Interested in the costs? Here goes:
Design cost me $150.
Blank shirts cost me around $6 apiece (certified organic cotton, made in USA vs the cheap $2 Gildan shirts made by slaves somewhere overseas).
Printing was $3 per garment. I ordered 53 of them in various sizes.
So with some random fees they’re about $10/shirt to produce, not including the cost of design.
I am selling them on Etsy to keep startup costs down while I test my concept.
Selling for $25 plus free shipping...aiming for around $10 profit per shirt. I had them priced slightly higher and was planning on donating a percentage of profits to a non profit but I can’t get anyone to call me back or respond to my outreach... hmmm.
Anyway, here it is!
https://www.etsy.com/listing/732140218/connecticut-shirt-hartford-shirt?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=connecticut+oyster+shirt&ref=sr_gallery-1-1&organic_search_click=1&frs=1I’ll take any and all feedback. My feelings might get hurt but I need to grow and improve so I have a product people are willing to buy!
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Here's a few thoughts from someone who sells t-shirts on Merch by Amazon, Etsy, Redbubble and various other PODs:
1. Your competition is getting equivalent designs for $3-$10 each from overseas designers. $150 is a lot for that design, which is very niche.
2. I could not tell from the design itself what it was referring to. It is too subtle to sell online. For t-shirts, customers will spend about 5 seconds looking at your design and will rarely read the description. I think it would be better for mom and pop shops and souvenir shops. Perhaps take them to a local farmer's market.
3. If you want to improve your sales and get the right customer online, I would recommend Pinterest and Instagram to promote the design. On Pinterest, establish a board generally for people from Connecticut and one for tourists going to Connecticut. Post a lot of things about Connecticut and include your shirt on them. I don't do Intragram marketing, but I hear it is a good way to get views.
4. If the design is successful, expect a thousand copycats from every nook and cranny of the globe.
5. If you want to have your own t-shirt shop online without using other platforms, most people in the t-shirt business use Shopify. That said, Etsy, Amazon and other PODs will do a lot of marketing for you and have a lot more business than you're going to get on a Shopify site.
Good luck!