Based on all the records he has broken this year, Justin Bieber may be more aptly named Mr. Coachella.
The pop star has become the highest-paid artist in the music festival’s history ($10 million). The money was worth it, as his name on the marquee drew the highest-ever ticket demand, and his performance was the most Googled in Coachella history, according to Vogue Business.
But above all else, for our purposes at least, Bieber sold more branded merchandise in the first weekend alone of Coachella 2026 than any other performer has in the history of the event.
His fashion and lifestyle brand SKYLRK sold $5.04 million in merch on April 11, more doubling the festival’s original record of $1.7 million across two weekends, Vogue Business reported.
Is Bieber Fever still swarming the country more than 15 years after “Baby” took over the radio? Yes, but the Grammy Award winner is also incredibly business savvy, adding a brand activation – “SKYLRK Oasis” – for selling merch alongside the artist merch tent. The goal was to produce merch that is of higher quality and has a more distinct brand identity, SKYLRK told Vogue Business.
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Among the items available were lime green sweatshirts emblazoned with the pop vocalist’s famous “It’s Not Clocking” phrase, a tank of Bieber flipping the bird and a T-shirt reading “Justin Bieber Live” above a graphic of his wife, Hailey Bieber.
The Biebs’ strategy with SKYLRK has been to wear pieces before they are sold – something that has driven sales for other performers, such as WWE wrestlers. “The talent wearing the products themselves was the magic elixir for us to drive awareness and velocity of sell-through,” Todd Bold, chief revenue officer of ePromos, PPAI 100’s No. 27 distributor, told PPAI Media when discussing his previous tenure as WWE’s director of global merchandising and licensing.
Meeting the unprecedented demand, SKYLRK has made all of the merch available on-site at the festival available online as well, including additional pieces that dropped for weekend two of Coachella.
Bieber is the second artist to develop and produce merch under his own label, following Travis Scott doing so under “Cactus Jack” in 2025. This model has the potential to serve as a framework for deeper, more cohesive connections between artists’ creative pursuits, where each reinforces and amplifies the other.
This integrated approach not only strengthens brand authenticity but also opens up new avenues for storytelling, audience engagement and revenue.
