Before you start a custom online t-shirt business, decide what you would sell, whom you would sell, and how. Make sure everything is creative and different than your competitors.
Integrate a t-shirt design software, and follow the latest trends to stand out from the competition. To learn more, read this article.
Andrew Saeger and Veronica Velasco met while working at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. They shared a passion for design, screen printing, a sense of humor, and an obsession with t-shirts, which inspired them to start Factory 43. It’s a strong brand with appealing visuals and quirky humor.
Factory 43 only sells designs from their original illustrations. As a result, it made it to the list of best t-shirt stores.
If you also have a similar story, a passion for t-shirt designing, and creative ideas to experiment with, your t-shirt business can be top-selling too. For custom designs, you may need a graphic designer or, simply, a t-shirt design tool.
However, you will need to experiment with your ideas to stand out. Here’s how to do that.
Think Creative
It’s not just t-shirts. They are a creative outlet for people to express themselves. So, while starting a t-shirt business, you need to think creatively about the ideas or designs you will offer. Think of what you’re passionate about.
Whether it’s the humor, animated graphics, slogans and pop culture, hand-drawn designs, doodle artwork, lifestyle, or something else.
Introduce your ideas in your designs as Factory 43 did. Their website gives a sense of quirky humor. If you’re an animal lover, Think Pup would be an excellent example for inspiration. Everything that you find interesting or like doing can be your t-shirts’ niche. However, it should sound creative and cool to customers as well. Just because you like the handwritten text on t-shirts doesn’t mean your customers would too.
For that, research the market. See what’s in demand and how customers are responding to unique brands and niche-specific t-shirt businesses. TeeFury, Sheflies are a few examples to look at. Their uniqueness made them stand out.
Some ideas for t-shirt designs are:
- Book Designs
- Strong Statements
- Multi-colored Words
- Tarot Cards
- Handwritten Typography
- Warped Texts
- Minimalistic Rainbows
- Bendi Bodies
- Illustrative Figures
Don’t just make your t-shirt designs beautiful. Will your t-shirts provide psychological support, make them believe in something, or help them express their emotions? If it triggers an emotion – happy, sad, funny, you’ve won half the battle!
Follow the Latest Trends
Did you know that in 2024, t-shirts were still the most popular product on Printify, accounting for nearly half of all apparel sales?
So, why are t-shirts still ruling the charts today?
The reason for this ongoing demand lies in their comfort, quality, and ability to reflect the latest trends. People gravitate toward clothing that aligns with their lifestyle, interests, and the content they engage with online.
This year, there is a massive surge in nostalgic designs, AI‑inspired art, and eco‑conscious messages. People want to wear something that reflects who they are, what they believe in, or what they love, as they scroll through online.
To stay ahead, always keep your eyes on what’s buzzing. Right now, t-shirts with funny AI jokes, sustainability slogans, retro tech graphics, and influencer quotes are making waves.
So, to stand out, let your tees speak the internet’s language. Try limited-edition drops around trending topics. Think bright! Offer matching accessories, such as tote bags or stickers. Design for moments like a viral TikTok trend, a pop culture comeback, or the next big streaming series.
Other trends to tap into:
- Puns and Wordplay
- ’90s Throwback Tees
- Anime and K‑Pop Inspired Designs
- AI‑Generated Art Prints
- Gamer Culture Graphics
Also, don’t forget the style, such as crew neck, V-neck, or polo. Tailor the cut to match your brand vibe and audience. For urban shoppers, oversized or cropped tees fit right in. And for the office-casual crowd, clean-cut V-necks may be more suitable. Always match the design to the cut.
Design your T-Shirts – Use a T-shirt Design Software
You want to sell gaming design t-shirts; that’s great! But to be different from your competitors, you need to offer something different, such as self-designed t-shirts. You can take custom orders and provide custom-designed t-shirts. If someone wants a t-shirt of their pet’s sketch, you can provide them with that.
Or you can create a collection of your designs—nature-inspired painted t-shirts—and sell them as a limited edition.
When creating your own designs, it’s essential to know which tools can help you effectively visualize the data. If you are designing digitally, you may need design tools like Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop. However, if you’re not a professional designer with little to no knowledge of design, you can use alternative options, such as a t-shirt design tool. A simple product design tool will allow you and your customers to create their designs using text, colors, images, clip art, and more.
If you want to provide the best designs but feel uncomfortable with the design process, you can hire a professional designer. They can turn your visuals and ideas into a print file. To hire a designer, check out freelancing websites like 99Designs, Dribbble, Upwork, Fiverr, Guru, etc.
Choose Quality Suppliers
The quality of your t-shirts will decide the customer experience. If you source a good-quality t-shirt, that will help you beat your rivals.
If your customers come to know that t-shirts shrink or the color fades after a few washes, that will create a bad reputation. So, when you start a t-shirt business, choose quality t-shirts. Before placing a considerable order, ask for samples. Test those, discover if they meet the design and quality standards, and then place the final order.
If your store provides high-quality products that last longer, customers are more likely to reorder. Also, it will increase your brand credibility and help your business grow. Talk to your local suppliers, wholesalers on Alibaba, and other platforms.
Choose your Printing and Shipping Methods
Knowing what you sell is important, but how you sell adds an extra charm to your business. Every store is different, so you need to decide on your options.
First, what kind of printing technique are you going to use? Many printing methods are flexible, but some printing types work best for specific designs. For example, sublimation printing is best for patterns, photographs, abstract designs, etc. Screen printing allows only one color at a time, and thus it’s not suitable for multiple colors. So, choose the one best for your t-shirt designs.
The next step is to decide whether you will print it yourself or use a 3rd-party fulfillment partner. If you print it yourself, the quality and customization are guaranteed. But you’ll have to invest in printers and inks. You will have to keep the stock of t-shirts as per your packaging materials and invest your time.
If you don’t want to print your t-shirts, you can partner with print-on-demand drop shippers like Printful, TeeSpring, or PrintAura. You can provide designs and ideas to these partners, and they will print and ship your product. However, this is beneficial if you’re ordering in bulk, which means you won’t be able to provide customization.
Dropshipping is also an option if you prefer selling ready-made t-shirts. No stress of designs or customer delivery. You can find a wholesale supplier, select the designs, and add them to the store. When a customer orders, your supplier can directly ship it to your customers. Still, for t-shirt design software, custom deliveries would be better.
Suggestion: Bring in a printer and a t-shirt designer tool and provide custom designs. You can start small, but your USP will increase your brand awareness.
Provide an Omnichannel Experience
There is no doubt that the custom t-shirt business is in demand. It’s aimed to cross 10 billion dollars by 2025. But is having an online presence enough to win the race?
Every third business has an online store today. They allow customers to order 24*7, choose their shipping methods, and pay accordingly. What difference can you provide? It can be a mobile app or an omnichannel experience—customers can pick up from where they left off on the app and continue ordering via desktop. Apart from this, you can integrate a t-shirt design tool and allow customers to design their t-shirts. You can provide 3D product previews and leverage technologies like AR and VR to enhance purchase decisions.
Free shipping, social media engagement, customer portals (to save/manage their designs and orders), etc., are a few other ways to make your business unique.
How to Find Your First Customer?
Share product reviews. When you’re starting new, the first person to buy your t-shirts without questioning the legitimacy is going to be your friend or family. So, when they purchase, learn about their product experience, and ask them to leave a review.
Next, you can offer t-shirts for free. It’s the marketing tactic that never goes unnoticed. Girlfriend Collective, a Seattle-based online store, launched eco-friendly leggings. To kick things off, they ran a too-good-to-be-true campaign where they offered leggings for the cost of shipping.
And the result was 10,000 leggings sold in a day!
Another method includes engaging with your customers on social media, participating in the conversation, and following the trends and hot topics. Influencer marketing is also worth exploring.
Tip: While marketing, try every possible way. Experiment with the ideas, considering your resources. Designs should be creative, while shopping should be convenient.