The developer behind Trash Goblin has initiated a crowdfunding campaign aimed at opening a new merchandise store

Spilt Milk Studios, an independent developer from the UK, has begun a Kickstarter campaign to gather funds for a permanent merchandise store. The initial offering will focus on items themed around their upcoming 2025 title, Trash Goblin. Nicholas Lovell, co-owner of the studio, mentioned that this initiative aims to support the studio financially to explore new concepts and provide exclusive items to their followers.

The studio credits its supportive community—established during Trash Goblin's initial Kickstarter and Early Access phase—as vital to the game's popularity. According to GameDiscoverCo, Trash Goblin's full release in March of the previous year became their top-grossing title on Steam. Although the studio was inexperienced in merchandise production, they joined forces with Mighty Merch, led by Thomas Bidaux of ICO Partners, to handle manufacturing and distribution.

"Creating the plush toy has been the community's favorite prospect, though challenging," Lovell remarked. Initially, they crafted an art book as a holiday gift for the team, which they later decided to offer publicly. Lovell had considered mugs, but Bidaux advised against it due to shipping risks like breakage, showcasing valuable expertise in logistics.

Lovell and fellow co-owner Andrew Smith evaluated the project's viability by balancing player value against potential studio gains. They dedicated a month to the design process and another to organizing rewards, building the Kickstarter presence, and creating marketing essentials.

The campaign seeks to raise £18,000 to produce a plush version of Trashy's character, along with other items such as posters, T-shirts, pins, artbooks, and stickers. Achieving this goal means launching a sustained merchandise store, offering Spilt Milk a modest, yet ongoing income stream. "Merchandising is mostly a fun side project and not our primary business," Lovell added.

"This is community interaction we already do, just refocused around the campaign for its duration."

Andrew Smith, the studio's founder, will manage the intensive efforts required to maintain the Kickstarter while keeping other studio members free, fitting this responsibility into their existing community engagement schedules. Lovell emphasized the campaign's dependence on their consistent interactions within platforms like Kickstarter, Steam, and Discord, which they've cultivated over years. When asked if this method could benefit other studios, Lovell stated, "I’ll answer that at the end of the campaign."

Running until February 20th, the campaign also partners with the Immune Deficiency Foundation, donating $5 per sale of a specially designed pin badge to the charity.