People love to talk about how print is dead until they realise how much of our daily lives use print; That notebook you love, the pen you received at an expo, your favourite mug with an inspirational quote, the box your breakfast cereal was packaged in, the T-shirt you bought last week… Print is everywhere and perhaps that is a sign that you should start a printing shop.
A business in print is a good choice for many entrepreneurs, but whether or not it will be a success depends on your approach. Don’t start a printing business just because you saw someone on TikTok who decided to print T-shirts. You have to enter the market with a clear vision of how to make your business profitable by knowing your market and creating a sellable product.
What makes printed products appealing to customers are the personal touches of customised prints and the quality of products.
Find Your Niche
The printing industry has many avenues in which you can specialise. Here are some you can consider.
T-shirt Printing: Arguably one of the most common print businesses, personalised clothing – whether for leisure or as uniforms – is in high demand.
Signage Printing: Signage includes billboards and banners, shop signage and vehicle wraps. These custom prints are usually larger and aims to make a visual impact. If this is the business you start, remember that you will need equipment for the large formats and you need to understand the different finishes for products (like a UV protectant for outdoor signage).
Promotional Printing: From marketing materials, including flyers, brochures, and business cards, to promotional items like pens and mugs can be your niche.
Digital Printing: Digital printing offers high-quality, on-demand printing for a range of applications, including book printing, photo printing, and personalised stationery.
Offset Printing: This is frequently used to print magazines, brochures, and packaging. It is renowned for its sharp detail and high-volume printing capabilities, making it ideal for large-scale projects.
Further, refine your niche by determining if you are producing products for a particular type of customer.
Equipment To Start a Printing Shop
Your business will need equipment to produce your products. Here is a list of the assets you will need to acquire to run your business.
Printers
What is a print business without printers? You will need to invest in your key equipment. Do your research about what the best printer(s) will be for your products. This can be laser-jet printing or wide format, garment or even off-set printers.
Laminator
Lamination can also be an added value service you offer for products like bookmarks, posters or other important documents.
Cutting System
Various cutting machines exist. This includes cutting papers into set sizes and die-cutting.
Computer and Graphic Design Software
To process the order and send it to the printing machine, you will have to use graphic design software on a computer.
Binding and Finishing Equipment
A final ingredient to a well-developed printed product is how it is bound and finished. Investigate the various machines you will need to finish the products.
Legal Requirements to Starting a Print Business
When you open your business, the same legal requirements to registering a business applies. From company registration with the CIPC, to creating a bank account and getting a tax number.
You will need to determine the location of your business and lease office space where needed. If you are solely a print-on-demand business, then ensuring you have a website set up that can support your online orders.
Set up your market place. If you are selling your product online, then you should work to set up your online stores such as Amazon South Africa or even Etsy. If you are selling from your webiste, investigate the best website builders for you. Lastly, advertise your products and services on social media if you have a brick and mortar store.
Note that you don’t have to sell only in one way, you can try multichannel selling.
Take into consideration all the costs of marketing, obtaining equipment leasing a workspace and all the other expenses regarding software, office supplies, raw materials, and paying staff salaries. This will help you determine your product pricing.
Now that you have your niche, shop or market place, prices and products, you are ready to open your doors to let the sales roll in.
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