Hello from Noob

Hello all in this wonderful forum.

I'm new to the sub game but have always done my home designs and Cd covers, the odd t shirt etc and used to work in DTP and design so have the technical knowledge also. Several people have suggested that I should make it more than just a hobby as some of my designs are unique and would appeal (Maybe they are massaging my ego though... Friends and family can do that). I am in a position where I'm no longer employed and have some cash to invest in a new venture doing something that I am passionate about.

I have been looking into different equipment and maybe I should ask elsewhere on the forum... In fact I will but wanted to ask the following.....

Is it a venture to be getting into or is it a massively over saturated market? It seems to be littered with people giving up after buying loads of equipment and selling it off. Even established people! Do the people selling mugs and t shirts for £5 on ebay just kill off sales for everyone else? (They can only be making £1 on each sale from what I can tell). Or is it a case of people jumping on the bandwagon and then realising it isn't as easy as they thought/make expensive mistakes/get loads of returns due to bad manufacturing etc, so just give up.

I want to do this properly and know Illustrator, Photoshop, QuarkXPress and numerous other packages really well. I've even designed T shirts/Mugs/Slipmats for well established bands so have form, so to speak. What I don't want to do is shell out a few thousand pounds to find out that the market is now dying due to over saturation.

What are peoples thoughts? If you have a good enough product, it will sell or buy cheap equipment and just do it as a hobby?


Any thoughts greatly appreciated. I will ask about equipment choices elsewhere.

Jaminist

:cool:

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Originally Posted by Jaminist

Is it a venture to be getting into or is it a massively over saturated market? It seems to be littered with people giving up after buying loads of equipment and selling it off. Even established people! Do the people selling mugs and t shirts for £5 on ebay just kill off sales for everyone else? (They can only be making £1 on each sale from what I can tell). Or is it a case of people jumping on the bandwagon and then realising it isn't as easy as they thought/make expensive mistakes/get loads of returns due to bad manufacturing etc, so just give up.

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From my experience, it's ALL of those! :frown:

My best advice would be to THOROUGHLY research your intended market and draw up a business plan before even entertaining the idea of buying equipment. Competition is FIERCE in most areas of this business. You may find a niche that satisfies your desires, but profits from niche markets are sometimes slim, and don't always offer a way to make a living. In order to have a sustainable business that provides you with a half-decent living then you need either many regular customers, or groups that regularly place huge orders. You'll find it vey difficult, if not impossible, to compete on ebay. They're practically giving the stuff away on there and you get many chancers and downright rogues, as well as people who are unbelievably 'picky' about the condition of their items.

At the end of the day though, it's always going to be a risk, but as long as you've done your research well you can reduce the risks a lot. Just be honest with your expectations and don't pull figures from thin air.

Thanks Webtrekker, I'm working on a business plan currently. I'm thinking along the lines of getting a part time job and doing this the rest of the time so I don't have all my eggs in one basket. I do have some good links to people in different markets and have been promised orders (I know... people say one thing, do another) But I guess it's a case of it's now or never, while I have the time and cash to do it. If you dont try etc..... Expensive hobby but it keeps me off the streets! lol.

I already own Macs and all the designing packages so learning curve will be minimal. I used to work in the newspaper industry on layout, ad design and technical support so have that knowledge also.

Go for it Jaminist - sounds like you're quite creative so this will be a good hobby for you to get into. Start off slowly with equipment by spending hundreds and not thousands. For now just get yourself a mug press and A4 dyesub printer and a decent heatpress. Like Webtrekker says, don't raise your expectations about making lots of money but it could be a good little sideline for you.