Print Provider for Non-profit?

[Signstein]

Good morning folks, does anyone know of any 'for the trade' print providers / wholesalers who will sell to non-profits? I'm an internal shop for an NPO and I've had a few projects come up recently (bulk coro signs) that would be better suited to outsource, but providers like Signs365 and FireSprint do not sell to non-profits. Or is there another way for me to outsource some work without paying full retail? Thanks!

 

[Gene@mpls]

What you want is a non-profit print provider.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

What you want is a non-profit print provider.

There seems to be plenty of them on here

 

[victor bogdanov]

Good morning folks, does anyone know of any 'for the trade' print providers / wholesalers who will sell to non-profits? I'm an internal shop for an NPO and I've had a few projects come up recently (bulk coro signs) that would be better suited to outsource, but providers like Signs365 and FireSprint do not sell to non-profits. Or is there another way for me to outsource some work without paying full retail? Thanks!

What difference would it make to a for the trade printer? Place your order, submit your tax exempt certificate and get your signs? Or do you want even more of a special price?

 

[Signstein]

What you want is a non-profit print provider.

Thank you. I didn't realize there was a whole sector of suppliers catering to schools, churches and other non-profits. ‍

 

[Boudica]

Thank you. I didn't realize there was a whole sector of suppliers catering to schools, churches and other non-profits. ‍♂️

I think Gene was making a joke. He just reworded your thread title - to say that the PRINTER would not be making a profit, and that wouldn't exist (for long).

 

[netsol]

victor,
i believe someone like firesprint says they are "for the trade" meaning they will not compete head to head with us, for an end user's business
a not for profit is exempt from certain taxes, but, is still an end user.

many of my clients for the IT consulting business are "not for profits" (they can provide a 501c3 form)
united way of america, for example says their preferred vendor is staples (which indicates they want to get questionable quality and the highest possible prices)

i imagine firesprint will have something to say on this topic and i do not know their position on this (nor does it matter to me, i suppose, one way or another)

 

[MikePro]

i have a mimaki jv3-160sp I would gladly donate to a nonprofit if I can deduct ~$3k from my taxes.
non-profit doesn't mean no-expenses. Sales tax for certain sales is waived for transactions relating to the charity's “charitable mission.” ...so they're never truly paying "retail" anyways. deduct the expense of a printer & operator or get donations to fund a project.

 

[netsol]

my only question would be how do you come up with a $3000 deduction without having any idea what they want printed?

i used to have a car mechanic who priced that way

 

[victor bogdanov]

victor,
i believe someone like firesprint says they are "for the trade" meaning they will not compete head to head with us, for an end user's business

Sounds like they have their own print shop and want to outsource some of the work, should be ok with the "for the trade" part. Plus in my experience the for the trade printers don't go too much out of their way to verify the trade part

 

[Gino]

No, I don't know of anyone who tries to make profit and then gives away 1,000s of signs to someone else. If word got out, they'd be swamped with freebie work and looking for freebie employees and then freebie supplies. It's called the trickle down theory til there's nothing.

The individual or company must decide how much of a discount, if any they want to extend.

Good luck.

 

[netsol]

Sounds like they have their own print shop and want to outsource some of the work, should be ok with the "for the trade" part. Plus in my experience the for the trade printers don't go too much out of their way to verify the trade part

signs 365 turned us down, in our old location , because we didn't have signage on the outside in google street view
i saw their point, (i prefer to identify clients I WANT & approach them,
i never wanted walk ins
we have small unobtrusive signs now, because it is next to impossible to get deliveries in a very poorly marked (& poorly numbered) industrial park

 

[Signstein]

i have a mimaki jv3-160sp I would gladly donate to a nonprofit if I can deduct ~$3k from my taxes.
non-profit doesn't mean no-expenses. Sales tax for certain sales is waived for transactions relating to the charity's “charitable mission.” ...so they're never truly paying "retail" anyways. deduct the expense of a printer & operator or get donations to fund a project.

You're right. We were hoping to upgrade our printer this year, but couldn't find any donors. Stinks sometimes when you want to do something but can't without a donation...

 

[Zendavor Signs]

OP - you could try contacting a local shop and ask. We give discounts to NPOs all the time. I realize you are trying to save some money, but don’t cut out your local providers to save a few bucks. Build a relationship with your local community.

 

[Signstein]

OP - you could try contacting a local shop and ask. We give discounts to NPOs all the time. I realize you are trying to save some money, but don’t cut out your local providers to save a few bucks. Build a relationship with your local community.

I hadn't thought about the relationship building aspect - that's a good point. Even if we don't save a ton, we're still freed up to do other work and could even ask about doing work in trade. Thanks!

 

[DL Signs]

Supply vendors and wholesalers can only sell to resellers, contractors, etc, not to end users, which is what an NPO is classified as in most cases. Not just in this industry either, same with lumber, paint, or hardware if you're a contractor, brand suppliers if you're a retailer, food service vendors if you're a restaurant... I volunteer design work for a couple of local NPO's, sometimes local business partners help them out by reselling to them at cost, some donate, the rest of what they need they pay retail for.

 

[victor bogdanov]

signs 365 turned us down, in our old location , because we didn't have signage on the outside in google street view

i don't have any signage and got approved by signs365 no problem

 

[netsol]

i don't have any signage and got approved by signs365 no problem

they approved us right away at the new place

 

[ikarasu]

I don't even live in America and got a signs365 account using a Po box in USA.

I always hear about how hard it is to get an acct at wholesalers, funny enough the only "hard" place was Grimco.... And as soon as I inquired about buying a printer / laminator / graphtec my account was approved instantly.

 

[FireSprint.com]

We are a trade printer. We do require a tax exempt form, but we also require proof of being within the graphic communication trade in some way.

Not gonna say we catch them all, but we are very protective of our trade clients. We look for clear intent to resell our products as part of the potential client’s ongoing business model. We don’t do artwork and we’re not afraid to turn down work if it doesn’t fit our model.