Need advice on complaining customer- screen printed shirts

2505 Views 18 Replies 8 Participants Last post by Teamwear, Jul 28, 2010

ninja4life

Discussion Starter · Jul 12, 2010

I have a local print shop who just began using me for t-shirt jobs because they don't do them in house. I did 100 shirts, 2 sided and the customer won't accept them. They have a 3D logo and I explained multiple times before getting the job that it would not look as it does in the logo because you can't just screen print an image like that. It would have a dot pattern to create the 3D look. I had the plastisol transfers made by another company and I transferred them onto the shirts. The customer claims they expected white in the logo, to look more like the original, which was never discussed to begin with. I have all emails leading up to the order. I think the shirts look great, not the most 3D, but better than flat 2D. I have only received 50% of the payment. What do I do? I deal with the print shop, not the customer directly.

Do I go back to the printer who made the plastisol (doesn't quite look like the proof they sent me but their proof didn't have white in it anyway). Or do I hold my ground because I don't believe I'm at fault? (I'd probably not hear from the print shop again- not a huge deal as there are too many middlemen and opportunities for problems like this to arise). I'm supposed to meet with the print shop tomorrow and figure this out.

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buttton

· #2 · Jul 12, 2010

Can you upload any pics of the original and the proof you sent?

Who approved the proof you sent before you began,
and was the proof a printed shirt or a digital file of the artwork?

dlac

· #3 · Jul 12, 2010

WOW!!! sounds like a real cluster F____.. This is not a unusual problem when to many people are involved and you don't deal with the end user... Somewhere, and most likely in the shop you did the work for someone should have signed off on a proof... protect yourself from the next time.. some rubber stamp that says "Iapprove this art as shown" without signatures and approvals these possible messes are always on the horizon.. I get press ready art from people and still when I send it off to get transfers made or printed I have them sign off on the art they gave me just to avoid arguments down the road.. The people who do my transfers send me the art back via email and have me sign off on the art I just sent them..
You have to cover your butt... This one sounds like you have to somehow work out a deal with everyone so someone does not loose it all
dlac

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ninja4life

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jul 12, 2010

Well, I had to have the screen printer alter the artwork since they were the ones screening it. I couldn't do that without putting out money so I described how it would look multiple times to the print shop to explain to their customer. They said they understood and placed the order. Even if I did show them the proof I ended up getting from the screen printer, they'd still be unhappy because the digital proof still looks different from the end product. Here's the original logo they wanted done and the proof I got from the screen printer.

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dlac

· #5 · Jul 12, 2010

Sounds like you covered your butt and the problem here is obviously related to the white missing and or should have been on white shirts.. In the future one of the keys here is to print tne proof out on paper with the shirt color as background so they could get a better idea than on a white piece of paper... ? lMeanwhile again if you want to keep the customer you are gonna have to make some kind of deal... One of the things is to do the order over... Then explain to the customer they can buy the old shirts at a deal or they are going to end up at a discount store somewhere and who knows who will buy them and what neighberhood they are going to end up in... sell them to them at cost, they get a deal and no one loses much
dlac

ninja4life

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jul 28, 2010

Here's an update. The printshop said their customer refused the shirts. This same printshop owed me $288 for a previous job I did for them which went smoothly. Instead of paying me for this previous job, they subtracted out $200 which was the deposit they gave me on the second job which didn't go so well. I ended up with a check for $88 for both jobs. So they pretty much took back their deposit on the second job by taking from the money they owed me on the first job. Is this allowed? So I received nothing for the job that the customer didn't like (no fault of mine).

alvin6661

· #7 · Jul 28, 2010

im confused!!!! you are a printer that has a customer that wants shirts printed and you use an outside company to print your transfers, correct? first6 mistake was not getting paid on the first job, second was using transfers.

ninja4life

Discussion Starter · #8 · Jul 28, 2010

My customer was a printing company that does everything but shirts. The shirts were for their customer. I billed them for the first job like anyone else would. They just delayed sending the check to me and in the end subtracted from it.

What's wrong with using transfers? I've never had a problem before.

Twanabee

· #9 · Jul 28, 2010

Whatever happens, make sure you get all the shirts back.

MotoskinGraphix

· #10 · Jul 28, 2010

On this one I dont know...think I would have rejected that proof. I would have either had the printer try again on the artwork or find another printer. I would like to see the a pic of the printed tee. Did the print go on Gray tees?

MotoskinGraphix

· #11 · Jul 28, 2010

ninja4life said:
My customer was a printing company that does everything but shirts. The shirts were for their customer. I billed them for the first job like anyone else would. They just delayed sending the check to me and in the end subtracted from it.

What's wrong with using transfers? I've never had a problem before.

Did they do the artwork?

alvin6661

· #12 · Jul 28, 2010

ninja4life said:
My customer was a printing company that does everything but shirts. The shirts were for their customer. I billed them for the first job like anyone else would. They just delayed sending the check to me and in the end subtracted from it.

What's wrong with using transfers? I've never had a problem before.

So do you do screenprinting your self or just order transfers?

ninja4life

Discussion Starter · #13 · Jul 28, 2010

I put them on gray shirts. I'll have to post a pic later.

I don't screen print myself, I order transfers when needed. Other times I use vinyl and heat transfers.

The company that made the transfers did the artwork. They said it's the best they can do with plastisol.

Adding to the problem is the print shop I did the shirts for bought the shirts, I just transferred onto them. Now who gets to keep the shirts? I got payed nothing.

The thing that bothers me is they subtracted the deposit amount out of what they owed me for a completely separate job. The whole point of a deposit is to cover your costs in case stuff like this happens isn't it?

Twanabee

· #14 · Jul 28, 2010

I do not think that they can grab the money from one invoice to make themselfs whole. If you have an signed invoice for the first job, I would go after them for that. It has nothing to do with the second one.

MotoskinGraphix

· #15 · Jul 28, 2010

ninja4life said:
Well, I had to have the screen printer alter the artwork since they were the ones screening it. I couldn't do that without putting out money so I described how it would look multiple times to the print shop to explain to their customer. They said they understood and placed the order. Even if I did show them the proof I ended up getting from the screen printer, they'd still be unhappy because the digital proof still looks different from the end product. Here's the original logo they wanted done and the proof I got from the screen printer.

I think the tee customer wanted a two color print but was sold a one color print. I think the end problem is the tee customer nor the printer ever saw the proof from the screenprinter. You said yourself the customer wouldnt have been happy with the proof.

That said, you probably could have sold a two color job simply from the proof not meeting the customers expectations. You have to show an artwork proof to have legs when something like this comes up. This is what you ordered this is what we printed.

You should be paid in full for the previous job and work out a solution on this new job.

ninja4life

Discussion Starter · #16 · Jul 28, 2010

I agree. There were flaws in the whole thing. I feel if I was working directly with the end customer, this would not have happened. Lessons learned- Don't do work when there's a middleman. Don't ever not get a deposit, even from another company.

TshirtGuru

· #17 · Jul 28, 2010

There are a lot of lessons to be learned here, but one major one I mention over and over again is to get paid in full before you even think about starting an order. That way if a problem arises, the ball is in your court. This deposit crap is bs.

alvin6661

· #18 · Jul 28, 2010

just write it off as a lesson learned, if it aint a solid graphic dont do it!

Teamwear

· #19 · Jul 28, 2010

I would not do any more work for someone who stiffed me.

One order has nothing to do with the other one.

We are at the point that we do not take contract orders anymore. The contractors think they know EVERYTHING, but supply very little information-never enough to make 100% that it is correct.

Besides-if you do not have direct contact with the customer how would you be liable for anything?

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