In case you missed it, we wanted to let y’all know the pop-up went great. It was quite the process moving our entire office into Auditorium Shores but man was it worth it. The event was super fun, and we got to meet and hang out with so many of you. Between throwing the football, playing spikeball, and having good conversations, we were able to sell a good amount of our merch.

With that being said, there’s still plenty left over that we’re hoping to hand deliver after Christmas, but we’ll announce that later on social media.

Thank you to everyone who made it and everyone who was there in spirit. We’re looking forward to hosting more events next year alongside our main media projects and collaborative merch drops, so stay on the lookout for that.

When we first started working on Austin Archives in May, it felt like a big idea, a great one, but also something hard to grasp. Turning it into a reality felt daunting. There were many nights Spencer and I would try to work on things, and more often than not we finished wondering if we were making any real progress. It was a little discouraging, but we kept showing up, and slowly things began to fall into place.

A major turning point for us was meeting our designer, Carson. His branding made the project feel tangible in a way it hadn’t before. I think that’s when we both realized we could actually do this and build something special.

Not long after that, we met Ada, who messaged us on Instagram saying she was interested in our project and wanted to help. After explaining her interest in scene/contemporary community formation, her DM ended with, “blah blah blah anyway if y’all ever need a researcher I’m cracked.” After grabbing coffee with her, we realized she wasn’t lying, and with her help we found our very first project. Again, we started to gain confidence in what we were doing.

While all this was happening, Dane, our merch rep, walked us through the process of creating merchandise, which is a huge part of what we plan to do. He was there before we had logos, a partnership with a subject, or any sort of following, but he believed in us and kindly replied to our vague emails. Over time, our emails became less vague and our back and forth became more friendly. Eventually we got our hands on some shirts and hats and had a pop-up, which was a really cool culmination of our work this year.

As I reflect on how this year played out, it’s clear to me that the success and momentum Austin Archives has gained is a reflection of the people who believed in our mission as much as we do. So thank you to everyone who supported us this year. We couldn’t have done it without y’all. And Spencer, if you’re reading this (you better be), I’m so thankful to be doing this with you.

And even though we haven’t finished a complete project yet, Spencer and I can proudly say that we’ve come a long way from those early nights in the office. We’re still figuring things out, but we promise to keep moving forward in an effort to create a positive impact on the city we love so much.

We wish everyone the happiest of holidays and a happy New Year. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for 2026. We’ll see y’all then.

- Andrew (and Spencer, he’s on his way home for Christmas)(Spencer, please bring back some muffuletta)