Sony Music shuts down recently unionized merch warehouse

Sony Music has revealed its plans to shut down Kings Road Merch, a Minneapolis-based warehouse that processes merchandise for punk and indie artists. The warehouse’s staff, who recently unionized, have accused Sony of union-busting, a claim the company denies. Kings Road was acquired by Sony Music in June 2025 through its music distribution company The Orchard and has worked with artists including Tom Waits, Neko Case, The Weakerthans, and Jimmy Eat World. 

In April, frustrated with pay and working conditions, Kings Road Merch employees organized a union and voted unanimously to recognize it in mid-May. The group raised concerns about low base pay, underpayment of overtime, and inflexibility in temporary contracts, which they say contributed to deteriorating working conditions under Sony’s leadership. On June 23, the morning of their first bargaining session, Sony announced that the warehouse would close. 

Sony maintains that their decision to close Kings Road was a long time coming, but employees point to a different timeline. Staff petitioned to form a union under Teamsters Local 970 on April 9, more than two weeks before Sony lawyers first told warehouse employees that the company was considering closing the facility on April 27. Assuming the announcement was a scare tactic, the warehouse employees decided to unionize. Sony says the April 27 call was a disclosure made in good faith, but employees and Teamsters Local 970 President Chris Reichow told punk publication see/saw that they viewed the process as intentional union-busting. 

Bands including Dropkick Murphys and The Casualties, whose merchandise is processed by the warehouse, have come out in support of the employees. Sony also claimed that the company is “focusing on our core strength of partnering with clients to develop and execute effective merch strategies” and said it will continue working with the Teamsters until the warehouse is fully closed.

Keep scrolling for more great stories.