# Which way to go



## mslusher (Oct 18, 2014)

I'm fairly new to the shirt business having been in signs and vinyl for some time. My experience so far has been using heat transfers that we bought but we would like to be able to do custom work. Vinyl doesn't seem to be the answer and I don't have the space or setup for screen printing so I guess something else is in order but there are a lot of choices these days and the more I read the more pros and cons there are. It seems there are new things coming along constantly. What's the best way to get started doing custom shirts without breaking the bank or outgrowing it right away?


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## Screen Medics (Feb 23, 2015)

Please don't overlook exploring outsourcing your orders. The big guys aren't interested in the small orders however, there are many little guys that are good quality printers without enough business to be busy. They usually do not have the time, money and/or sales skills to load up their printing schedule enough to really see significant growth. 
I would reach out to some of them to see if they would cut you a great deal just to stay busy printing. If they are doing little better than breaking even printing your orders it is better than having no orders to print at all.
Exploring this option costs you nothing and could eliminate your need for large cash outlays to buy equipment you may not be able to keep busy all of the time either.
As your business grows you can watch for select used equipment without being in a stress position to make a purchase.
I know of one little guy who sold out to the startup he was printing for on an earn-out basis with nothing down. I bought a competitor in 2010 using an earn-out agreement and virtually no cash up front. 
Get back to me if this interests you and you have questions.


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