T-shirts. Logistics. HELP!

[Pap_sak]

If you look closer you will see that we have not used either logo, as I explained in a post on the other thread.

We decided to go for a more "comical" take on the shirts, and designed our own comical versions of the respective logos. We have consulted more than one lawyer on the matter and are in no way infringing on any trademark. There is not a chance that a reasonable person could deem the shirt to be a product of any of those organisations.

Also, if by any chance they do take offense, I've been advised that the most they can do is grant an interdict to stop them being sold. If Justin Nurse from Laugh It Off can get away with what he does, there should be no problems whatsoever with this.

Trust me when I say we have done our homework.

It is completely legit and our wholesale price is a little over R150. A large portion of our target market comprises Varsity students, and we have aimed to price it so that everybody can afford it for now.

Ok, I will take your word for it..still think there could be problems brewing though.

I am guessing you are not vat registered yet? Are the logos embroidered?

I'll take 21, if they have embroidered logo's

3 x S, 5 x M, 5 x L, 5 x XL , 3 x 2XL

[Mark Atkinson]

Ok, I will take your word for it..still think there could be problems brewing though.

I am guessing you are not vat registered yet? Are the logos embroidered?

I'll take 21, if they have embroidered logo's

3 x S, 5 x M, 5 x L, 5 x XL , 3 x 2XL

The logos aren't embroidered, but they aren't screen printed on either. The shirts are not made of cotton, they are made from 100% polyester moisture management fabric (just like the Adidas fan shirts) and dyed via sublimation printing. Therefore it's all dyed into the material. I.e. It's not the stuff that you can't iron on. It has no hand feel and is a great quality.

21? Why the emphasis on embroidered logo's?

[Pap_sak]

The logos aren't embroidered, but they aren't screen printed on either. The shirts are not made of cotton, they are made from 100% polyester moisture management fabric (just like the Adidas fan shirts) and dyed via sublimation printing. Therefore it's all dyed into the material. I.e. It's not the stuff that you can't iron on. It has no hand feel and is a great quality.

21? Why the emphasis on embroidered logo's?

Sublimation!

At that price!

shweet.

That's a confirmed order of 21 tops in sizes of above.

If there are any copyright problems, I will be sending them straight on to you.

But should be a good seller!

[Mark Atkinson]

But if this is a hundred percent legit, what is your wholesale price?

I'm afraid I think I misunderstood here. The price I mentioned is our COST price and not our wholesale price. For now we have decided to sell the shirts solely through the website. That's the reason why they are priced so competitively, to encourage people to buy through the website.

I'm guessing you're a supplier, hence the 21 shirts? Apologies for the misunderstanding, my mistake.

Another reason for the pricing is to discourage people from trying to replicate our shirts. It was not at all easy to find a manufacturer who didn't tell us it was "impossible", so if somebody does find one, it's going to be really difficult to price their products below ours.

Let me know if you're still interested in any shirts. We could probably work something out, but with our price already low, it's difficult to drop it any further.

[Pap_sak]

I'm afraid I think I misunderstood here. The price I mentioned is our COST price and not our wholesale price. For now we have decided to sell the shirts solely through the website. That's the reason why they are priced so competitively, to encourage people to buy through the website.

I'm guessing you're a supplier, hence the 21 shirts? Apologies for the misunderstanding, my mistake.

Another reason for the pricing is to discourage people from trying to replicate our shirts. It was not at all easy to find a manufacturer who didn't tell us it was "impossible", so if somebody does find one, it's going to be really difficult to price their products below ours.

Let me know if you're still interested in any shirts. We could probably work something out, but with our price already low, it's difficult to drop it any further.

Good luck with your venture. Nice idea and nice site. Think you should have looked at the retail side, but good luck all the same.

[Mark Atkinson]

Good luck with your venture. Nice idea and nice site. Think you should have looked at the retail side, but good luck all the same.

Thanks

We may look to introduce it to the retail side at some point. For now, though, I think we'll run it at the lower price and see how that goes.

At some point we might increase the price a tad and then sell to retailers at "wholesale" prices. I'd just like to see how the online sales go first

The problem is it's kind of a specialty product, which can't just be sold anywhere. Like I couldn't just walk into Woolies or Edgars and say "would you like to buy my shirt?" :P What sort of store do you own?

[Dave A]

Mark, just a question here as food for thought -

Is there a problem if someone buys your shirts at the "website" price and then retails them at a markup?

Sure, the retailer could squeal that you're not protecting them on price, but if they're going into that situation up front knowing there's a cheaper option on the web, where's the problem?

They understand (and are responsible for) their own business.

[Mark Atkinson]

Mark, just a question here as food for thought -

Is there a problem if someone buys your shirts at the "website" price and then retails them at a markup?

Sure, the retailer could squeal that you're not protecting them on price, but if they're going into that situation knowingly up front, where's the problem?

Not everyone is on the web.

I have absolutely no issue with that. We'll make money, the retailer will make money and the consumer will get the convenience factor should he wish to not buy it through the website. So everybody is happy.

Truth be told, the consumer won't come out with a shirt for less than R300 if you factor in the delivery cost as well. I'm pretty sure that people would pay a premium on the shirts at a retailer for the convenience as well.

So if retailers are willing to buy the shirts at that price and add their own mark-up, I'm happy with that. It will put us in a "wholesaler" position of sorts, similar to factory shops where the public can also buy the shirts at "wholesale" prices.

[Pap_sak]

Thanks

We may look to introduce it to the retail side at some point. For now, though, I think we'll run it at the lower price and see how that goes.

At some point we might increase the price a tad and then sell to retailers at "wholesale" prices. I'd just like to see how the online sales go first

The problem is it's kind of a specialty product, which can't just be sold anywhere. Like I couldn't just walk into Woolies or Edgars and say "would you like to buy my shirt?" :P What sort of store do you own?

I have two sports shops.

[Mark Atkinson]

I have two sports shops.

Awesome! Well, unfortunately I can't really help you out with a "wholesale" price as such. If, however, you think Dave's idea has any merit then by all means, buy some. If you're in the Facebook group you get 10% discount on the pre-orders (or if you ask really nicely) but I'm sure I could keep the 10% in place for you after pre-orders should you be buying quantities on a regular basis

[Pap_sak]

Awesome! Well, unfortunately I can't really help you out with a "wholesale" price as such. If, however, you think Dave's idea has any merit then by all means, buy some. If you're in the Facebook group you get 10% discount on the pre-orders (or if you ask really nicely) but I'm sure I could keep the 10% in place for you after pre-orders should you be buying quantities on a regular basis

Hey Mark,

Just a reality check for you...I do not need to ask you "nicely" to put your products in my shops. You should want to get your product in my shops, and other shops like mine, my shops already turn over a couple of mill a year dealing with brands like adidas, New Balance, PF-Flyers, Converse and many, many others. I have reps from big, big brands trying to get shop space and most do not succeed, purely because I do not think they will work for my market.

You have a good idea and a fair product (it could be tweaked IMO, the back looks a little "left" heavy), and you have balls, BUT, if you want to be a player and launch a brand, and not just be a one off, it'll take a bit more thought on branding, margins and distribution channels.

Just my opinion, and you might easily prove me wrong, and if you do Kudos to you.

[Mark Atkinson]

Hey Mark,

Just a reality check for you...I do not need to ask you "nicely" to put your products in my shops. You should want to get your product in my shops, and other shops like mine, my shops already turn over a couple of mill a year dealing with brands like adidas, New Balance, PF-Flyers, Converse and many, many others. I have reps from big, big brands trying to get shop space and most do not succeed, purely because I do not think they will work for my market.

You have a good idea and a fair product (it could be tweaked IMO, the back looks a little "left" heavy), and you have balls, BUT, if you want to be a player and launch a brand, and not just be a one off, it'll take a bit more thought on branding, margins and distribution channels.

Just my opinion, and you might easily prove me wrong, and if you do Kudos to you.

First off, I think you caught the wrong end of the stick. I apologise if it came across like arrogance or complacency, it was not meant to sound like anything of the sort. I was merely referencing the fact that currently there is only discount available to Facebook members, but that I would happily give it to you should you view merit in the product and want them in your shops. Sorry for any misunderstanding there.

As far as thought goes, I'm not sure it's possible to give any more thought to the matter than already has been given. There is a huge number of variables to consider. There was the whole "to distribute through retailers or not to distribute through retailers" in this very thread. To be honest, I eventually came to the conclusion that the product would be too controversial for most retailers that deal in quality brands, such as yours.

That being said, even though we market the product solely online at present, I fully encourage retailers to look at selling the product in their shops, should they wish to do so. From the response so far, I'm pretty sure it will sell well. You said it yourself, the price is really good for a sublimation print shirt. A supplier could easily put his own markup on the shirts and still sell them with no issues. Many consumers don't want to purchase over the internet, or tend to buy on impulse when out shopping. It's there to be taken advantage of.

For many reasons, though, we don't see it as a viable option to attempt to market online at a higher price. At least until it is a known brand.

As far as the product itself is concerned, the design has been tweaked already based on the sample shirt. There are also many other things in the pipeline: Ladies fitted shirts, kiddies sizes, baseball caps, and more importantly, personalised shirts.

I know I have a lot to learn, I will always be the first to admit that; BUT I have asked for advice, listened to everybody's words of wisdom and considered every option. In the end, however, I need to trust my gut and follow the path that I've logically thought out and conceptualized. If i stuff it up, then so be it, but I need to try something before I can chuck it out as "wrong".

I do not set out to prove people wrong. Rather to exceed my own expectations. I have a pretty clear picture in my mind of where I'd like this all to go. If I can reach that, or better, exceed it, then I'll be happy.

Thanks for your input though. I really do take in any feedback that I get and I think long and hard about it all.

[Pap_sak]

Mark, my number is 076 868 7730 or 022 482 4491, save it in the next 48hrs...

[Mark Atkinson]

Done

Will give you a ring sometime today hopefully.