mashPotato

Yea, one thing I want to add is make connections. It's hard to know it all by yourself. If you know other that's in the same business with you, and they are willing to help, it's the best.

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Duds88

Quote: Originally Posted by tim3560 Managing your money and making the best purchases is huge. When I first heard about sublimation, I just knew it was the ticket to my success. I rushed out and bought an epson1280 and a bulk ink system for around $1200. 3 months later after I realized that my market was not going to support the costs of sublimation, and also realizing the headaches that come with the bulk ink system, I sold the system for $450. Immediate loss of $750. I should have gotten a catalog, ordered a few sample items and gotten conde to print them for me. Then I could have taken those items around having invested about $50 and figured out that the market wasn't here. Will I ever do sublimation again? I don't know, but I definitely won't make any major purchases without doing the proper market research first.

Sublimation..arrggg. I too started with Sublimation and the dreaded 1290, plus bulk feed. That was 2 years ago, now I am on printer number 5 due to blocked heads that just wont clean. My worst mistake was entering the sublimation game.

I then made the best purchase ever, my Roland cad cutting machine and moved over to vinyl, Easy to use, easy to print and it's what people want. After 2 years working from home I've opened a shop (last monday 5th october) and am just completing my first week of being open.

Biggest set back of opening a shop....deling with customers

But the one thing I over looked was my nervousness with customers. I seem to panic when they enter the shop and ask about t shirts they want printing. At home I was relaxed, here I panic lol. But that will ease in a few days. My last customer today (friday) went away happy, with a smile and the promise to return for more items with his copmpany logo on.

Week one and I've done 5 small jobs of averaging 5 shirts per job. It's a start.

great forum by the way

 

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Jado

Nice to hear someone else's experience on starting a clothing line. I am having similar issues. A good friend and myself decided to start a clothing line business figuring we'd end up around 4 grand in start up. So far we managed a printer, press, inks, a CFS (continous flow system), a scanner, 150 transfer papers, and some test material(50 shirts) for around $1600 finding awesome deals. However, always expect having major snags in the learning experience. I went through a leaky CIS(continous ink system) lost easily $100 in ink down the drain literally. Finally got this system up and running with another snag that I can't find a proper color profile now that I'm using heat transfer inks(pigment)different ink. Don't forget to figure in a color Gamut for different color materials and such. For instance, navy blue looks black on an orange shirt without the correct color gamut for reference. Not to mention finding out what works best on what type of material. Do I treat my %100 cotton in a soak or do I use a 50/50 poly blend? I'm not as affected by the cost gaps quite yet as I haven't gone as far as building up an inventory of blank shirts ect. Don't forget to add in the cost of packing materials for shipping and the time it will take you to do so. That is if your business is going to be mainly online or catalog or both.

 

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jamiepatterson

I've been in business since 2004 and we've learned so much in this short amount of time, and I see that a lot of us have had some of the same experiences. Which lets me know that business IS universal.

Some things I would like to impress upon a new business stater is to;

1. Learn the art of business...Please know that business is like a sport and it should treated as such. Perform well and keep your stats high. Always do the right thing and never, EVER cheat your customer. BE TRANSPARENT!

2. Pick your partners wisely...We had a partner just up and quit. I mean she just said the business wasn't for her. If this happens, let them go, it's for the best.

3. Research your local market...Call around and get pricing for items that you would sale. Put your apparel around the median price range, don't make your price too high or way too low. You need to make a profit.

3b. Hone your craft...Know your tools and how to properly use them. If you purchase a new program, find a person that has it too and learn from them.

4. Stay on the internet!...Please do all the research you can on the web you can. A lot of screen printers are new to the internet and don't know of the endless possibilities that are available.

5. Work the social networking sites...We do over half of our business on MySpace and Facebook. After we complete an order, we take pictures of the shirts and the customers in the shirts and post them on these free sites. The customer always rave about how nice the shirts came out and then THEIR friends want to get something done. Before you know it, you've made new customers and friends.

6. Never be satisfied...You can always find a better contract printer, or a better company that supplies blanks. New businesses spring up everyday...Keep your eyes and ears open.

7. Give back to the community...Donate time and supplies to a local charity of your choice. Stay Involved! It's good for your soul and your business. You never know how it will come back to you.

8. HAVE FUN...There HAS to be a Plus to owning your own business. I choose to stay up late and wake up late. I treat myself to a fun day once a week, whether it's Golf with my buddies or riding my bike; You need to have some fun or else you'll get burned out or realize that the years have passed you by and you don't have anything to show for it.

I hope these points have been helpful.

Thanks for this forum too! It's been an AWESOME tool!

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clothmoth

I love sharing on threads like this, so much I have already learned and so much more to learn. Some of these are things I learned the hard way, and some just tips that will benefit others.

My tips:

1.) Give yourself permission to make mistakes. It's easy to be hard on yourself when something goes wrong, but when you are diving into something new something (usually more than once) will go wrong. That said, many others in this thread have emphasized the importance of due diligence. The more you plan, the less wil go wrong, but go easy on yourself!

2.) Before you even buy your first piece of equipment, have an actual plan. (This is one of those pieces of advice that next to nobody will actually follow. . . I certainly didn't, but I know now the importance of this step). Map out what the next two years look like, in terms of what you will focus on, how you will grow, your plan for products, marketing, investment, equipment, etc.

3.) Continually revisit the plan you built in step #2 above. It WILL change as you gain experience. But it is important to revisit your initial vision, for both inspiration and guidance. It can be an amazing help in making key decisions (equipment purchases, etc.) to cross-reference your formal plan to see if your decisions align with your objectives. NEVER LOSE SITE!

4.) Don't always follow the quickest path to money, unless money is ALL your business is about. Very few people I have talked to got into t-shirts just to get rich. Most of us have a connection with shirts in some form or fashion, other than just wearing one on our backs. I made the decision early on that I ONLY want to design and print my own designs or designs that I have overseen in a creative capacity. In short, I get my jollies in the creative process. So I stay away from the promotional products business. In making this decision, I instantly severed myself from a great source of income, but the upside is that the whole time I am floundering from super slow growth I am having a blast creating and imagining the possibilities of the future. Be true to what you want, and it will come.

5.) EVERYTHING is negotiable, in life and business. Seek out the best quality first (in terms of equipment, blanks, supplies, contract screen printers, etc), then work on price. I learned after the fact, from the great folks on this forum, that most blank shirt distributors will offer case pricing just for calling and asking. I was on piece and dozen pricing with several distributors, and one phone call and a polite conversation got me switched over to case pricing regardless of my order size. Money in the bank! Similarly, I found a great screen printer in town that does primo work. After placing a few orders with them, and getting quite a few compliments from their staff on my shirts (they actually WEAR them!), I asked if they had a "friendly" rate card for clients that they have a great relationship with. Lo and behold, they do, and I am now on it. . . . it easily saves me another 20% or more off my bottom line.

6.) To balance #5 above. . . don't squeeze good vendors. Get a good, fair price and then let the vendor make a little money to stay in business, serve you, and help you grow. Being about nothing but the price makes you Wal Mart, and we have all heard how wonderful they are to do business with :-)

7.) Give customers a reason to come back. . . do a little something extra, whether it is printing one sample of their order on an alternate color or style as a freebie to show them ideas for future orders (and if you can, do it on a size shirt that will fit the customer!) or even just thinking about your packaging, freebie stickers, or some other cheap and easy thing to do that goes a bit above and beyond.

8.) This is one I DO wish I knew from the beginning. . . . that I also have read several others comment on, but I will highlight it again for dramatic effect: Never undervalue your goods. People are used to paying a certain amount for quality goods. Price yourself too cheaply and you give off the impression of inferior quality, whether you are retailing or wholesaling your goods. Look around at what companies of similar quality, size, and target market are charging for goods. Unless your strategy is to be the cost cutter (which I advise against in most cases), price your goods accordingly. Factor in your time as a hard cost into the cost of goods sold. . . this is so often not done and is critical to knowing when you are profitable.

9.) This is another one that is often overlooked, but super important. . . if you can start a business on your own, do it. If you NEED a partner (for additional starting capital, creative talent, etc.) then go for it, but proceed with caution. Make sure you would trust that person with your life, or your kids life for that matter. No matter how close you are to that person, before you invest a dollar in buying shared equipment, blanks, etc. get the terms of the partnership on paper, preferably reviewed by an attorney. Partnerships are dangerous business. . . if you don't believe me, spend a few minutes online. Bands are a classic example of informal business partnerships where everything is fine until the money rolls in, or the debts mount up, and then someone tries to run off with the lions share or slip out from under a pile of creditors. Don't believe it can happen to you? I hope you're right!

I found in many partnerships one person ends up toting a lot more of the responsibility than the other, and this can lead to resentment. Good partnerships are great. . . the combined resources and talent of two hard working and like minded individuals can bring great things. Just know what you are getting into, and decide whether you really need someone else. I've started business both ways, and as somewhat of an independent, self sufficient control freak with just enough capital to fake it on my own, I've discovered that I like to call all of the shots, and outsource / ask opinions as needed. Do what is best for you, we are all different!

10.) I'll end on 10, since it's a nice even number and I can talk about this type of thing all day long. Never give up. Successful people all share one trait: persistence. When I was younger I started several different businesses that failed only because I was impatient and thought instant success was my right. It certainly is not. . . . I am just getting back into this shirt thing, with tons more to do and learn and fail at. . . the key difference is that I am having a blast doing it, and am dedicated to seeing it through to the rewards. You all can, and will, too!

Thanks everyone for posting such great info, it has helped me immensely and inspired me to start posting, and thanks also for letting me hijack so much real estate for this wordy diatribe!

---
Clothing + Kindness - ClothMoth Clothing + Kindness - Great Shirts, Greater Deeds

 

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dmm26

WOW! I'm so glad that this thread is still going and that there is so much great info on here.

Here's something else I've just learned, it's been mentioned several times here but to actually learn this for yourself is so much more gratifying.

DON"T GIVE UP!!!!!!

I was feeling so down in the dumps a few weeks ago, it seemed nothing was going right for me, and i thought I was going to have to throw in the towel.
Then a chance phone call that I made changed things for me and now I feel a renewed sense of confidence and am more determined to make this work than ever.

Keep your chin up because you never know what's around the corner!

 

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karlking85

I wish I had known when I was younger the importance of good marketing. I started a business early on that was a big deal to those who were aware of it, but that's just it: Only my close friends knew it existed!

Building a good marketing plan from the very beginning is crucial. You can always make adjustments as you go along, but you need a solid blueprint to follow as a yardstick to measure your business' success.

 

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Bravo6ix2

Dude,

Great advice as I too have gone after the Skate, Snowboard, Surf and Paintball Market (All at the same time!) and have learned a great deal the hard way. My investment so far - 15k and still going. Yes, I 'd like to recommend attending the ASR show in San Diego - man I learned more in one weekend than the 8 months of prep time to launch my on-line business. Good luck dude and keep on trucking

 

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lawaughn

I wish I had known about BRANDING.

Before I ever thought about branding I would look at my competition with a different view. Mainly I wanted to do the things that they were already doing.

If they created something I creating something but they were successful and I just ended up with colorful inventory.

The difference between their company and mine was not a lack of effort, money, management or luck. It was that they a simple goal. To use their character and name on everything they possibly could without it becoming cheesy.

Once I started to think about Branding my eyes opened and I created started to form a plan that has the same products and goals but a different road to reach them. My plan is also much, much larger than I ever thought it would be.

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lawaughn

Quote: Originally Posted by griggss Branding is new term for me. Please explain. Thanks

With my first company I had tees designed by various artist using their characters. If it looked good I through it on a tee. People enjoyed the looks and I sold a few but I didn't really have a plan.

Now instead of using other artist designs I now have two characters of my own. One character will be used on tees to start, then other articles of clothing, skateboard, and anything else I can throw it on without it becoming
cheesy.

Currently, I will only use a character by a artist with a large following because I want their fans to become my fans. Being able to do a great graphic is no longer good enough.

I started out just thinking clothing and now I'm thinking hotels, bedding, furniture, etc, so much can be done with just one character. For me in this instance that is Branding.

When you see BAPE, Trump, Nike Swoosh, Yahoo, Google, T-Shirt Forums etc you know what they are about. They not only have market share they also have mind share.

Most people view Google as a search engine that has other features but really the are selling internet real estate. They create a program for people to use search engine, gmail, the list goes on. Then marketers rent out a space to advertise.

Take one thing about your business and see you can take it.

If you sell tees to rockers why not have a full rock n roll clothing line, jewelry, car accesories, hair salon, or bar?

I have to go my son is saying that I type too much.

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bubba35

Overhead Overhead Overhead. Find a location you can afford.Cant tell you how many people i've seen jump into high priced venues and retail location and watched their savings dissaper before they can build their business.

Keep your own books.How else are you gonna know where you're at, or where your money is going.As you grow, you can farm this out.After your family, your money is your most valued posession.Watch after it like you watch after your family.

Dont outsource unless absolutely necessary.Your contractor has his own business.His stuff comes first, yours second.He doesnt have to answer to your customer.

You learn more from your failures than you do from your successes.

 

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rrc62

Quote: Originally Posted by Thao1mage my partner and I was thinking 5-6 K also... I guess I'll add another 2-3K in our startup cost... Thanks for the information Derek....

If you're going in full time, I'd want to have about $20,000 to play with for the first year. I have $6000 in equipment alone...$10,000 if you count the screen printing equipment that I really don't use any more. Then you need supplies and blanks. You'll need to do some advertising and you'll probably want to eat once in a while.

 

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ImageIt

Quote: Originally Posted by rrc62 If you're going in full time, I'd want to have about $20,000 to play with for the first year.

I'd suggest adding another zero to that number or have a good customer base before making the jump to full time.

As another post mentioned, it's the overhead which adds up and everything costs something. Each month which clicks by where more is spent than earned will eat away at savings.

I'm currently deciding between taking a loan against a life insurance policy, cashing in the policy or taking out a mortgage of around $20,000 in order to make the jump to truly being a commercial printer. My business location needs a parking lot and deceleration and acceleration lanes in order to be zoned a business. Plus i need a conveyor dryer, 50-100 more screens, a modest inventory, and a whole lot of other stuff which adds up.

I'm fortunate me day job covers my burn rate, but to move forward takes capital.

What really hurts is having an employee! He gets to eat before you do!

fred

 

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rrc62

I'm done with employees...and commercial locations. My area won't support the overhead of a commercial location...and employees are just a PITA. Been there, done that. But yes, I agree. It you're going for a commercial location and employees right out of the gate, then $20,000 won't get you far.

 

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ImageIt