Tech Tips — Screen Printing: Moving Up

Jan 1, 2009

Bringing automated equipment into your screen printing shop is a big decision, but one that can take your business to the next level. While extensive planning is required to make a large investment, here's a quick checklist to get you started:

1. Do your research. Before you purchase a high-quality automatic press, peruse online forums such as T-shirtforums.com and screenprinters.net to learn about the quality of equipment from other screen printers.

2. Compare your options. Decide which machines you think are best, and narrow it down to two manufacturers. Will the manufacturer take your old equipment as a trade-in? How long and what kind of service will it provide after your purchase?

3. Go see the presses in action. Distributors will gladly take you to other print shops to witness the equipment in action.

4. Use your best judgment. Consider what type of printing your company does, and factor that into your decision. How does your shop's volume compare to the price of the press? Will you be able to maintain the machine if your largest clients backfire? How long until you will see the return on your investment? — From the Impressions archives

Off the Cuff: Selling to Religious Organizations: Part 1 of 2
In our industry we decorate a massive assortment of items by a broad variety of technologies. Then we distribute what we produce to virtually every economic sector in every nook and cranny of society.
September 14, 2009

How to Apply Foil
Editor’s note: In the following pages, the authors take you step-by-step through the process of adding foil to your T-shirt artwork. First, they detail how to incorporate foil into the workflow of an automatic press. The process differs significantly for printers using a manual press, so the authors also detail how to apply foil when printing with a manual screen printing press.
September 04, 2009

Foil Adds Sparkle and Margin 
While getting started printing with foil will be a trial-and-error process, here are some tips to reduce the learning curve. 
When we get an order at our shop, it’s not uncommon to hear an employee exclaim, “Foiled again!” That’s because as many as 15% of our orders involve some kind of foil printing, making the process somewhat of a specialty for our shop — Forward Printing, Oakland, Calif.
September 03, 2009

Diversifying Your Customer Base  
Learn to evaluate and adjust your mix of clientele for optimum profitability and stability.
While the economic lows that many American markets have been experiencing for the past year are certainly painful, they’re also nothing new. Historically, the tide of business success continually ebbs and flows, with one market experiencing a rush of good fortune while another watches its revenue all but dry up. This cyclical nature of business is precisely why decorators must have a diverse customer base that allows them to weather slowdowns — or even meltdowns — in parts of the economy.
September 02, 2009

Tunes Lead Teen/Tween Trends
Music — bands and celebrity performers — is influencing the graphics, styling and colors that teens and pre-teens want to wear.
If you’re ever wondering how to tap in to the teen and tween (pre-teen) market, the evidence is all around you. The apparel worn on TV, in magazines and on the Internet by rock stars, actors, models and other celebrities is going to give you the greatest clues about what teens want in decorated apparel.
July 31, 2009