If you are looking to start your own business or side hustle there is no better way to do it than by starting a t-shirt business with a heat press. In this article we will discuss the who, what, when, where, and why of running a heat press t-shirt business.
Why Should I Run a Heat Press T-shirt Business?
There are so many reasons to run a business on your own. The freedom alone would make anybody excited. You get to be your own boss. You get to start your own brand. You will have artistic control over your business. The list goes on and on.
Using a heat press to make t-shirts just makes sense. It’s easy and affordable. It has a low learning curve. Plus, it doesn’t take up much space.
The concept is as simple as purchasing a heat press, purchasing vinyl transfers, cutting them, pressing them, and selling them. It really does not take a lot to run a heat press t-shirt business.
The shirts that are produced using this method are similar in quality to what you can see at a screen printing shop, and the best part about it is that you can do it at home. You don’t waste a lot of materials either because you can create the shirts on demand. This means that you don’t have to carry a lot of inventory.
How Much Does A Heat Press T-Shirt Business Cost?
The overall expense to get this business up and running is somewhere in the range of $1500 - $2000. This is because there is equipment and supplies that need to be purchased to run the business. This may seem like a lot, but in the grand scheme of things this is a low price barrier of entry into a business. Most businesses can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars just to get them started.
What Equipment is Needed?
To run a heat press business you are obviously going to need a heat press. This can run you anywhere from $300 - $700. We’ve created a buyers guide to help you make the decision about which heat press would be good for your business called Choose the Right Heat Press For You.
What Supplies are Needed?
You need a good wholesale shirt supplier. For this you will want to shop around. Do your research. There are shirt supplier that offer t shirt blanks of differing quality, colors, and material. You will also need the heat transfers. You can purchase them online or create your own. We'll show you how to create your own heat press transfers in the book How to Print Custom Heat Press Transfers.
Can I Run A Heat Press T-Shirt Business From Home?
You could easily run this business out of your own home. To be very honest, you can run this business practically anywhere. You could set up at a fair or festival and print shirts for the visitors. It doesn’t take much space to run this business because there is not a lot of equipment involved. You just need room for the machine, storage of raw materials, and storage of finished goods. That’s it. This is why you could easily take your equipment to a fair or festival and set it up.
Where Can I Sell My Shirts?
There are tons of places where you can sell your shirts. Conventions, special events, pop-up shops, the internet, and word of mouth are just a few of the places. Shirts can be sold practically anywhere. Some of the major online retailers will sell your shirts for you which can give you a steady stream of customers. Check out retailers like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy if you are interested.
How Much Can I Make?
The sky is really the limit with this business. You can actually start with a minimal investment and then increase to a larger business. A heat press fits in well with a screen printing business and even a DTG business. The equipment carries over
The Final Word on Heat Press T-Shirt Businesses
As a business this is one of the best opportunities for you. With a low startup cost and space requirements you can run your business practically anywhere. You could even become a digital nomad selling t-shirts from some remote location. When you are ready to expand your offerings a heat press will fit in perfectly with your needs.
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