is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high?
I just recently got a quote back from a chinese manufacturer of fitted shirts...id just like to run this by you all because im unsure if this is the standard
this manufacturer had a minimum order of 1200 shirts for the one design
firstly, they wanted me to pay US$350 for a sample...but when i asked for a blank shirt unprinted...they made some excuse that they couldnt send one
so i was quoted for one of my screen printed designs....US$4.90 per shirt for an order of 3000 shirts
I am just starting a business and i am looking to have 10-15 different designs in a variety of colours....
I really only want 100 shirts in each colour for each design....not 3000 shirts....not even 1200.....
i guess what im trying to ask is
-is the quote a bit high?
Re: is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high?
I only tried this once, so don't rely solely on me. The Chinese factory I talked to wasn't very cheap. I could find someone in my state that could get the shirts and print them cheaper than I could get the blank shirts from the factory. I do know of a guitar manufacture in China that was going to sell me some gear that didn't seem like a good deal as I know of a store that sells the same brand. The store's prices were literally $1 higher that the direct-from-manufacture prices. After I asked them about this, they did have quantity discounts.
I assumed that I would have to meet some kind of minimum quantity to get a good deal on the shirts. The guitars were shipped in a 20 foot container, which meant about 960 guitars. The shirt factory wasn't much different. If I bought an insane amount of shirts, the price of each shirt went down, and then shipping was a little more reasonable. I think you would be better off staying in your own country unless you really want a large order. I ended up finding a smaller shop that needed work, so they gave me a good deal.
Re: is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high?
Quote:
I really only want 100 shirts in each colour for each design....not 3000 shirts....not even 1200.....
Yes, that seems very high for 3000 shirts.
I don't know how many different garment colors you're doing, but if you're around 300-500 per design, you should be able to get better than that from many screen printers (depending on the garment's used, colors in the designs, etc)
Quote:
firstly, they wanted me to pay US$350 for a sample...but when i asked for a blank shirt unprinted...they made some excuse that they couldnt send one
A blank t-shirt unprinted shouldn't be hard to send at all. That would be a red flag for me.
One printed sample with your design will probably have a high fee. I've seen Fluid here mention that his one-off screen printed samples for clients run about $150 (I think), so $350 seems high. Many screen printers won't print a one off sample because of the setup time and costs involved.
Re: is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high?
Quote:
Originally Posted by micca2006
I really only want 100 shirts in each colour for each design....not 3000 shirts....not even 1200.....
If you don't want 3000 or 1200 shirts, there is really no reason to go overseas at all. Just use a local screenprinter. It will be faster and you will save on shipping costs as well.
Re: is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high?
I would also suggest using an American printer as opposed to hassling with a foreign printer who has already acted shady. I'm sure there are people here on these boards who would love to have a 1200 shirt order!
Re: is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high?
Quote:
Originally Posted by brent
I would also suggest using an American printer as opposed to hassling with a foreign printer who has already acted shady. I'm sure there are people here on these boards who would love to have a 1200 shirt order!
Micca's in Australia, but I understand your point... use a local supplier.
is this quote ftom a china manufacturer a bit high? 
