Need Help Anybody know a good cut vinyl wholesaler?

Your best bet is to talk with a local sign shop that will cut your vinyl at a discount price.

Although I'm not as old as you are I have done the samething, sold almost all my equipment and everything else and moved to China.

 

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Welcome back Doug. Glad to see you back active... I'd have to agree with Chicago Graphics... finding a wholesaler would be a way to go, but I'm sure the shipping would be a deal breaker...

Perhaps, if you have the space, but some materials, a few different colors, and some application tape, and have another shop cut it, and you could weed and mask. Just my 2 pennies in the bucket.

 

Good to see ya Doug- if you have a printer locally, do they cut their printed vinyl? I am retired but any color that is not worth stocking is printed and then cut. That is 80% of the work these days. Gene

 

Which vinyl do you order from signs365?

 

I think most if not all wholesalers round it out to the next foot.

 

Hey Doug! Kevin from Illinois (back in the Hoffman Estates days).

I am in the same situation as you. I outsource everything, but can't find anybody to do cut vinyl. So I keep an old 24" plotter and a limited supply of vinyl in my garage. It does get used quite a bit.

I am moving my equipment to a friend's shop (not a sign guy). The local sign shops have always been friendly but un-cooperative. My attempts at directing work their way have usually not ended well. Fortunately for me, I am first and foremost an artist. All of the local shops are primarily crane operators or "quickie" print shops.

I have zero problem finding all the work I want, but I find it is essential that I talk with the client myself. I have tried working with account managers (sales people) from other sign companies, but they generally are clueless when it comes to determining the real needs of the client. I end up doing stuff I don't want to do and is not in the best interest of the client. And when I go to the local sign shops with pre-sold fabrication and installation work, they want to charge me retail AND they try to steal my customers.

I am fortunate to have a supportive business community and faithful clients. This model of working requires strong art and design skills and a deep "book". Youngsters getting into working this way will struggle. I advise them to go work for a sign shop for ten to twenty years first. Who knows what the sign business will look like then!

 

2 from OK.

 

Aprintco - Southgate CA.

 

Hey Doug, an if you have something that they can't help you with let me know, I'm sure I can help you out. I have shipped stuff out there before.

Henry Z

 

No matter what, I think you would need a local source for the smaller one off jobs, or quit doing them all together. And what happens when you customer says " I messed up a couple of those, can I get 2 more?" Shipping would kill your margins and customer service even more than expensive local pricing??? Maybe try and source it from a different island to minimize the shipping and turn around and avoid them trying to steel your customers.

We used to use Gregory for larger quanties of cut vinyl when we were busy. The also have a cheaper version of the 3M 7725 called Trendfilm 6500.