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Kissimmee Today
By the People, for the People
Kissimmee Student Launches Successful Merchandise Company
Triston Fell and Dev Babani co-founded merchmthd to provide custom branded apparel for social media influencers.
Apr. 16, 2026 at 4:40pm
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Merchmthd's focus on custom design, premium materials, and operational efficiency allows influencers to offer high-quality branded merchandise to their audiences.Kissimmee TodayTriston Fell, a senior studying business management at Rollins College, has co-founded a merchandising company called merchmthd that creates custom graphics, colorways, and apparel for social media influencers and online creators. Fell and his co-founder Dev Babani, who met in high school, have built a business that handles the entire process from design to manufacturing to warehousing and shipping orders worldwide.
Why it matters
In an era of increasing e-commerce and influencer marketing, merchmthd provides a turnkey solution for creators to offer high-quality branded merchandise to their audiences. The company's focus on customization and operational efficiency sets it apart from generic merchandise options, allowing influencers to better monetize their personal brands.
The details
Merchmthd was founded by Triston Fell and Dev Babani, who met in high school and bonded over a shared interest in Mandarin and Cathay Pacific cuisine. While Fell continued his studies at Rollins College, the two never lost touch and decided to start a business together. Fell handles the production and logistics side of the company, leveraging his supply chain and operations knowledge, while Babani focuses on the brand and client relationships, drawing on his experience interning in China's garment industry. The company offers a full-service solution for influencers, handling custom graphic design, manufacturing, warehousing, and shipping of branded merchandise.
- Fell and Babani have been discussing starting a business together since high school.
- Fell moved to Kissimmee, Florida in 2009 when his family relocated from Hawaii.
- Fell is set to graduate from Rollins College in May 2026.
The players
Triston Fell
A Kissimmee local and senior studying business management with a concentration in supply chain and operations at Rollins College. He is the co-founder of merchmthd and handles the production and logistics side of the business.
Dev Babani
Fell's co-founder at merchmthd. Babani attended the University of Florida and focuses on the brand and client relationships for the company, drawing on his experience interning in China's garment industry.
merchmthd
A merchandising company co-founded by Triston Fell and Dev Babani that creates custom graphics, colorways, and apparel for social media influencers and online creators.
What they’re saying
“We've always talked about starting a business together, as male adolescents tend to do, but the can got kicked down the road until he agreed to start up merchmthd with me.”
— Triston Fell, Co-founder, merchmthd
“The business really came from a mix of both of our backgrounds. Over the past two falls, I spent time interning in China in the garments industry, which gave me a much closer understanding of how manufacturing works and helped me build connections in that space. Triston, on the other hand, had been learning a lot about supply chain and operations. When we looked at how many creators either had no merch or were stuck with low-quality and generic options, it felt like there was a real opportunity there.”
— Dev Babani, Co-founder, merchmthd
What’s next
Fell plans to graduate from Rollins College in May 2026, after which he and Babani hope to continue growing merchmthd and potentially run the business full-time together.
The takeaway
This story highlights how two college students leveraged their complementary skills and backgrounds to identify an unmet need in the influencer marketing space and launch a successful custom merchandise business that provides a turnkey solution for creators to better monetize their personal brands.
