# Online Design and Ecom



## AdvancedArtist (Nov 23, 2006)

I believe that by 2015 the majority of custom apparel and promotional product ordering will be done online possibly with just a few nationals. Why do I believe that? Because having developed one of these systems from ground up I know the potential these systems have. Pick a design template.. slap it on every product under the sun in seconds. Get and instant quote, change the color, change the product in a flash. I won’t get into more because I do not want to give the people that want to take over this market ideas.

If you think for one minute that Wall Street is not looking at a 20 billion $ a year industry without big $ signs in their eyes, guess again. Have you seen the TV commercials? Look in the your yellow pages.. see a national there? The question is this.. are you/we going to let it happen? 

Because if it does even these forums we work together in will fade out.. think about that. The Industry gone to a handful of nationals what would this forum be then?

If you are not online with some serious hard core solutions in the next few years you will be left out of the game. Just like Wal-Mart has moved into every corner and crevasse putting the local butchers and small shops out of business with products manufactured by cheap labor suffering in a communist country.

We that have been in the game for some time have seen the designs coming into our shops designed in online designs tools of the nationals. For every design that made into the shop I used to work in I would wonder.. how many of these locals actually order from them? Now the nationals are racking in 10s of million perhaps shortly it will be billions and our way of life will be gone.

A few years ago I was making halftones in a camera that looked like a small house, fast forward, that thing is a piece of history that weighs about 2 tons.


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## Mabuzi (Jul 3, 2007)

Wal mart only operates under the regulations the government YOU control. 

Nothing will change in the market place unless you make the government change the regulations. You know the same people you vote for all the time.
So in reality you are in control and big multi-nationals get away with below minimum wage and other unfair practices because of your choice.

*Good for fighting* though as there has been a 25% closesure of small business all around the world since the GFC. Here in Australia, since the GFC, small business have suffered but the large multi nationals have prospered.

How are you going developing the software for on-line customisation.


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## AdvancedArtist (Nov 23, 2006)

Mabuzi said:


> How are you going developing the software for on-line customisation.


We just completed the www.opentshirts.org project. What I find the most compelling about these tools is that when set up correctly with some design ideas and prodducts you just click thru products and get instant preview of the design/art on any product.


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## allstarr (Mar 20, 2009)

We have seen the site ( Welcome to OpenTshirts.org ) and think it is great! Thank you, AdvancedArtist!


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## treefox2118 (Sep 23, 2010)

A capitalist like me can adapt much faster than the nationals, and there will always be people who prefer to shop local. We compete with VistaPrint on business cards every day and make a profit even meeting their prices. We compete FedEx Office on color copies, matching their price and make a profit. We compete with almost all online shops, matching prices, but offering services the anonymous online shops can't.

We have about 20 websites targeting different niche industries but back them up with a phone number and very personal services. We prefer to sell our local, small shop presence over merely price, and we are growing each and every month.

The nationals can have their customers, we're fine with ours.


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## AdvancedArtist (Nov 23, 2006)

treefox2118 said:


> We have about 20 websites targeting different niche industries but back them up with a phone number and very personal services.


That is exactly what I am talking about. Getting online and hitting niches and defending your local position at the same time this is one of the best strategies there is.


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## Mabuzi (Jul 3, 2007)

Know your target market! 
Vistaprint is doing $6 t-shirts but that is not our market. Competing on price against large multinational’s won’t work. Stratgey just do cheaper and when there are no competitors left you then strangle the market.


One day Walmart will print t-shirts.


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## LiveArt (May 11, 2011)

I presume not the majority, but the 100%. The market is global.


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