99.9% chances are that at this moment, you too are in your tees.
There is nothing like a t-shirt. It’s comfy, cheap, and stylish. The fashion industry will keep evolving, but a t-shirt will never become a thing of the past (It should not be. Ever!)
Given its popularity, most people who want to start their own business, custom t-shirts are probably one of the first five ideas.
Reports say the global custom t-shirt printing market is likely to grow at a compound annual rate (CAGR) of 9.7% from 2021 to 2028.
This suggests that there is a lot of scope in this space. With the help of the right tools you can start selling custom t-shirts with low investment. And gradually, as your business grows, you can turn your startup into a huge apparel empire offering a wide range of products.
However, creating custom t-shirts is not only about splashing corporate logos or adding a famous quote. The scope of custom t-shirts is vast, ranging from sports to the hospitality sector.
Continue reading this post to know about the top 8 industries where custom t-shirts are popular and how you can win this business.
Scope of Custom T-shirts in Different Industries
1. Education & Universities
Everybody has a sense of pride associated with their alma mater. And the best way for students and alumni to express their pride is by wearing custom tees. From first-day to class reunion t-shirts, there are lots of custom t-shirt options that education institutes have. This means there is a vast market scope in this sector for t-shirt printing businesses.
Look at Harrison Schmitt Elementary School’s cartoon t-shirts. They also have an astronaut apparel store.
(Harrison Schmitt Cartoon T-shirt)
If you want to sell customized t-shirts for the education industry, there are different categories for you :
- Tees for a school sports team
- Homecoming tees for alumni
- School spirit wear
- Tees for student leadership or school clubs
2. Startups and Corporates
Today, every company, either big or small, is trying to get the attention of its target audience. And as a part of branding and marketing strategy, brands are investing in designing custom t-shirts.
For example, San Fransisco-based startup Splunk offers big data analysis software. There’s no logo, colors, or other graphics on their t-shirts but just a witty quote. How cool!
If you plan to cater to this sector, the first step is to choose the type of t-shirts you want to sell. You can sell – promotional t-shirts that brands give away to prospective customers and clients. Or company t-shirts that help build a sense of community among workers.
3. Sports and Fitness Industry
Custom tees for sports are not limited to number or logo t-shirts for teams. Today, fitness enthusiasts too like to wear activewear that looks stylish. This creates opportunities for business owners to create unique fitness merchandise.
When creating a custom t-shirt for the fitness industry, one must keep in mind that it’s all about reflecting the power and strength that fitness enthusiasts have. For instance, use powerful images to express the aggressiveness or strength of a sports team. In this image, there is just one color. But the image and bold text do their work well.
4. NGOs and Charities
Sometimes, t-shirts are more of a statement than a piece of fashion. They play a major role in spreading awareness about social causes, the environment, political matters, etc. There are a number of brands that provide t-shirt printing services to nonprofit organizations.
Charitees is a well-known American company supplying nonprofit organizations with their custom printed tee shirts, embroidery, and promotional items.
With people becoming more and more active about social causes, this business idea is sure to succeed.
5. Musicians and Bands
Custom t-shirts in the music industry are not new. The first printed t-shirt promoting an artist emerged in 1956. Henry G. Saperstein, the owner of Special Products, Inc., approached Elvis Presley with a merchandise plan. And that’s when The Great Elvis Presley Merchandise Flood started.
For musicians, custom t-shirts can be a great avenue to increase visibility and get the support of followers. It could be the lyrics of a song, a good quote on music, an image of artists in a band, etc. But only a logo or quote might not suffice. You will want something that evokes the theme of music. In that case, you can make a t-shirt more attractive by using some artwork.
6. T-shirts for Fashion Retail Sector
The fashion industry undergoes many evolutions. But one trend that doesn’t seem to stop is customized t-shirts. From teenagers to celebrities, everybody loves wearing it. Here are a few new design trends emerging for t-shirts.
Doodle Artwork – Designs don’t always need to be perfect. Funky doodles, thin lines, wavy lines, shapes of all colors and sizes, etc. – add more playfulness to your customers’ wardrobe.
Multi-colored Words – Multi-colored words are in trend now. Bold fonts along with a striking color palette will set the mood of a shirt. You can either make every letter of different color or keep it simple by choosing selected colors.
7. Hospitality Industry
If you plan to start a t-shirt printing business or expand your existing one, the hospitality sector can offer a wide range of possibilities. Food companies, event planning, resorts, transportation – there are so many different categories you can offer your service.
Here are some custom t-shirt ideas within the hospitality sector
Custom t-shirt designs for food service and bar and restaurants for staff members or promotional purposes. For instance, Otter’s Chicken is a sports-themed restaurant in Georgia. Its team members enjoy wearing custom tees not just at work but outside work too!
For restaurants and bar, customized t-shirts work as an excellent marketing strategy. Not only can the staff wear but it can also be sold out as gifts and merchandise.
Events are all about creating unforgettable memories, and what’s better than customized t-shirts designed for specific occasions! Birthday celebrations, family reunions, bachelor & bachelorette parties are occasions where custom tees will add charm.
Custom t-shirts can also make for an excellent marketing tool in corporate events. You can encourage participants or your business partners to buy one. Custom Ink is a good brand that you can check out for some inspiration. The brand offers thousands of customizable products including t-shirts and hoodies for promotional events, parties, etc.
8. Medical Industry
When we think of doctors or nurses, we can hardly imagine anything beyond the classic white coat. Surprisingly, today, custom tees have reached the medical sector too. According to grand view research, medical is another industry where the popularity of custom t-shirts is increasing.
The below image is of certified nurses at Boston Children’s Hospital. The staff ordered custom t-shirts as a part of a video contest from their certifying organization.
The team at Athens surgery center wearing custom tees to celebrate the hospital’s 14-year anniversary.
If you are looking for a niche market to sell custom t-shirts, you would like to explore this sector since there is less competition and you can reach the targeted audience.
How to Win a T-shirt Printing Business?
The direct answer to this question is – personalization.
Let’s say you are into selling custom sports t-shirts. You offer products with motivational quotes and images of gym equipment; these designs are for everybody who comes to your store.
How will you make your customer feel special?
Customers desire to add their ideas to the products that will give them a feeling of calling something their own.
So, how about letting your customers add colors, text, graphics and create a design from scratch! They will have an exclusive product by them, for them.
By personalizing customers’ experience, you boost customer engagement. The longer a customer spends time on your website, the more likely they will purchase from you.
Do you know 80% of customers are more likely to purchase a product or service from a brand that provides personalized experiences?
And when customers get exactly what they want, they will return to you. Personalization is a great strategy to retain customers and ultimately grow your business.
By investing in a t-shirt design tool, you can give your customers the power to create their designs. A good t-shirt design tool comes with diverse features where customers can browse from a huge library of images, texts, clipart, and ready templates to create designs from any device.
Just like thousands of other t-shirt printing businesses, you, too, should think about leveraging a t-shirt design tool to level up your business.
In a Nutshell
It’s always a good thing to keep a check on trends and current and future business scope. That will help you beat the competition and drive your business to grow. If you have any questions about where you can start or what industry is best suited for your business needs, get in touch with us.
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