So you want Custom T-shirts printed?
- lankyiyer4
- Oct 14, 2024
- 5 min read
Custom t-shirts often are a great idea to get your brand noticed and the brand message heard. So obvious nah. Duh. But you could kinda consider these pointers before hitching on the custom tees ride.
The Fabric
The first obvious choice is the one of the fabric itself. Cotton – Most favourite choice considering India’s tropical weather. People find it comfortable to wear it for most weather conditions. The young prefer synthetics while the slightly older gen prefers cotton.
However, cotton is on the expensive side. Cotton blends cost lesser and pure polyester/dry fit/ synthetic options cost the least.
The GSM
Ya, it sounds complicated but it ain’t. GSM is grams per square meter of the fabric itself. The most common GSM for round necks is 180 GSM and for collar (polo) tees is 240 GSM. However, with the current climate change conditions and general mercury spikes, 160 GSM for round necks and 220 GSM for collar tees is a great choice. Personally, I prefer the 160 and 220 choices. But of course, it is subjective in a country that perceives thicker fabric is better.
The T-Shirt
Now on to the kind of t-shirt. You have various options. Round neck, Collar ones usually referred to as Polos in the industry, Sweatshirts, Hoodies etc. The cheapest option is of course the round neck ones and the prices go up respectively. If you have a “corporatish” culture, the ideal choice would be Collar tees. If you have a “fun” culture, you can go for round necks, sweatshirts or hoodies.
The Design
This section could be subjective but informative as well. As a custom t-shirt printing brand that has come across different customers, we have gained some insights that might prove valuable to you. Now, the collar t-shirts are much easier to design – company/brand logo in the front near the pocket area and probably big at the back with URL etc. One can also use the sleeve for branding.
When it comes to others like round neck t-shirts, sweatshirts and hoodies the options are endless. However, some pointers on what you can/should not attempt:
a. Designs that have to be printed across the front, back and sides might not be practical for low quantities – owing to the fact that they have to be printed before stitching happens
b. If your requirement is 100+ these kinda designs maybe possible – if not it is ideal to stick to front, back and sleeve for your creative expression
c. Design file inevitably should be given to your business partner in PNG Transparent format or SVG format – this works across all printing techniques deployed – so these are the best options.
The Print
There are different kind of printing techniques that are out in the market right now. The applications and advantages vary but for short runs (like say below 50) the latest and most prevalent printing technology now used is something called as DTF (Direct to Film). DTF is ideal and cost-effective for short runs and is comparable to traditional screen printing in terms of print efficacy. Consider this as screen printing that is cost-effective for short runs. Moreover, turn around times are significantly faster compared to screen printing and the print itself leaves a lighter hand on the t-shirt vis-a-vis screen printing. Not to leave out the most important aspect – sustainability quotient. DTF inks are more water based while screen printing inks are made out of a material called plastisol.
DTG (Direct to Garment) is another technique – this leaves the lightest print density on the fabric. However, you will have very limited suppliers for this technique, since most individual print shops can’t either afford a DTG machine (a good DTG machine costs like 25L upwards) and the maintenance behind these machines is also so high that it doesn’t warrant investments for the D2C service markets.
Screen printing works out cost-effective but only for huge runs like 100 or 200 tees upwards – but please do consider the fact that the print quality might be dense and feels almost like rubber.
These days many customers also ask for those embossed varieties (that leave a contour) on the t-shirt and the print feels like rubber again. However, if you are looking for huge runs, these can be turned around – but are significantly costlier and higher turnaround times like a week to 10 days.
To sum it up, if you are looking for fast turnarounds, quality, value for money and durability, DTF is the ideal choice.
The Embroidery factor
Instead of printing, you could go for embroidering your brand logo on to your t-shirt or any other thing like sweatshirts or hoodies. Embroidery finishes last longer as compared to printing. However, please do consider the following before you decide on the technique:
a. Embroidery vendors usually prefer bulk – due to the limitations of machine capacity etc., they don’t prefer to do low quantities.
b. If your thing is a rush order, embroidery is not for you. We ourselves haven’t found a reliable vendor who can deliver in time without compromising on the quality.
c. Of course, we are thinking about launching our own embroidery set up but that is for another day
d. Embroidery works best when the decoration area is small – big ones (like the back of a t-shirt) may require you to shell out much more money compared to printing
e. Personally, we don’t prefer embroidery as a decoration technique since the output (of say logos) aren’t sharp and distinctive – maybe you have seen amazing finishes, but usually they don’t turn out as good over short runs. Only high end machines probably doing embroidery decoration in the thousands may be able to give you an amazing finish.
The GST factor
We are in the know of GST rates for custom printing – this is 18%. So that is a big chunk of custom printing service rates. I know, it is on the higher side if you are a small biz or even a start up. However, considering that you will get credit for that amount (assuming you have GST), it doesn’t matter. So when you approach vendors for custom printing, be aware that the ones who stay on the right side of rules and procedures will be costlier than the ones that are operating below the radar. So do think twice before your negotiations.
We have been in the business of custom printed tees for over a year now. But around 50% of the customers want it the same day. Though with tech being what it is now, it is possible theoretically, but consider a 48-72 hour window ideal for both you as a customer and the vendor. This ensures that your tees are of good quality.
So plan a bit in advance, take your merchandise exercise serious and get going. If you have any other clarifications do reach out to us on mailpodu@linepodu.in
We have soft-launched our custom print range. You can sit at home, and get the whole thing done without breaking a sweat.
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