"Wrestling should be FUN!"
That was the mission statement I began with when launching Canadian Bulldog's World (now known as Wrestling Merchandise and Memories) on March 14, 2014. So many wrestling sites at the time were full of skepticism and criticism about the industry we all love, but why wasn't anyone looking at the more positive elements?
When the site began, I was heavily emulating the site Dinosaur Dracula by trying to create deep dives on fun pop culture aspects - in this case, some of the bigger moments in wrestling and artifacts from my personal collection. While it didn't set the world on fire immediately, I did notice a pretty loyal following. And soon, I realized that most of the pieces fell into one category or the other: "merchandise" or "memories" - thus the name change later on.
There have been changes to the site over the years - some of them small tweaks and some major overhauls. Over the past decade, I've created a Wrestling Figure Database that is frequently referenced; special sections on trading cards, magazines and WCW; plus theme months including Required Royal Rumble Reading; Figure February; Required WrestleMania Reading; Tag Team Appreciation Month; Rivalries Month; Arcade Month and Booktober.
Oh, and did I mention our YouTube channel? Please subscribe today!
We're now at the point where there is worldwide readership that is frequently growing, whether new articles are posted daily or not. Engagement has been climbing steadily since the pandemic (which is when we changed the name and made the user experience a lot easier). There are also times where I'm doing research on the web and find old Merchandise and Memories articles and photos all over the place.
I'd be remiss if I didn't thank all of the great contributors to the site over the years, including Adam Zimmerman, Mike Rickard, The Big Rybowski, ZAH and Stu Stone. What they've added to this site has been incredibly positive and truly helped to build this brand, and I can't thank them enough for their contributions.
And of course, I absolutely need to thank YOU, the Wrestling Merchandise and Memories reader. If not for your patronage, this little "passion project" of mine would have likely fizzled out after a few weeks! But here we are, ten years later, and stronger than ever. And it's because of YOU. Very much appreciate your readership!
To commemorate 10 years of this site, I've developed a "signature" that will play before all future YouTube videos. Think WWE's "Then. Now. Forever. Together." video, only with less catchphrases. It's premiering right now:
Once again, a sincere thank you for helping to make wrestling fun!
One of my favorite sites! Congratulations on 10 years of excellence.