I’ve been receiving letters from people who want information and advice about how to sell T-shirts for sometime now. I’ve always been flattered by these requests, because I never considered myself any kind of “expert” or “authority” on T-shirts. I’m just a regular guy that makes and sells T-shirts for a living, that’s all. But, I thought about it a little more, and after 12+ years and a ka-zillion T-shirts later, I guess I’ve learned a few things. So I thought I’d share some of those things I’ve learned along the way here:
1) Have a plan.
“How do I get started?” “What’s the first or most important thing I should do?” A business plan, in my opinion, is crucial. It doesn’t have to be anything formal, type-written and double spaced, or loan officer approved. It can be just a few notes on napkins (my first plan). But write something down, and organize your thoughts. Then work up to a more formal plan that includes an “Executive Summary”, Marketing, and Financial summaries. Most importantly, write a plan for yourself. It’s more important to know what you want to do and how you want to do it, rather than tell or show other people.
2) Find a good screen printer.
T-shirts are produced using any number of different methods, with heat transfer and screen printing being the most popular. I’ve heard of a process called dye sublimation as well, but I’m not very familiar with that process. And, I’m aware of at least two different types of heat transfer processes, but I’m sure there are more.
My personal choice for image reproduction on T-shirts is screen printing. It’s the oldest and most widely used process, and it is the easiest way to go to get started. (Your experiences may differ.) Unless you intend to print your own T-shirts, you must find a really experienced and reliable screen printer. The quality of your t-shirts will depend on the quality of the print. And your ability to keep inventory in stock will depend on the reliability and consistency of your printer. Bad printers will produce t-shirts that will vary from one batch to the next, something very undesirable. Interview lots of printers. Look at their work. Ask for references.
3) Learn your customers.
Who will be buying your t-shirts? What ages? What ethnic groups? Income levels? All this stuff makes up what’s called a “demographic”, or a statistic characterizing human populations or segments of human populations broken down by age or sex or income etc. (Please pardon my dictionary definition.)
Why is this important? There’s a reason why I don’t have any Tupac t-shirts, or T-shirts for children on my website. My primary demographic is between ages 28 and 50. In order to sell Tupac T’s or t’s for kids, I would have to cater to a younger group of people. To sell T-shirts for kids, I would have to focus on parents. I focus on black history, black politics, black humor, and black commentary. Folks around my age (over 30) go for that type of stuff.
Bottom line: Have a good idea of who you’re selling your t-shirts to. Some t-shirt vendors focus on women’s issues, while others dedicate their lines to religious issues. Knowing who is most likely to purchase your products is an obvious necessity.
4) Try out your new designs.
Once you have your first couple of T-shirt designs printed, participate in fairs and festivals in your area. Make arrangements with local stores and get your designs on there shelves. Give them away (or preferably, sell them) to friends and family. And ask what they think. Then listen to everyone. Keep the most popular designs, cut or trim the rest. Which leads me to my next point…
5) Don’t “fall in love”. Just date, but don’t marry.
It’s really easy to get attached to a particular design or idea. Nobody will ever love your t-shirt designs more than you will. But it’s not about you; it’s about your customers. Make t-shirts for them, not (just) for you. T-shirt makers are kind of like artists. Some of us may not actually draw or create the artwork that appears on any given T-shirt we sell, but we decide what we will ultimately carry and sell. Just because we think it’s a good idea, doesn’t mean everyone else will agree. And you should care about what other people think, at least a little, because other people are who is buying your stuff. How many musicians make what they believe is good music, but it turns out to be a flop? *cough* Janet Jackson *cough*
6) Just do it.
Sorry for biting Nike’s slogan, but it’s the truth. Having an idea and not acting on it is just dreaming. If somebody told me that I’d be actually making and selling t-shirts for a living 10 years ago, I would’ve laughed. Now, in these tough economic times, I’m glad I gave it a try. If you believe you have a good idea, just do it. Regroup, refine, organize, and experiment, but don’t give up. (People still tell me I’m wasting my time with this business to this day. I just listen, and keep doing what I do. If you’ve read this far, you’ve probably looked around my website by now. You decide if I’m wasting my time or not.)
Please note: this particular essay is a work in progress. As I receive new questions, or I come up with additional ideas, I will add them here. Please feel free to post any questions or comments you might have right here.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot one very important thing: DON’T BOOTLEG!!!
If you make any T-shirts that are of famous people, places, or events, do your homework. There’s a reason why I don’t have any MLK or Rosa Parks T-shirts on my website: because I don’t have a license to make them, nor have I found anyone (yet) who does. And having proper persmission is important.
(Actually, I did find one manufacturer that made some “legal” MLK T’s, but the largest size they had was size: Large. If they couldn’t make anything bigger, I couldn’t really do business with them - I would have been cutting out too many people with such limited sizes.)
Posted by
Steve on 10/23/06 at 06:32 AM
i always want to start my own bussiness for sometime now
i just dont know how to do it please help a young brother try
to make his dream a reality
Posted by on 12/06/06 at 09:28 PM
The only thing i can say Victor is just go ahead and take action.
Not sure of the first thing you should do? Pick up a copy of “business plans for dummies”. Great book. I wore the cover off my copy. Put a basic plan together, nothing fancy, just an outline - for yourself. From there, you should be able to get some ideas of what you want to actually do.
There’s no magic amswer, no particular formula, nothing special to do - other than just get started.
Posted by
Steve on 12/06/06 at 11:20 PM
Steve,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and the information in your blog.. very cool!
I am feelin a few of your tshirts, and may have to buy a few 
To your continued success, and great press release on BlackPR.
Patrick
Posted by
Patrick on 02/06/07 at 05:14 PM
Thanks Patrick, greatly appreciated.
Posted by
Steve on 02/06/07 at 05:40 PM
Peace
I appreciate that you are available for new business starters to talk to. I am interested in starting up a business with t-shirts. Thanks for recommending Business Plans for Dummies. Will you be a vendor at the African Festival in Detroit this August 2007? If so, I’ll be looking for you.
Posted by on 04/12/07 at 05:09 PM
Hi April,
I plan to be there this year. I heard that this years festival may not be in Hart Plaza, due to increased costs, a lack of funding / sponsorship, and a new museum president. (You know the Charles H Wright museum sponsors the AWF.) But that’s just a roomer. We’ll see. Where ever the festival takes place, I plan to be there.
I’m asked about how I started my business and general advice all the time, so i thought this would help.
Posted by
Steve on 04/12/07 at 05:34 PM
Greetings brother Steve,
I appreciate a positive brother and role model for young brothers. I’m also interested in starting my own Tshirt business as well. Do you have more information on Licensing or where I can get that info. Want to know what I can or cant do. Thanks alot brother.
Posted by on 04/17/07 at 10:54 AM
Hi Onaje,
Licensing means (roughly) having permission to reproduce images, artwork, or likenesses that (legally) belong to someone else. That’s why I don’t carry any MLK or Rosa Parks T’s. I do not have permission to make them, nor have I found anyone that does. So far, everything I’ve found has been bootleg (unaurthorized).
My suggestions:
1) Determine who your audience is… the people who buy Tupac t-shirts aint the same people who purshase Harriet Tubman T’s. People who purchase religious T’s don’t necessarily buy Fraternity or Sorority T’s. Know your audience.
2) Don’t do what everybody else does. Sure, there will be some overlap, but why re-invent the same wheel? Ever go to an African or Black heritage Festival and see 3 or 4 diff. t-shirt booths with basically the same t-shirts at every one of them?
3) Create your own images, artwork, and messages. Licensing can be expensive; don’t mean to discourage licensing, but making your own designs (to start) is less competative - against those that do have licenses and the bootleggers as well.
Please note, starting a t-shirt business is easy. Staying in business is a little more difficult. Not impossible by any means, but keeping momentum is harder that pushing things off. You have to have YOUR own UNIQUE angle. Something that sets you apart.
That’s my 2 cents.
Posted by
Steve on 04/17/07 at 01:19 PM
thanks for the info and keep doing what you do!
I wanted to touch on sublimation printing real quick.
Sublimation printing is a process that actually bonds the ink to the fabric. A sublimation print compared to a normal inkjet print is like comparing a tattoo to having a sticker stuck to your skin. There is a bit more of an investment than standard heat transfer, as the inks are more expensive and it has to be applied to polyester t-shirts. But the results are amazing. Polyester T’s are also lighter and more comfortable than cotton in warm weather. You have the flexibility of color and design that you get with inkjet transfers, but the image will not crack, fade or peel. My test shirt has been washed more than 20 times and there is no noticeable difference in the image.
It will never take the place of silk screen for mass producing shirts...but for short runs and full color shirts...Sublimation is worth looking in to. And if you just want to try it out...you don’t even need to make the investment in ink and printer, as there are a few companies online that will make sublimation prints from your artwork. Then all you have to do is apply it to the shirt with any heat press. Not as cheap as other heat transfers...but provides much better and more durable results.
Posted by on 05/23/07 at 02:19 PM
Hi Jelani,
Thanks for the heads up regarding sublimation.
I used to carry a few t-shirts that were created through that process, and they looked great. As a matter of fact, a few of my Bob Marley T’s were created from a sublimation process. Not all, but a few. I didn’t realize that it was a type of heat transfer process. Most of the heat transfer processess I’ve seen were these unprofessional “plastic” looking applications, as if someone gorrilla-glued a kodak picture to the front of a t-shirt. Not good. I’m absolutely sure this isn’t what you are referencing.
And you’re right, silk screen requires a greater investment due to the larger runs required. But when you find a really good printer, there isn’t much you can’t do with silk screen as far as variety of design. Good quality inks, and top notch application will keep a silk-screened t-shirt from cracking or fading for a very long time.
Posted by
Steve on 05/23/07 at 10:22 PM
Hi Steve,
I just happened to stumble upon your site checking out other t-shirt sites ( we are starting a Christian t-shirt business). I would like to know about SEO, I believe your site was on the third page on Yahoo search engine, and if you have any knowledge of it or made a point to do anything to get your site on the first few pages. You also talked about licensing, so I was wondering if you had to get a license for some of your images (such as Fred Sanford and Harriet Tubman)?
I like your shirts and your ideas, I’ve never seen Harriet Tubman shirts before! Great site.
Posted by on 06/19/08 at 06:55 PM
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