Whether you’re searching for an idea to turn into a full-time business, or you’re looking for a side hustle to make some extra cash, a t-shirt printing business is a great way to go. T-shirts have never been more popular, and starting a business in your own home is easier than you might think.
Use the following tried-and-true steps to start your own business.
Decide on Your Specialty
The t-shirt business has a lot of competition. Now, before you stop reading, it’s not as bad as it sounds. The reason? You are unique. While there may be many t-shirt businesses, there is only one you.
Only you will have your unique designs, ideas, and niche. This is one of the most important parts of your business.
Decide what specialty you will bring to the t-shirt market. Think about what you love, the designs, the patterns, parts of life itself, and then design t-shirts around that theme.
Don’t copy someone else’s idea and stay away from over-done concepts. Outlines of mountains with quotes have been overdone. “Keep calm” shirts are in abundance.
But your ideas have yet to hit the t-shirt market. Do you love food puns? Work with that. Are you a fan of anime and cats? Work with that. Do you specialize in watercolor paintings of nature or animals? Work with that.
Choose your own unique idea and incorporate it into your t-shirt designs. Using a unique, original idea will ensure that no one else will have a version of your shirts.
Draft a Few Designs
The next step in the process is to draft a few designs. Whether you produce mock-ups on a computer or draw them out by hand, start to bring your designs to life. Once you have several designs you love, scan them into your computer and watermark them so they cannot be copied.
If:
You’re not sure you possess t-shirt worthy design skills, turn to an artist friend, or hire someone from a site like Upwork or Fiverr.
Freelancing sites offer a wide variety of talented artists that fit nearly any budget range. Keep in mind, though, that you generally do get what you pay for.
Once you’re happy with the designs you have, move on to step three: testing the waters.
Test Your Idea
This next step is probably the scariest — it’s where you test out your designs and concepts on friends, family, and strangers. If you want to get a clear picture of whether your designs are appreciated and buyer-approved, you can’t get around this step.
Start with friends and family or strangers — whichever group you feel comfortable starting with. Show your designs to friends and family to get feedback on design, concept, and idea. Ask for honest opinions and let them help you adjust and correct any flaws.
Next, show your design ideas to strangers on sites like Reddit or Facebook. Be sure to watermark your images so they can’t be stolen or copied.
Again, adjust to feedback and then finalize your design. Now, you’re ready to print.
Decide on a Business Model
This next step is a bit more complicated. Printing t-shirts yourself is possible and rather affordable but, depending on your business model, you could be looking at a significant up-front cost.
DIY
If you decide to run the entire business yourself, you’ll need to purchase a printer, ink, and t-shirt blanks. This could mean a significant outlay depending on which printing method you choose.
Direct-to-Garment printers cost thousands, whereas dye-sublimation printers start in the hundreds. You’ll also need to have blank t-shirts in a range of sizes on hand for printing when someone orders from you.
There is more financial risk when doing everything yourself, but using this method will likely maximize your profit margin.
Use a Service
If you use a print-on-demand service, you don’t have to have any inventory or equipment on hand. Instead, you put a customer’s order through, and you receive the profit after you’ve paid the service you hire.
With this type of service, you can even have the print-on-demand company ship the shirts to your customers for you. There is less risk going through a company in case a particular design or style doesn’t work out, but your profit margin will be lower.
Whether you use a service or do it all yourself, be sure that the t-shirts you are using are the best quality possible. No one likes wearing t-shirts that don’t fit well or are made of stiff, uncomfortable material.
Start Selling Your Shirts
After you’ve figured out your niche, tested your designs, and figured out your business model, you’re ready to start selling shirts! Market to your friends and family, get your friends to help you out and pass along the word.
The more you can promote your shirts, the more they’ll sell, and before you know it, you’ll have a thriving t-shirt business that will make yourself proud.
