people always had merch, which is a big deal in the music scene.
Styles change, but what is in highest demand at the moment?
We do well in changing with whatever the new trends are. For a long time, the women’s racerback tanks were it. It was our number-one seller in all aspects, from bands to local breweries. You had to have that on your shelf.
Now, they just want crops. And, what’s really popular right now is comfort colors tees. It reminds me of being on vacation with your parents and it’s the mid-90s and your dad buys a beach shirt and it’s totally that vibe. It looks like a shirt you got out of your dad’s closet and everyone loves it right now.
What is the benefit for someone in need of merch to work with a local screen printer like Goodfellas, as opposed to a business they find online?
Phx Beer Co. is one of many local brewers that use Goodfellas Merch
If you’re ordering online, you’re not getting that personalized service.
We really want everyone to be on the same page and for the customer to preview what they’re going to get and be happy with what they’re going to get. And to have that moment when they open the box and it’s better than they thought it was going to be.
We’re local, and we want to work with local businesses. It just helps us stay connected with our customers.
You have an in-house seamstress, embroidery services and different dye techniques. What is one of the newer methods you are known for?
We do custom tie dye in house. We have a whole tie dye section. We came up with a unique method to do a reverse dye on dark shirts so that’s kind of our staple.
Tie dye is done in-house
Your relationship with Local First Arizona has been longer than you can remember. Can you talk about the value you find in being part of their business coalition?
Back when construction began for light rail, we realized Kimber Lanning was putting this together, and we were fully supportive of it, even though we were a brand-new business. We grew an awesome relationship, and we are really supportive of them, so we try to do as much as we possibly can with donations of our screen printing services for things like the Arizona Fall Festival, and we’ve tried to rally support from other local businesses to join the organization.
It feels like we’re part of something bigger. It’s incredible to see the growth of Local First. and it’s just insane to see what they’ve done so far.
Learn more about Goodfellas Merch at goodfellasmerch.com.
Join the Local First Arizona Business Coalition at localfirstaz.com/coalition-member.
