|
Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Hi all,
As some of you know, besides conducting workshops, i run a retail business... to be exact, a t-shirt store over in far east plaza. we want to try out a very unique idea... need all of your opinions... when we started our t-shirt store our vision is to become a platform for young designers and entrepreneurs to showcase their designs and help them make a living out of their artforms. the past few months have been busy for us, as we were trying to get our operations right, now we want to explore our vision wholeheartedly. here's what we intend to offer: 1. Free rack space in a shop in Far East Plaza to display your t-shirts and for your customers to try out your t-shirts 2. Free online store with your own brand name (tommysdesign.com) to sell your t-shirts 3. Free training on how to maintain your online store eg. add new designs some of you may be asking, this sounds too good to be true... let me continue... the reason why we are able to do all these is because we are in a very unique position, we actually own the means of production. let me explain... we have acquired the latest t-shirt printing technology that allows us to print unlimited colors at the highest resolution with the minimum quantity of ONE t-shirt. This means technically, you do not need to keep a lot of stock. Simply print some samples for display in our shop, or simply display your designs in your online store, and if your customer wants to buy, we will print the t-shirt according to his/her size and selected design. then, your customer can collect at our store or we will ship the t-shirt out to them. ok, i know some of you are still in disbelief... so what's the catch, right? The only thing we are asking of you is to commit upfront to sell 40 t-shirts in 6 months, that's only about 6 t-shirts a month. it's a unique way of buying stocks without actually keeping any of them. you simply draw stocks as and when you need them. and you can even use them for your own personal use! i want to see if there is enough interest to start this very unique win-win retail model... so, who are interested? thanks! wee |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
So how much is the cost of 1 plain t-shirt + printing? I think it all boils down to cost and quality as these factors directly dictate the retail price of the T-shirt. I had wanted to print some tees in low qty and the cost is too high, it makes the thin profit margin not worth the time and effort.
Do you have children sizes from 2 - 5yrs old and also plain rompers? |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Wat is the cost per T-shirt and printing? 6 pcs a month? Wat kind of profit can that generate? Pls give more details.
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
I'm keen! Pls advise on the cost per T-shirt with printing, n whether it is possible for us to provide our own plain T-shirts when you have the details worked out. Thanks!
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
I'm keen! Pls pm me with more detail can? :thanx:
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Very keen:D
Do pm me more details about Your charges and all. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
PM you, hope to get a good reply (:
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
hi all,
ok, i will try to answer all the questions... 1. KittiMi: So how much is the cost of 1 plain t-shirt + printing? Currently, we are using American Apparel (Aa) t-shirts. We import directly from Los Angeles. Some of you will know that a plain Aa t-shirt retails about $30. Hence, the retail price of each t-shirt should be around $49 onwards. We chose American Apparel because the t-shirts are of a high quality. They shrink very little after washing. Also the cuts are not your standard boxy class t-shirt cuts. We actually stock 3 different cuts for ladies. 2. KittiMi: Do you have children sizes from 2 - 5yrs old and also plain rompers? For this market, we are still exploring because of technical issues as well as whether it will dilute our current brand which is targeted at youths. 3. Petchow: Wat is the cost per T-shirt and printing? The cost per t-shirt will be around $35, we are thinking of a minimum markup of $14, so that the minimum price is $49. 4. Petchow: 6 pcs a month? That's just a min. quantity. You can sell beyond that. Actually, it is 40 pcs in 6 months. 5. Petchow: Wat kind of profit can that generate? Pls give more details. The profit is really based on how good the designs are. One current designer from Norway actually sold about 20 shirts within 2 months with a retail price of $59. 6. Teelee: whether it is possible for us to provide our own plain T-shirts On the whole, we prefer not. The reason is that we have done extensive testing on American Apparel t-shirts to achieve the current quality. Our Digital Direct technology has many variables and we have sort of reached an optimum with the materials involved. Keep the questions coming! Thanks! Wee |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Commit for 40pcs. That means we have to pay you upfront 40pcs? What else will you be charging? Sales commission? Will you charge a flat price per t-shirt complete with all printing or different price depending on the number of colors printed on the t-shirt.
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Yes, upfront for 40 pcs. It's like ordering stocks.
Nothing else for the time being. No sales commission whatsoever. Just our t-shirt price and you mark up a min. of $14 and above, so that a price point is maintained. good question on the printing... same price no matter how many colors. up to A3 size, front or back. for other variations, it will be additional but not much more, probably $5 additional. another thing how you can differentiate your product... we also offer personalization services eg. the design has a container (eg. an empty square) which the customer can insert their name or text etc. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Ok, i'm getting a lot of private messages on questions on pricing.
So, here's a post to clarify the offering: What you pay upfront: 40 shirts x $35 = $1400 These are American Apparel t-shirts imported from Los Angeles and includes our latest Digital Direct printing method (up to A3 size). You need to sell these 40 shirts in 6 months, about 6-7 shirts a month. These are actually stocks which you can draw from, beside sales, you can use it for personal or publicity purposes. What you'll get: 1. Free rack space in a shop in Far East Plaza to display your t-shirts and for your customers to try out your t-shirts; basically we'll sell for you! 2. Free online store with your own brand name (tommysdesign.com) to sell your t-shirts 3. Free training on how to maintain your online store eg. add new designs 4. Also, we have decided that you can add your own brand on the t-shirts remember, we are still in the process of fine-tuning... let us know any feedback btw, we intend to limit to 20 designers in the first phase here's a sample of what our Digital Direct on an actual t-shirt:  |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
hmmm..... I just did a quick calculation:
40pcs x $35 = $1400 x 20 designers = $28000 That's pretty good money for a start. What happens if the designer decided to withdraw from the scheme after selling 10 Tees? Or you decided that your business model is not working and decided to close shop? Who will bare the cost if the customers complain about the quality of the print or the designer is not happy with the print's colour intensity? |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
All are very valid concerns.
The upfront payment is not for us to do a hit-and-run scheme. It is to ensure commitment from the designers' part, more than anything else. We are bearing the entire cost of rental, operations, stocks, liabilities etc. If the designer withdraws before selling the commited amount or timeframe, he or she can use the t-shirts to print whatever, eg. company t-shirts, personalized t-shirts etc.... we are flexible in that regard. We will refund whatever that is not fulfilled if in a worst-case scenario if we do terminate the project. Our commitment to our store is very long-term as our investment in our technology is very high, much higher than our running costs. As per current store policy, we do a 100% no questions-asked redo of the t-shirt first, subsequently, a 100% refund on quality issues. 99% of our customers are happy with the results. Quote:
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Here's another sample image of our Direct Digital technology
which showcase wonderful gradients and sharp edges, without any hand feel to the fabrics:  |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
What is the name of your shop in Far East Plaza?
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Ok nvm, found the website.
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
E.g: That means 40pcs x $35 = $1440 pay to you upfront be it with or w/o orders?
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
So retail price is target at $49. That means $14 profit. So if @40 pcs of T-shirts I only get a total of $560. Kinda too little? Even if 2 T-shirts sold daily and taking 30 days as 1 month, I can only get $840.
But since the retail price is already quite high, I doubt that the tees can move on a daily basis. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
ny1768,
You have to remember that ultimateworker has to cover rental + renovation + deposit + salary. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
A question:
We pay upfront $1400. So when a Tee is sold, you will pay the designer $49? The designer will be paid the invested amount + profits per Tee ($1400 + $560). Does the designer get paid each time a Tee is sold or once every month? Can the designer sell at other retail shop front? Like print samples and consign to other shops or is this exclusive to only your retail shop? Otherwise, you are restricting the distribution channel of the designer. For an invested amount of $1400, I think 40% profits ($560) is not bad (hope I calculated correctly). But with the high production cost, there isn't much room for retail price movement. I don't think anyone will buy if the price goes beyond $50. The designer cannot give discount as this means eating into their profits. We still have to consider postage cost if the Tee is bought online, so purchase price of a Tee is in fact more than $49. What I'm trying to say is that this business model kind of cap the profits of the designer. The designer is pretty much stuck at $49/Tee. Sorry if I am not making sense. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
thanks for all the comments...
daffodil21: Yes, $1400 upfront. ny1768: noted the high retail price of $49 given the current economic conditions... fancypocket: thanks for understanding what it takes to run a retail shop! KittyMi: Yes, you are correct. You can treat the $1440 as a security deposit in this case. If the 40 t-shirts get sold, you get back your $1440 + $560 profits. Yes, it's 40% on Return on Investment ($560 divided by $1440) if you look at it this way. In terms of payment back to the designer, we will do it monthly otherwise there will be a lot of extra paperwork. Our production costs are high because we produce it on a on-demand, piece by piece basis. And on top of that, we use American Apparel t-shirts. There are people who buy our Norwegian designer series at $59 a piece and our Poets series at $69 a piece. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Thank you for answering my Qs. Think you missed "Are the designs exclusive to your shop? Can the designer consign to other retail shop? Print samples pieces for display in other retail shop, & order from you when there's orders coming from other channels.
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Yes, the designer can consign to other shops.
Yes, just print whatever you need to show as samples then when there are orders, just come to us Or better still, tell the customer to come to our shop directly and we will handle the rest: getting his/her right size, fitting etc., payment modes (credit card, NETS) etc. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Yep, before I posted I have already take into consideration on the operating cost that is attached to the $35.
I also understand on the emphasis of the quality and the print-out. But at the end of the day, what I want to see is how much profit I can generate and if the retail is already at $49, I cannot expect a fast moving sales. And what if during the initial introduction sale, we might throw in a discount period. So that means my profit will then be much lesser. Also, eg, if I want to place it at another location, I might incur another operating cost that I have to bear on my own as the $35 is meant for the operating cost shld we put it at your choice of location. Anyway, thumbs up to you. The printing looks good and it is a brilliant idea and effort. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
How much will it be if I just want to use your printing service cos I agree that the printing looks good? As I only do children apparel, I will provide my own kid size Tee and romper blanks.
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Ny1768: I guess we will have to evaluate on a case-by-case basis if you do intend to do yr own shop space elsewhere. Talk to us!
Kittymi: for kids tees and rompers we can only use metallic foil from Italy. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
The cost of their machine is very high and by using this biz model , they can earn back their investment from you guys on their printing machine.
I feel you guys should do a spreadshirt/cafepress model and take in any order to recover back the cost of your dtg machine. Lower the cost of printing, offer other imprintable options and offer range of prices so that people can choose what they want and do their own mark ups. It's better to have the printer running than not at all. Just my 2 cents. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Quote:
Sorry, i dont understand the red-highlighted above. If you pay us back $49, which works out to be the whole lump sum of $1440 + $560, what do you earn at the end of the day? What about the cost of your t-shirt, rental, operating expenses, etc? P/s : Sorry, correct me if im wrong.. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
They earn the $1440 pre paid to them when you book your stocks. The $1440 + $560 is paid to you by those customers who bought your tees.
You pay $1440 ----> goes to their pocket Customers buy your tees ----> pay them -----> they pay you |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Brydon: Thanks for the suggestion. But that's the thing we don't want to become: another cafepress or spreadshirt. Our model is slightly different. We want to become a platform for good designers. And moreover, we have a real physical store for branding and selling as well as for good REAL customer service.
cheapy_store: KittyMi is correct. We earn from the pre-paid t-shirts. Ok, as mentioned in the first post, we are still formulating the entire program. And we have gotten a lot of feedback and now it boils down to pricing. Given the gloomy state of affairs, local and worldwide, we have decided to adjust our pricing slightly (and just for this programme): 40 t-shirts at $30 per t-shirt (American Apparel!) You can sell at from $39! So, now the margins are much higher. Remember again our t-shirts at our store currently retail at $49 and above and are doing very well. Thanks! |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Quote:
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Quote:
DONT forget they have to pay for : -RENTAL at ORchard Road -Staff -T shirt -printing cost - and ALL the operating cost that u can think of to start a businesss. All they want is the design as a product to sell. If they dont take some deposits, how if a designer designs some sxxt and the shirt dont sell, who lost? the person who help u? No, right.. The designer should bear some responsibilities and with the money put out, at least they can work hard to come out with some nice design. Otherwise, without paying a cent, any tom, **** or harry can just scribble anything and print. Its just simple, if your design sucks, your shirt dont sell and you have to pay for it.. simple? Am i making a sense here? Correct me if im wrong.. :clap: |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
i totally agree with cheapy. do you really expect someone to give you something for nothing? also, being a good designer and designing things that sell are 2 different things. look at vincent. most now would say he's a great painter, but he died poor.. that money you put in would motivat you to find out what sells and what doesn.t.
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Well, in a way, everybody is right.
Brydon has a point about maintaining a standard. We do source for designers all over the world to sell with us. The thing is that these designers have a track record for very impresive works with a very distinctive style. We hope that they will set the standard. We also realize sometimes we may be wrong in our assumptions in terms of what looks nice and will sell. And that is the reason we are offering this program to designers or even entrepreneurs who want to give a shot at this. Thanks cheapystore and mystech for understanding the realities of operating a physical store! Yup, Vincent was a sad case. But let's take inspiration from the likes of Damien hirst! |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Quote:
Therefore my point is to maintain quality control and not to accept just about anyone. Maybe by making it coveted might turn it out to be a better thing for everyone. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Got so good ma? How about accessories?
|
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
I think what gets printed depends large part on who is the shop's targeted group of customers. If they only want to target the arty types, than I would say by all means be selective on what you sell. But if the target is mass market consumers then the shop has to sell designs that caters to the group.
And what is consider good design? One man's meat is another man's poison, Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Whatever that sells is good design, there is a difference between art and commercial design and in this case 'Beauty is in the eyes of money holder'. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Yes, our target group is not your usual bossini or giordano customer looking for a $15 odd t-shirt.
People who go through our doors are usually more appreciative of the designs of the t-shirts as well as the quality that we are offering. |
Re: Start a T-shirt Store in Orchard Rd for Free?
Hi all,
Thanks for all your suggestions! We have just lauched MOP Boutique program at Singapore Polytechnic. And are also accepting designers from the public domain, that means you! For more information, go to BIZHUB |
| All times are GMT +8. The time now is 07:50 PM. |