Where to even begin?

Printed merch in the form of tees and hoodies is everywhere and abundant. From small

businesses to entrepreneurs everyone seems to have one on their website. And you are left scratching your head, wondering how you can get one, look no further. Below are 5 things you need to consider before you design and manufacture your tshirt design.

How Much Will It Cost To Make Your T-shirt

How much will it cost to make your T-shirt? The rookie mistake is to send quotes hoping you will get a cheap option. But the best way to go about it is to work backward. Start with how much you would like to sell your T-shirt for. Not sure? Lookup comparable brands and find a median price point. In our example let's say $30.00.

​Enter $30.00 into Revenue below.

Then enter 40% into the margin below.

The cost will be $18.00. This is your budget $18.00/ per T-shirt.

​Play around with the calculator below to figure out how much profit you want to make given the price you want to sell your T-shirt at. Once you arrive at a wholesale cost, keep it in your mind and move to the next step to calculate how much you want to order. Keep note, it's always good to keep between 40%-60% margin to get a nice healthy profit.

How Many T-shirts Should I Order

Now you have your budget per T-shirt. This number is your ideal number to include how much it will cost for the blank T-shirt, printing a design, graphic design cost, and shipping cost to ship to your customers. Now before you panic and realize this number seems way too small to cover all those things, think quantity. These costs will all gradually decrease the higher the quantity you order. Typically a minimum order to get a nice discount would be 25 -50 T-shirts. So think to yourself, how much do you want to sell. If you plan ahead, market to the right people, and spread out your marketing campaign can you afford 25-50 or even more. This step is all about strategy. You don't want to order too many and get stuck with so many T-shirts you don't know what to do with. Survey your audience and ask yourself do you have enough of a reach to order a substantial quantity. Now you can easily go to a direct to print shop that is super cheap, but if you want to design something that is truly unique, stand out, and compete with other clothing brands' aesthetic, these are the things you have to start thinking about.

What Should My T-Shirt Look Like?

Now the fun part. Figure out what your t-shirt will look like. Are you designing for men or women? Do you have a silhouette in mind or reference pictures? Lastly what type of graphic do you want to be printed on your T-shirt and wear do you want it placed. The more specific you are with your design, the easier it will be to get it quoted.

Like this post but need more help on the design process? No worries click the button below to another post where I talk you through all the design processes.