Discuss the process of getting your t-shirt line into brick and mortar stores and selling offline. Topics include industry tradeshows, events, line sheets, sales reps and other retailing tips and advice.
Looking to tap into a different category. My dad has a wholesale business which sells general merchandise to over 300+ local gas station mini marts. He currently already sells lots of embroidered hats to them (he buys from importers directly from china so he can buy them cheaper from them then us doing it in-house).
But I think I can screen print shirts where we can be competitive, I am wondering how much you would pay for a Gildan 5000 or Gildan 2000 type of shirt in a gas station mart (cheesy sayings and some generic dragon, mystic type of designs)?
I think the retail price point is between $10-$15 max. I would have to wholesale them to my dad for about $5. Then he would have to sell them to the gas station owner for about $7. Margins seem so low....
Looking to tap into a different category. My dad has a wholesale business which sells general merchandise to over 300+ local gas station mini marts. He currently already sells lots of embroidered hats to them (he buys from importers directly from china so he can buy them cheaper from them then us doing it in-house).
But I think I can screen print shirts where we can be competitive, I am wondering how much you would pay for a Gildan 5000 or Gildan 2000 type of shirt in a gas station mart (cheesy sayings and some generic dragon, mystic type of designs)?
I think the retail price point is between $10-$15 max. I would have to wholesale them to my dad for about $5. Then he would have to sell them to the gas station owner for about $7. Margins seem so low....
My 2 cents. Yeah we do a few caps a year that we buy direct from China. Net to us after sale is so low that I think I may drop them next year. We sell at tourneys so a different market. My opinion, Totally a regional thing. Generic dragon, mystic stuff would not sell all that well in the South, anymore, its been done. Plus, from what I hear thru the grapevine some of the good old boys, that sold a ton of Rebel stuff a few years back. May be getting back into the market with a wider product line. And they are good, really good, re sales and merchandising.
I've seen these type of shirts in local gas stations (Gildan Brand) with basic sayings and they are usually no more than $10 each....or less.
Yes....pretty thin margins unless you are selling directly.
But...I did know a guy who was making colorful "girly" shirts that he sold to a guy that was selling items into gas stations / mini marts for about $6.00 each and they were selling for about $12 each if I remember right. They were more above your basic sayings so maybe that was how he was able to get a bit more. Not sure how much the gas station / mini mart had to pay for them or if they received a % from each but still thin margins if you ask me.
My 2 cents. Yeah we do a few caps a year that we buy direct from China. Net to us after sale is so low that I think I may drop them next year. We sell at tourneys so a different market. My opinion, Totally a regional thing. Generic dragon, mystic stuff would not sell all that well in the South, anymore, its been done. Plus, from what I hear thru the grapevine some of the good old boys, that sold a ton of Rebel stuff a few years back. May be getting back into the market with a wider product line. And they are good, really good, re sales and merchandising.
So, depends on where on where you are located.
Just my opinion. Not an expert.
Happy 4th
Thanks guys,
The designs aren't my priority right now, I'm just trying to see if the margins are good enough to see I should even pursue it. The gateway to wholesale is already in place, I just don't know if profitting $2 a shirt and my dad profiting $2 a shirt is even worth it. The return rate from the mart owners might be too large as well.
I don't think the mini mart market will bear $20 retail. $15 seems decent, $10 seems more realistic.
This would be an extension of my screen printing business when my press is not running during slow times of the day. My dad and I now share a warehouse together, so it would be very convienent if I did this since his delivery guys stock all merch in the morning before they head out. (They stop at 8 stores a day). I guess I'll just mention it to him and ask if he wants to give it a shot with a couple of stores.
I understand the information you are trying to get. How much would you pay for a tshirt at a gas station? But I think the designs do play into this to a certain extent. I'm not going to pay 15 or 20 bucks for a tshirt with a generic design anyone could make with transfers from Wal-Mart and an iron. I am willing to pay more for a better design. How much? It depends on the design.
I'm not sure what type of gas stations you're geared at. I'm assuming a 7-11 type store. To answer your question, if I was to go to 7-11 or similar store, I wouldn't expect to pay more than $10 a shirt. Frankly, I probably wouldn't buy a shirt at a convenience store unless it was some sort of touristy shirt advertising a local festival or things of that nature.
However, if the gas stations your selling is one geared towards truckers for example, i.e. pilot store, then you can focus your designs on that particular group and charge a premium for that. I'm not certain what truckers like, but I imagine you might want to sell designs geared to their employment. For example, I"m a fisherman and I routinely buy clothing and hats with names of companies on them, sometimes at a premium because they cool looking and you have the "prestige" of "name brand" clothing.
How many times has someone payed more for something than they should have solely because of who makes it.
Just my 2 cents, but I do think to a certain extent, the design just matters. But again, to specifically answer your question, probably no more than $10.
I don't think I'd buy one from a gas station either.
In fact never have. I have seen them in some mom and pops stores and mostly in tourist towns.
What if you did the shirts to offer as promotional items. ? Take the lower profit margin and have a minium order and take no returns. The gas station can give them out for fillups and a car wash or when they buy so many cases of beer or two dogs and a large soda. You know for whatever they want.
A cheap white shirt with JOES MINI MART 'N BAIT SHOP type thing.
I never bought a tshirt from a mini mart either, I don't know if I ever will. Nothing wrong with them, I just rarely see it.
Would you guys buy a hat from a mini mart? The stores sell tons of hats, and hats are one of my dads hot items. The types of hats are like the ones that say "FBI" or "NY".
I just don't know if profitting $2 a shirt and my dad profiting $2 a shirt is even worth it.
And that, technically, wouldn't even be profit, would it? Not until after taxes, yes?
Henry, I think your gut feeling of $10 is right about on, imo.
The weird thing is, I would pass by a shirt that had a dragon on it, but for some weird reason, in a gas station, be much more likely to pick up a $10 tee shirt that had the name of the town on it.
Dunno why, but it's a fact. Could be the novelty of it. If I am in a gas station and buying a tee shirt, it's because I "need" one - not because I am out clothes shopping.
A shirt with the town name on it would strike me as cool, bc when I wear it, I would remember where I was and why I needed that shirt. It would go along with the retelling of my story of my shirt, too.
I've had plenty of beloved tees that I loved way more for the story behind it, rather than the tee shirt itself.
Spring boarding off of that idea -- gas stations near camping areas, state parks, water parks, rafting, paintball, blah, blah, blah, well, situations where people end up needing clothes they didn't expect to, and the town or county name on it, might be a good partnership. Just a random thought that went thru my head reading your thread... and I shared it with you.
Good luck either way.
__________________ Please ask Q's in the threads as I may not see your PM. A many wonderful folk will be willing to help you. Apologies to those not answered, as I sign on sporadically these days. Thx 4 undrstnding. Have a great day.
I think the retail price point is between $10-$15 max. I would have to wholesale them to my dad for about $5. Then he would have to sell them to the gas station owner for about $7. Margins seem so low....
Like real estate, much of it is location, location, location.
I know that throughout the South, at least, convenience stores along interstates typically sell shirts for about $5. Sometimes 3 for $10. Some local themes, lots of (theoretically?) licensed characters and sports teams. The shirts appear to be major brands (lots of Gildans.) I have been told they are imported from Mexico.
The convenience store up the street from my house (urban area) has some Texas Longhorns shirts on sale for $10. Owner told me they only sell a couple per year. However, he has them displayed in what would otherwise be a dead space above the coolers in front of the window. Free decorations, basically.
So I would say it depends on exactly where those stores are located. If they are in fairly isolated small towns, it could be great. If they are mostly along the interstate, probably not worth it.
Also, I would think that the store owners would be looking for at least a 100% markup since they will be looking at a slow turnover relative to their other inventory.
I am going to do an field experiment. Since hats are selling well, I don't see why shirts wouldn't, but I could be totally wrong. I will print some shirts and sell them to a couple of stores, one near a major university, one in a small tourist town, and another in the heart of downtown and see how it goes. I will have to pay for the clothing racks and stuff, so I might have to take a lil slow (I spent tons of cash getting new equipment installed).
Pushing the right designs/quality, a gas station depending on location of course, could prove to be a goldmine. With the proper research, and tests you may very well find profit. I'm saying this, because as a consumer I have forked over 20 bucks like real easy mostly because of the fact that the designs were something unheard of to me and very unique as well as perfect for personal statement making. The fact that the er time gas station was across the stateline from my home did play a big part in the shirts being so intriguingly new to me, but regardless, the shirts were hot and I had to have me. Everytime I go to that town, I swing by to check the stock. Doing so time after time is actually what led me to the world of heatpressing, my personal demand uncovered the striving artist in me, and here I am. So like I said earlier on, do some research on the trends in the areas of the gas stations your dad supplies to see what moves, what's old, or simply what's missing. Even go as far as seeing if the store owners/managers would do a consignment deal on as few as two or three shirts just to see what you're working with. Depending on what type of designs you're doing, you may have to adapt a bit to the geography of the store locations for the sake of gaining sales, but hey, supply is only a good dust magnet without the demand for it. Trust me, take it from a consumer who understands what impulse buying is, but has big admiration for hot art, if the shirt is hot, I'm buying it, gas station or not. Hell, I might even pull a Clark Kent in the restroom and walk out the store in another state of mind...if, of course the shirt is on that level!!!!!!
I agree with the other posters that location of the gas station is key. Also important is what type of t shirt clientelle they have. Is it one of those big truck stops where over-the-road truckers shop, or is it a local corner station? I think you have to assess the gas station clientelle in order to be able to fit their "niche".
Also, I would probably pay $10 to $12 for a t shirt in a gas station. And, I have probably bought them there for my kids in years past.
Shirts in Gas Stations/Mini Marts 
