Are you interested in setting up your own t-shirt business? You will be pleased to know it’s relatively simple to do and not too expensive either. The problem, as with any business, even those that are easy to get started in, is making it a success. Time and your determination will help define that. To stand a good chance of having success though, you need to follow the following actionable steps.
Identify A Niche Market for Your T-Shirt Business
Who doesn’t like t-shirts? Most people seem to have at least one or two of these practical and comfortable pieces of clothing in their wardrobe, with many more having piles of them. However, just because everyone seems to wear t-shirts, it doesn’t mean everyone will buy your t-shirts. It’s a good idea then to target a specific niche within the market. Ecommerce is a very competitive sector, so you need to have something that stands out about your business and its products.
Research the kind of designs you would like print on your t-shirt and who those appeal to and then gear your business towards them.
Get Designing
At the core of a t-shirt business is the designs themselves. Therefore, this part of your business should have a lot of time devoted to it. Try going against the grain and thinking outside of the box. Remember, you want to have t-shirts with designs that stand out, not that look like pale imitations to already popular products. Think about your target audience and niche market and go from there.
If you are worried your artistic flair is not what it should be, look to enlisting the help of someone who can help bring your ideas to life.
Get Validation for Your T-Shirt Designs
Once you have a number of t-shirt designs you think will work for your business, you need to get validation for them. It would be all-too easy to just steamroller ahead with the designs and print off t-shirts, but rather than just relying on your own opinion, you need some unbiased eyes to voice their thoughts on the t-shirts. Use forums and speak to local consultants as well as looking to friends and family and members of your target audience.
Source the Materials
So, you have your business in place, you have designs you are ready to take to the next stage…what do you need next? That’s right – products to sell. And if you are looking to sell printed t-shirts you need t-shirts to print on. You need to be careful when choosing your t-shirts supplier.
Obviously, you will make better profits if you keep the outgoings to a minimum. This may lead you to believe the best course of action is to invest in fairly inexpensive t-shirts that you will be able to buy piles and piles of to shift greater numbers of your products. Stop for a moment and think. Have you ever bought a t-shirt that looked really nice, but that lasted just one or two wears before it started to deteriorate? We’ve all be there, we suspect, and this serves as a reminder that all-too-often you get what you pay for.
So, when sourcing the t-shirt supplier, consider finding a middle ground where you are not sacrificing quality and durability while still keeping the purchase price low enough to make a reasonable profit. Your customers will appreciate the extra you spent on quality material when they slip on your t-shirts.
Get Printing
With everything else in place, it’s time to get printing. While there are various companies out there who will do this part of the process for you, you may want to keep your business home-based and grassroots. As well as being good from a marketing point of view, as you can use phrases like “home designed” and “home printed” in the blurb, it’s also a great way of monitoring quality control to ensure all your products meet your own exacting high standards.
To print t-shirts at home, you’ll need the best sublimation printer. This may also be a cheaper alternative to paying for a professional company to print your t-shirts for you.
As with any new business, there’s always the risk that it may not be successful. That’s the exciting thing about starting something from scratch and trying to make a living from it, or at least an additional income. However, if you take the 5 actionable steps outlined above, you will be at a good starting position to work from and expand your business.
