At one point in time, print shop N The Zone Ink attempted to bring stickers and digital print-cut products in-house. “On paper, it appeared simple, but in reality, it didn’t align with our garment-decoration workflow,” says Deanna Smith, co-founder and CEO.
Smith and her team learned that digital printing requires an entirely different production environment. “Lint, fibers, and the natural messiness of apparel production interfered with the laminate and print quality,” she says. “The equipment demanded far more labor than we expected, and because it wasn’t our area of expertise, troubleshooting stole time and attention from the core departments that truly drive revenue.”
Ultimately, the category became more of a distraction than an asset for N the Zone Ink. In fact, outsourcing proved faster, cleaner, and more profitable.
The lesson for Smith? “New categories are never ‘plug-and-play,’ no matter how simple the sales pitch sounds,” she says. “If it’s not a natural fit for your infrastructure and your strengths, it’ll drain resources instead of adding value.”
So how do apparel decorators know whether it’s a good idea to add a new in-house product or service? If you want to offer promo products, wide-format printing services, or something else, there are business decisions you need to make before leaping. We asked industry pros the right (and wrong) ways to implement new revenue streams.
The Right Time to Add a New Product or Service
Shop owners focus too much on when to expand,” says Marshall Atkinson, business consultant at Atkinson Consulting and Shirt Lab Tribe. “The real question is the ‘why’ behind it. If you haven’t figured out how to sell the new service or support it operationally, you’re just buying a shiny object that turns into a very expensive paperweight.”
One of the first practical cues that it might be time to add a new product is noticing consistent demand — or realizing you’re frequently outsourcing or turning away that type of work.
“It’s all about listening to your ideal audience,” says Jesse Poteet, business coach and screen printer at Startup Screen Printing. “The right time to expand is only when it lets you go deeper with the clients you already have, rather than chasing a new market just for the sake of it.”
Read the rest of this article on Apparelist, a publication of PRINTING United Alliance, ASI’s strategic partner.
