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Pay half now and half later?

953 views 24 replies 16 participants last post by  Teamwear 
#1 ·
Just wondering if ur doing a job and you know the whole price, do u have the customer pay all up front, half up front or all at the end? I'd probably have to get half up front to pay for the shirts...


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#13 ·
Weird, I would think it would be more important to collect 100% on larger orders as if they flake your at more of a loss than a smaller order.

Doesn't the 50/50 hurt your cash flow? I do some contract printing for local embroidery companies here and they insist that they offer 50/50 to their customers but every month I hear the owners complaining of companies not paying, slow paying, or how they have no cash flow. I keep telling them to change it to a 100% upfront business but they are stuck to their own ways which obviously isn't working too well because they couldn't pay their employees due to this and almost went bankrupt.
 
#12 ·
I haven't dealt with the shirts yet since mine are sale as you go, but my policy on graphics work, such as blue prints, flyers, brochures, etc., 50% upfront the rest on pickup, only have 2 long time customers that I do invoice work with a 30, 60, or 90 day final payment but always 50% upfront for all incidentals.

These guys have done business with me since college, and we've worked together for various firms, small jobs they just pay up, but sometimes they have their money held at the other end, and they refer lots of work my way, so its not a deal just anyone gets. Don't know if shirts will fall into this area, the order would have to be ridiculous huge.
 
#14 ·
Your right on most counts but I was referring to the work involved not the payment, I would not worry even a little about getting payed, these guys I give a pass to have payed me based on the 30 60 90 even if they got stuck for their end (some serious cheddar too), so they earned a favor from me but this isn't the way I normally do business, I was just making a point that anything less than 50% up front and remander at delivery is a special circumstance. I don't even give my family that favor just 2 guys that put their selves on the line to make something right.

Construction and architectural work are based on bank disbursement to the contractors so 30 60 90 are the norm on bigger projects for sub work, even drawings & prints, this can suck sometimes so I only work the bigger projects with these guys. The kind of work I stick to is residential or light commercial jobs for the most part. Total different animal than my desktop publishing work.
"you can only trust one man in a thousand"
 
#16 ·
We did 67% for 2/3rds pay. We haven't had many customers flake out, but it does happen to everyone.

If we have a customer that says, well we really didn't like this so we want our money back, then we say fine, but we want all the t-shirts back. We do this to make sure they don't sell the t-shirts anyways. If they don't have all the shirts, we deduct that amount.

You know how some people are, and even the nices people will rip you off.
 
#17 ·
I agree, early on I got stuck on a few upfront jobs thats why I stopped, sad thing is the only three I ever got stuck for were for churches/ministers, just never have the money and I dropped my price to cost to start.............just never know, don't do any charity or church work unless its cash up front.
 
#18 ·
Sadly to say, one of our toughest customers is our own church. One of the groups we always have problems with, and the last 2 or 3 years we outsourced, and either the Outsource company or us, and had to pay to fix something our Church messed up.

We love them dearly, but sometimes it hurts doing business with certain groups.
 
#22 ·
Everything we do (screenprinting, embroidery, promo items) are all pay 100% when you pick up. Very rarely do we get stuck with anything. As a matter of fact, I think I can count on one hand the number of times it has happened on one hand in the four years I've been doing this. We also do 10-30 days for the schools and colleges in our area, and for the businesses that use us regularly. About 50% of our business is repeat customers who screen print tees for their staff or embroider polos or poplins with their logo as uniforms. When I see them twice a month, it gets hard to request all the money up front. It's just easier to invoice them. Since we have credit with our suppliers, we pay them when we get paid. If for some reason something goes wrong and we have to refund some of the money, it's never an issue. But then again, the business is getting pretty large. :)
It's also easier if there's a mess up, I just mark it off the PO before it gets billed and don't have to worry about refunding money. I guess it all depends on just how much money you take in.
 
#24 ·
new customers pay 100% up front. good customers (ones that pick up their orders on time) pay 100% at pickup. no one takes the goods without payment.

for practical purposes 50% or $100 whichever is greater.
 
#25 ·
Always 100% upfront. Either they want it and have the money or they don't. Let's face it-the other 50% is our profit. If they can not or do not want to pay the other 50% then I would rather spend my time working on something I know I will get paid on.

I always use THEIR money to buy their items-not my money.

Every single time we bend the rules something comes up-either they did not sell everything they thought they would and do not have the money or they sit here a week before they come get them.

We have not had anybody not buy because of it.

I know this will surprise some-but we do not even take credit cards. Why pay monthly transaction fees and such? I would say a vast majority of these customers have collected their money upfront so we think they should go ahead and pay the bill.

Besides-the longer they hang on to the money the more oppty there is that someone does something else with it rather than pay their t-shirt bill.

I guess it is obvious-we have seen some of the school PTA and booster club organizations have money go missing.
 
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