What I learned when I started a tshirt business

I was on the train like everyone else. Why start a t-shirt business when everyone and their mama has one. I wanted to start one but after seeing so many others start them I decided I would not give it a go. One day I was out and about wearing another shirt from someone else and everyone asked me where I got that shirt from. I told them the company and a few people bought the shirt right then. I was pissed because I could be walking around selling my own creations so I went home and put my thinking cap on. Of course, I don’t want to be like everyone else so I decided to niche down to shirts that represent my hometown of Charleston, SC.  I asked around to a lot of people and folks wouldn’t tell me what I needed to hear when it came to selling shirts. A lot of people were mum, some wanted thousands to show me, and some folks gave me half answers. I had to start this by myself so I wanted to share what I have done. Here is what I learned when I started a t-shirt business and hopefully it will help you if you decide to start one.

What I learned when I started a tshirt business

First, know what you want to sell and why. Also, keep in the back of your mind that folks can steal your ideas if it is not copyrighted or trademarked. Most words can’t be trademarked so if you put on a shirt I’m Hungry on a shirt know that you can’t trademark that and several others can put that on their shirt. Now design matters because they can’t copyright your exact style of the letters, fonts, placement, etc. Look that up in more detail but be careful how you go about doing things when designing a shirt. All of my fonts are paid for and I have the documents behind them. I also draw my own designs myself and if I don’t draw it I pay for the use of the pictures for the design.

Copyrighting can be expensive. Look at the pricing of it. Most folks don’t copyright the phrase or trademark the wording because they simply can’t afford it. I know I can’t afford it. The name of my company is copyrighted legally so that no one can take that. I am like this if someone steals my designs or my words I just come out with something else and if they get it trademarked then I will have to cease with using it. I’m not spending any extra money on trying to stop others because in this world people copy and nothing is original anymore.

Here are some questions I asked myself when first starting out and I’m going to give you my answer in hopes of helping you start your t-shirt business

What kind of shirts do I want to sell and what sort of printing method will I use?

I want to sell tshirts. Good quality ones that don’t look cheap once you wash them a few times. I also knew that I wanted shirts that didn’t hug the stomach because we as women have tummies and I hate tight fitting shirts that make me look like I’m 10 months pregnant. I made sure to buy unisex shirts that fit all body types. I also researched the kinds of shirts I wanted. Nothing wrong with researching other t-shirt companies. I did that by buying a few from my competitors. To see the quality and brand that they used. I also wanted to see how they shipped it and how long it took. This is not to copy this is to see what I can do better. I went with the bella canvas brand because they seemed to hold up well when it came to washing.

For the printing I tried to find a local company here in Atlanta and I could not. It’s funny how this is such a big city but no one has answers for when it comes to printing shirts. Anywhoo, I went with two companies Printful and Threadbird. Both are top quality and both are about the same pricing. Threadbird is great but they take a long time to send you the shirts once ordered. I can order a shirt today and it will take me almost 2 weeks to get the shirt. Printful is faster!

It’s easy to use both they have the option to upload your design, preview it, get samples, and order with ease. I went through with a sales associate for my first time because I like to talk to people so I can know what I’m doing step by step.

What’s my niche?

This was the hard part. I started Sweetgrass Roots as a branding company but the name didn’t fit what I was selling so I regrouped and decided to sell my t-shirt on Sweetgrass Roots and sell shirts that represent my hometown of Charleston. Of course, I sell shirts that are for everyone, not just Charleston people but I wanted to make sure my base clientele was my people so I niched all the way down. Some ideas you can use for yourself, maybe if you are a single mom like me or a widow you can have a shirt line that is specific to single moms or widows. If you love to cook sell shirts that have something to do with food. If you love books do a shirt that specifically tailors to book lovers. The options are endless but this is something you must niche down if you want to sell.

Where and how am I going to sell my shirts?

I decided to keep my shirts online because the way this world is set up….online is the way to go. No need to spend extra money on a storefront, for what. I also would love to go and set up my shop as a vendor at different festivals and I will be doing that this summer. Get your name first, then URL, then social media handles. Sell online and then do vendor places that are tailored to your clientele.

How much capital will I need?

I started my business with $500. I bought 2 shirts in bulk which took the bulk of the money. The rest was put into putting my website together and buying business cards and marketing material. Since I’m a photographer I can take my own pictures so that saves me a ton of money. So far to date (I started the business in August), I have made almost all of my money back ($436 to be exact) I basically broke even and I haven’t lost a dime. Don’t put a lot of money into it until you know you will sell it.

Here are a few more tips

• Don’t buy white shirts they don’t’ sell well. Only 2 people have bought white shirts that I have so I will not be buying any more whites.
• I did buy in bulk and started with only 25 so I can make sure they sell. The more you buy the cheaper it will be but I wanted to make sure it will sell first before I buy a lot because I don’t want a lot of shirts in inventory. I know what will sell and what won’t sell
• I cut out a lot of social media noise and kept marketing simple. Put up some shirts on Insta, use models, and utilize stock photos if need be. Yes, I’m a photographer but even I don’t have time to take all the pictures. I have a Facebook page only because my core audience is still on Facebook. Most people from my hometown that’s all they use so I knew that if I wanted to reach them I needed to get on the platform they used
• You can use drop shipping companies but I didn’t mainly because I wanted to put my touch on what I sell. Being able to send a small gift to those that buy along with a nice postcard is something that was important to me. If you just wanna make money then use drop shipping and let them handle it. I have an account with UPS so I don’t have to worry about shipping I just take my shirts to the store they pack it up for me when I get an order and mail it off all for a great low price.
• I use woo commerce platform I am familiar with it. Shopify cost me a monthly fee so I decided to not use them. I’m tired of paying monthly fees so I cut that out by just setting things up on woocommerce. I know woocommerce because I use to design websites so it wasn’t hard for me to do. Know what platform you want to use to sell.

I hoped that I shed some light for you and answered some questions that you may have had about t-shirts. If you have any questions feel free to drop them in the comments below and I will answer them. Do you sell shirts? How about mugs? Would you get on the t-shirt train?