Hi everyone, at last cafepress are doing a black t-shirt. The base price is $18.99 which seems rather expensive.
http://whatiftees.com/
http://whatiftees.com/
18.99 base price? That seems rather ridiculous.badsy said:Hi everyone, at last cafepress are doing a black t-shirt. The base price is $18.99 which seems rather expensive.
What is low quality about the shirt?This is an complete rip off for such a low quality t-shirt.
While I agree that this is a superb breakthrough for the all-in-one 0% investment market, $19 as a base cost seems obscene. Given the vast range of t-shirts selling *at retail* are between $15-$20 online, the only use that I can imagine this being put to are those wanting to make themselves a one-off shirt. The majority of us here, I imagine, would balk at such a price before our own mark up. If the shirt sells well, for the cost of 10 shirts, you could have 30 screen printed, and make 300% or 400% more profit per shirt, *and* sell them for less that their wholesale price.Rodney said:Actually, a lot of people would pay a lot more for a t-shirt.
What is low quality about the shirt?
In my opinion, Hanes is one of the best quality shirts out there. And most normal consumers trust the brand name.
I've seen the printing process they use in person, and I can tell you, it's definitely not cheap looking.
I'm guessing they don't want to go into a lot of details about their process because of competition, but they are using a version of direct t-shirt printing technology.
I agree that $19.99 and above is on the higher side of t-shirt prices, but it's definitely not unheard of. Plus, if the design is unique and can't be bought anywhere else, people will pay. In some stores t-shirts sell for $25-$30, so with the right marketing, I think the black tees at cafepress (and zazzle) will do just fine.
I disagree. There are lots of artists and designers at cafepress who already have a customer base of people wanting their designs who regularly get requests to put their designs on black shirts. Because many of these folks don't want to put the upfront money into getting shirts screen printed, this solutioni will work well for them.Given the vast range of t-shirts selling *at retail* are between $15-$20 online, the only use that I can imagine this being put to are those wanting to make themselves a one-off shirt.
I wouldn't assume too much about what others would do. Also, you have to think like a customer who doesn't know the costs. If a customer just sees a design they like, the price of the design isn't going to put them off unless it is WAY off like $30-$50.The majority of us here, I imagine, would balk at such a price before our own mark up.
That's if you knew the design was going to sell well. And that's IF you had your own shopping cart and hosting and ecommerce setup and wanted to deal with stocking inventory, processing orders, shipping out shirts, handling customer service, knowing which sizes to buy.If the shirt sells well, for the cost of 10 shirts, you could have 30 screen printed, and make 300% or 400% more profit per shirt, *and* sell them for less that their wholesale price.
While I agree with the general cut and thrust of your post, I don't think Cafepress and perceived value go together at all.Rodney said:In fact, there is a perceived value that happens when you price a t-shirt at a higher price. So undercutting your pricing isn't really helping you.
Exactly. Cafepress is great for a certain type of market. I don't think that's a premium market where you can charge $30 is if it was a high street fashion label.Solmu said:While I agree with the general cut and thrust of your post, I don't think Cafepress and perceived value go together at all.
Again, you are thinking like a t-shirt expertWhile I agree with the general cut and thrust of your post, I don't think Cafepress and perceived value go together at all.
This goes back to my point above:Heck even if a blank + screenprinting costs $10 per shirt to make. (Versus $19 base price), that's $9 more dollars in my pocket.
That's if you knew the design was going to sell well. And that's IF you had your own shopping cart and hosting and ecommerce setup and wanted to deal with stocking inventory, processing orders, shipping out shirts, handling customer service, knowing which sizes to buy.
It's not as simple as you would think. As much as I prefer a screen printed shirt and wish everyone sold them, it's just not for everyone.
Some people don't want to deal with upfront costs, some people do.
Some people don't want to deal with hosting and shopping carts, some people do
In your opinion.Hanes is on the lower end of T-shirt quality.
Ive been working with cafepress.com for the past 3 years. I understand your complaints but there is an answer. I agree the price for the black t's are a bit steep!monkeylantern said:Who in their right mind whould buy a t-shirt from cafepress from $19, never mind the mark-up a seller would need to make to make any sort of profit?