[treynolds]

My dad owns a bar and sells alot of t-shirts. He has been spending a fortune having all of his work done for him and now wants me to do this for him. I have no idea what it takes to get started, but i told him i would try to figure it out.

1st of all i have about a $2000 budget to work with here. I would like to start selling shirts to local bars, companys, ect, ect if i get this equipment. I have watched some videos on you tube and have done some price checking on ebay, but am still unsure about things.

What do i need to do this? All your help is appreciated and sorry if i have any stupid follow up questions but i am pretty lost here.

thanks in advance

 

[mtee]

People will have different opinions due to experience, My opinion is you need a heat press, you can get an inexpensive one that is decent.. I got one for $300 from proworld.com it is nothing fancy but it does the job.. then you need a place to order transfers.. transfer express will do custom designs for you, but I think you need a tax ID for them.. anyway I am sure there are other places to get them without.. and last you need a t shirt source. I use blankshirts .. and you are on your way.... GOOD LUCK

 

[honored 1]

Heat press is cool, but if you really wanna start & are for real about it, I think silk screening is the way to go. You're able to be more profitable in the long run but the start up ain't cheap. You won't be able to do too much with 2 grand but ya never know. I got a 4 color press & flash dryer that was given to me by a friend of my dad's who just wanted it out of his garage. You may not be that fortunate but with 2000 I'd definitely start checking out some used equipment. In this economy, someone may bite at the chance for some liquid cash. Check ebay & craigslist.
Hope all works out for you.

 

[nascarbob]

I would go with Chrsitee's suggestion. This will be a good way to start up and see how well you do. You can always upgrade once the money is rolling in. The only thing I would change is to buy a name brand press.

 

[honored 1]

Yeah come to think of it, with 2g's I'd go with Christees idea too just to get started.

 

[MotoskinGraphix]

Can you post a pic of a typical bar tee you guys sell? How many colors are your typical shirt designs? How many different designs do you have created? Do you guys do SP day Irish tees? Do you do THE BIG GAME TEES for Superbowl? Do you have special events at the bar that you make tees for?

As you can see the market can be large and having a built in retail environment helps. How many tees do you print at a time...a typical order?

 

[wormil]

My dad owns a bar and sells alot of t-shirts. He has been spending a fortune having all of his work done for him and now wants me to do this for him. I have no idea what it takes to get started, but i told him i would try to figure it out.

Does he want you to brew his beer also? Is printing shirts something you want to do or something you're doing because he wants you to do it? Printing is a learned trade, personally I like it but not everyone does. Unless you really want to do this as a business, you won't save any significant amount of money by printing them yourself unless you are selling a lot of tees. Not only is there the time and money you'll spend in startup costs but in the beginning you'll make many mistakes and possibly have some returned shirts.

You need a press, ink storage, somewhere to clean and store screens, a conveyor dryer, a folding table, a screen prep area with a washout booth, power washer and exposure box; a computer, scanner, a printer capable of making large positives and graphic arts skills. Plus you need to learn how to use all that equipment. I always recommend that you get a job with a screenprinter to learn the business. There are many subtleties that are easier to learn from someone than by watching a youtube video or reading a book.

 

[pwapparel]

You may want to look for a different supplier. Unless you gave us more info(how many shirts he sells a month, what the shirts look like, how much he pays right now, etc.) I don't think we can give you the greatest of information.

Christees idea is the best for you. I would not look into doing screen printing until you have a lot of orders coming in.

Send us more info!!! Oh and Welcome to the Forums!

 

[treynolds]

Thank you for all your help guys. My dads average bill is about $900 every 2-3 months. (and that is the best deal in the area) The design is very simple, he usually buys closeout specials on packers and badgers shirts and then has his logo just transfered on. They sell lots of clothing and do plenty of shirt giveaways on the weekends. He looks at it as free advertising

Can anyone tell me more benifets to silk screening? 2 grand was what i had in mind for a budget but if silk screening is easier and gives a better product i would be willing to spend upwards of about 5 grand. Is this possible? Thanks again.

 

[jmlampert23]

going with the heat press is deffinitly one route and the cheaper of the two. screen printing is the second choice but more expensive. you most likely will have to spend close to 10000 bucks to get a decent setup to print, especially if you want to do more than just your dads place.

 

[Girlzndollz]

Hey Tyler, how are you? Does your father also have you spend hours at the bar? If you spend any considerable time at the bar, there is a time factor for you to consider. If your father wants to do this, he may not realize you won't be at the bar, you'll be a printer doing printing.

There are other ways to lower costs. You can shop out your job for one. You can place a recommendations and referrals request on this forum, and folks can suggest printers in your area, or offer their services if they provide it.

Another way is to definitly go with a heat press and order plastisols of your logo. This was you can still buy those close out shirts, and just add your logo yourself with your press. Ordering plastisols in bulk can be a very economical choice, and the learning curve is much, much less than learning how to screen print, which literally is a craft to be learned.

Though if you have the money to spare, the time to dedicate, the ambition to succeed, certainly there are very experienced folks here who can help recommend the appropriate gear for you, and offer assistance as you move along the learning curve. It will take time for you to develop your skills, so if your costs are that high, I would still suggest you shop your shirt orders around for competive pricing until you take them on yourself. Best regards.

 

[dmfelder]

Outsourcing to start is perhaps your best direction. Typically, quotes for direct-to-garment printing and screen printing are free, so at a minimum you could shop around for the best price.

I agree with some of the other posters. See how it goes first, or find a partner who could show your the ropes. If you're in Chicago, look us up. We'll point you in the right direction.

Best of luck!

 

[pete219]

My dad owns a bar and sells alot of t-shirts. He has been spending a fortune having all of his work done for him and now wants me to do this for him. I have no idea what it takes to get started, but i told him i would try to figure it out.

1st of all i have about a $2000 budget to work with here. I would like to start selling shirts to local bars, companys, ect, ect if i get this equipment. I have watched some videos on you tube and have done some price checking on ebay, but am still unsure about things.

What do i need to do this? All your help is appreciated and sorry if i have any stupid follow up questions but i am pretty lost here.

thanks in advance

11X15 Mighty Press 399.00 (specialty-graphics)

Epson Store:choose one!
C88+ 84.99
R280 99.99
1400 179.00 (50.00 + 70.00 rebate) 299.99 total

Inks 186.00(pigment Ink 6) Coastal business

re-fill ink carts 90.00 inkjetrefillstore.com

corel x3 79 .00 -125.00 discountsoftwarehouse.com

heat tranfer paper:
Lights- Jetpro sofstretch 11x17 (25) 31.00
8.5x11 (25) 17.00

Darks- jet wear dark 11x17 (25) 43.00
8.5x11 (25) 23.00
tshirtsupplies.com

399.00 Press
299.00 Printer (70.00 +50.00 rebate)
186.00 Ink
90.00 re-fill carts
125.00 Corelx3 (download)
74.00 paper (light and dark)
44.00 t-square-it
total= 1217.00
That's the basics! you could reduce cost even furthe by getting the c88 instead of the R1400 from epson.
Hope this helps!!!