Posted on Monday, October 21st, 2013 by Will Hagle
Teespring is a crowdfunding platform that prints custom designed t-shirts once enough people have expressed interest in buying them, then ships directly to customers.
Teespring is redefining the way custom t-shirt design works. Traditionally, if you wanted to create and sell your own t-shirts, you would have to front the cost for the production of the shirts, estimate how many you would be able to sell, and then attempt to find buyers. Teespring makes each step of that system completely irrelevant. Instead, it lets potential consumers express their intention to purchase a shirt before the shirt actually gets designed. If enough people support your design, Teespring prints them and ships them, and you get the profits. The site is similar to crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo, but instead of raising money for a project that you may or may not complete, you raise money for Teespring to complete the project for you (and then you reap the rewards).
Crowdfunding Works.The site allows users to create a campaign explaining their concept design, choose a goal of how many shirts you want to sell, and begin spreading the word for people to make a purchase. If other users support your campaign, they enter their credit card information, which signifies that they will purchase a shirt if your goal is reached. Credit cards are only charged if you reach your goal, and then Teespring delivers the shirts to your customers. There is no fee to create a campaign, and therefore no upfront cost to get your t-shirt business off the ground. The site is also useful for creating t-shirts for charities or organizations, or for getting everyone from your club or team to actually pay for their t-shirt before the whole batch is printed. Teespring is a smart concept that should be used by all those that want to print custom t-shirts without the usual risks associated with upfront costs.
