# Help With Starting a DTG T-shirt Printing Business



## sababa (Jan 16, 2010)

Hello Everyone,

I am interested to start a DTG T-shirt printing business. I really appreciate if you can help me with tips, advice and insights.

I saw the "BULLET" - Is it a good machine? Easy to operate and maintain? Are there any better machines out there?

Where can i buy the most affordable, quality T-shirts in large quantities?

Any idea what are most popular colors, and how many should i buy in order to start the business?

What is the approximate average net profit from each T-shirt?

How long does a DTG printed T-shirt keep the colors after washing and wearing.

What are the expenses for running this business. 
Rent space, 
The machine, 
Ink, 
T-shirts,
Marketing,
Office & Shipping supplies
Anything else?

Any other advice, tips and suggestions is really appreciate as it will help me avoid mistakes.

Thanks, have a great day

Sara


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## [email protected] (Sep 28, 2009)

Before you pick the tool , choose the business. Do you have a passion that you could build a business in that is not saturated like golf , or vampires ? good place to start. The dtg, or transfers, or mug clamp are just the equiptment to make , say black barbies, or Jewish sayings, or Only in Alabama...whatever. 
second get your artwork together and test the market with contract printing. Its ok if you don't make a profit..you are looking at JUSTIFYING the equiptment purchase. By the questions you are asking you are nowhere near spending 20k + to SEE if you can build a business. Spending the 20k should be predicated on the fact that your EXISTING business can be MORE profitable, not seeing if it can survive. Plenty of threads here to address the other questions you ask. DTG's are like cars ...once you buiy them , they are worth 1/2 of what you paid for it almost immediately...and, technology is moving quickly.


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## sababa (Jan 16, 2010)

Hi 

Thanks for your reply.

I have several design ideas and several designers to work with.

I also have the money to invest, 20k is not my limit and i can afford to invest.

The most important things i want to know are,

1 - Is the BULLET a good machines, or is there a better one out there.

2 - Where can i buy large quantities (4-7 thousand at a time) of T-shirts for the cheapest price yet decent/good quality cotton products.

3 - What is the approximate average cost producing a single standard white T-shirt,- that includes buying the t-shirt and the Ink. 

I would love to get info on good T-shirt distributors.

Thanks again everyone,

Love, Sara


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## [email protected] (Sep 28, 2009)

S,
If you want to buy several thousand tee shirts, I assume you already have orders. I would STILL recommend you contract print ,with that quantity you can make a good profit with no risk.
As far as the shirts, with out seeing the designs and knowing who your market is everyday tees ...Sanmar, Bodek and Rhodes, Alpha all carry Gildan, Anvil, Hanes etc..
For more trendy shirts S+S active wear is a good source. again there are threads here that exhaust that topic, plus fullfillment, tags etc.
do some homework to narrow your questions


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## sababa (Jan 16, 2010)

Hi again,

When designing artwork for DTG, What is the best/recommended resolution to use?

Any special details/instruction i need to tell my designer to work by to achieve the highest quality artwork for my new DTG business?

thanks a lot for your help,

Sara


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## [email protected] (Sep 28, 2009)

I prefer at least 100 dpi. But vector is not as crucial as a photograph, so it varies. When ink hits cotton it spreads so be careful with thick fonts and spacing...test before you print. a shirt will not look like a computer screen.
Be aware that printing on dark shirts requires a layer of white ink first, so the finished print comes out feeling not unlike a transfer, but it will not crack, but the hand is still thick and gummy.

attracttive packaging with a nice wash info tag and company /concept name can add percieved value too, plus allow you to sell for $19.95 vs $15.95..


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## sababa (Jan 16, 2010)

[email protected] said:


> I prefer at least 100 dpi. But vector is not as crucial as a photograph, so it varies. When ink hits cotton it spreads so be careful with thick fonts and spacing...test before you print. a shirt will not look like a computer screen.
> Be aware that printing on dark shirts requires a layer of white ink first, so the finished print comes out feeling not unlike a transfer, but it will not crack, but the hand is still thick and gummy.
> 
> attracttive packaging with a nice wash info tag and company /concept name can add percieved value too, plus allow you to sell for $19.95 vs $15.95..



Thanks a lot for your advice and info. What is the best image format for DTG T-shirt printing - AI,PSD,JPEG?

TAHNKS AGAIN

Sara


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## [email protected] (Sep 28, 2009)

any flat image works ...jpeg, tiff...
If you are going to print a full sized front make sure the image can be enlarged without losing detail


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## sababa (Jan 16, 2010)

Hello again everyone,

is there a special shopping cart software or CMS system especially designed for t-shirt stores, with size charts, color selection etc.

Thanks again for all the help

Sara


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## TulsaCane (Jan 26, 2009)

I have a T-Jet Blazer Express for sale that I used to get me started. I printed custom designs on baby clothes for a year or so before I got into screenprinting. A t-jet or DTG printer would be great for a designer. If you are interested contact me because I need to sell my equipment to make room for more screenprinting equipment. We gave over 20k for our printer and extras in Dec 2008. I need to sell it asap. 
Drew
918-269-4121


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