Setting up a new business for my Daughter

[heyskull]

I have purchased an Epson SureColor SC-F500, a Hotronix Heat Press, Mug Press & lots of consumables from my daughters boss.
This was all purchased due to her boss and husband having to sell the business (which is a huge moneymaker) due to an ongoing divorce!
This is causing a great deal of stress for my daughters family as her job is under question due to these a**holes ruining a perfectly good business.
This was purchased for not a lot of cash and is in amazing, almost unused condition.
I will be giving her also one of my spare plotters to cut heat applied material.
This will be like giving her a ready made business that my daughter and her kids can make a living with.
I have a current supplier through my business for consumables and things she can make and would use this as an oveflow for some of the items we produce.
My question is, is there any software that I could purchase to create templates for the items to put throught this printer?
Is there any good sites supporting these machines and what they can be used for?

Thanks

 

[tulsagraphics]

So you dropped $2.5-3.5k on some equipment and expect her to create a full time full paying job out of it? The owners may or may not be a**holes -- but they're the ones who built up the business, hired employees and paid her wages.

Honestly, I wouldn't invest too heavily. It's not like giving her a ready made business -- at all. You're trying to give her a project. While it seems like a great opportunity in your mind, consider that your daughter may not be interested in running her own business. She was taught how to work with various materials/processes to help create a finished product for a paycheck, but self-employment is no easy task, and you/her won't automatically acquire all the clients from the previous employer. She'll have to hustle for business just like the rest of us. She will have to market. She will have to design. She will need to sell. She will have to manage a business, take care of paperwork, taxes, etc. (presumably stuff you'd help out with in the beginning)... but did she have to do any of those things previously or know how those things work? Is that what she wants? Those are big expectations!

That being said.... I'm not sure what your question is.

Software doesn't create templates. People create them using whatever software they're familiar with for specific aspects of production. If you're talking about clipart -- well, clipart was old news 20 years ago. These days most everything is custom designed. She needs to have some design skills (and ideally some marketing skills) to upsell her services.

"good sites supporting these machines"? Owning/operating equipment isn't like what you'd find owning a Cricut and watching YouTube videos for the latest fads to sell stuff on Etsy. A "good site" that supports a piece of commercial equipment doesn't really exist. Need tech support or a firmware update? Sure. But manufacturers expect you to purchase/use a tool for a business you already know how to operate. They're not going to bless you with an "easy marketing button".

TBH, give your activity on this forum, I'd expect you to be able to answer these questions yourself.

This sounds to me like a situation where she can create gifts for family and friends, and maybe sell some stuff on Etsy. Let her have some fun with it -- when she's off work from her day job.

~justfax

 

[Vassago]

Unfortunately I agree with tulsagraphics.. Just buying a load of equipment doesn't make a business. Don't get me wrong. You need it, but you also need passion and spirit. Does your daughter have those as well as a full customer list and plenty of cash to see her through the times when business is scarce?

Or.. Does she simply want to go to work so she gets paid? Very different and opposite mindsets. Shes got a family.. Does she even have time?

Help her to get a new job, then do this in her spare time until it's able to support her. It sounds great.. But there's A LOT of competition out there.

 

[White Haus]

Man, you guys are ruthless. Guy's asking a couple of questions regarding software and supplies, not to be lectured on how not to help his family.

Newbie comes on here and asks something similar without doing any research on their own, sure let em have it. But a longtime member asking for tips on how to help set his daughter up in a somewhat related industry.... I don't see the issue here.

Sorry heyskull I don't know anything about sublimation, but wish you and your daughter best of luck with the new venture.

 

[Vassago]

Man, you guys are ruthless. Guy's asking a couple of questions regarding software and supplies, not to be lectured on how not to help his family.

Newbie comes on here and asks something similar without doing any research on their own, sure let em have it. But a longtime member asking for tips on how to help set his daughter up in a somewhat related industry.... I don't see the issue here.

Sorry heyskull I don't know anything about sublimation, but wish you and your daughter best of luck with the new venture.

It's not so much that.. It's knowing how hard it is to run a business. It's great having the gear, but that's only a tiny part of it. Sounds great, but its often hard and it sounds like his daughter might not want to do something like that.

It would probably be better if heyskull bought the company.. It's ready to run and has the staff already in place.. But starting one afresh? It's hard graft, and unless you REALLY want to succeed and put lots of hours in which is hard when you've got a family - you're going to struggle.


All that said.


AI is a great tool these days - easy to come up with engaging images without clip art. Templates are easy as it's just placing the art where it looks good and saving the file when it works.. Then adjusting that file to change the art. Nothing complicated, but there's LOTS of competition in that market - all racing to the bottom of pricing.. If she wants to succeed.. Specialise.. And keep prices high enough so it's worth your while. NEVER compete on price as there's always someone with more money who can price you out of the market - compete on the bit that makes you unique.. YOU.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

I was confused too by the guys post. Seems like he's been here a while but unless we don't understand, those questions don't make sense

 

[Johnny Best]

I think he is doing a great thing for his daughter and her kids, now getting them to work it and produce a profit is another thing.
IF you bought a working profitable dairy farm for your daughter, is she going to get up at 3am and -20 degrees outside and go to the barn and milk the cows, clean down the barn, care for the cows and sell the milk to the producers. Finding out she can’t stand the smell of cows and their waste at the early hours. Or knowledge of the milking machines and how to fix them when they break down? And her kids just want to be on their phones and could care less about the process of the farm.
Lot bumps in the road on this endeaver by HeySkull to help his daughter but it would be a good deal for him to make some extra cash for his retirement.
I say “good luck to ya, mate”.

 

[Stacey K]

Are you in the UK? Darn - I just typed for 10 minutes so some of this might not apply but I'm sure there are similar businesses to the ones listed below in your area?

To answer your question, yes! It sounds like she's going to be in the apparel business.

I've never used sublimination for apparel, I think that's more for the mugs?

1. She needs to get an account on Transfer Express and order plastisol transfers for 1 and 2 color projects. For example, local plumber wants 2 dozen tshirts. These should be plastisol ink. You upload the design and order heat transfers then press them onto the shirts. Transfer Express has A LOT of design templates for lots of stuff!
- 613 Transfers - that's who I use, cheaper and quicker but no designs. I like there interface way better than Transfer Express
- SupaColor - I use them for full color transfers

2. Etsy - there are A LOT of designs on there for $1, $2, $3

3. If this is going to be a successful business where she's making money from the community, she needs to learn how to upload customer logos and vector them. The money is in the commercial apparel, NOT in onsie-twosie random mom's through the door. I'm going to repeat that....the money is in the commercial apparel, NOT in onsie-twosie random mom's through the door.

4. I've never sold tshirts online like Etsy or TikTok. I want to...but I am too busy to do that. There's A LOT of competition.

5. The money is in the one-color plastisol transfers. Avoid HTV like the plague. I only use it for jobs in which the customer only wants front left chest. I use it for names, and for sports kids who want names/numbers on the back of shirts. You can also order names and numbers from Transfer Express.

6. If she can get in with the school or kid sport teams, that's a good money maker.

 

[unclebun]

You need to get her an account with a sublimation supplier. They will have the templates for the items she is personalizing. Conde and JDS are the two I have used.

 

[heyskull]

So you dropped $2.5-3.5k on some equipment and expect her to create a full time full paying job out of it? The owners may or may not be a**holes -- but they're the ones who built up the business, hired employees and paid her wages.

Honestly, I wouldn't invest too heavily. It's not like giving her a ready made business -- at all. You're trying to give her a project. While it seems like a great opportunity in your mind, consider that your daughter may not be interested in running her own business. She was taught how to work with various materials/processes to help create a finished product for a paycheck, but self-employment is no easy task, and you/her won't automatically acquire all the clients from the previous employer. She'll have to hustle for business just like the rest of us. She will have to market. She will have to design. She will need to sell. She will have to manage a business, take care of paperwork, taxes, etc. (presumably stuff you'd help out with in the beginning)... but did she have to do any of those things previously or know how those things work? Is that what she wants? Those are big expectations!

That being said.... I'm not sure what your question is.

Software doesn't create templates. People create them using whatever software they're familiar with for specific aspects of production. If you're talking about clipart -- well, clipart was old news 20 years ago. These days most everything is custom designed. She needs to have some design skills (and ideally some marketing skills) to upsell her services.

"good sites supporting these machines"? Owning/operating equipment isn't like what you'd find owning a Cricut and watching YouTube videos for the latest fads to sell stuff on Etsy. A "good site" that supports a piece of commercial equipment doesn't really exist. Need tech support or a firmware update? Sure. But manufacturers expect you to purchase/use a tool for a business you already know how to operate. They're not going to bless you with an "easy marketing button".

TBH, give your activity on this forum, I'd expect you to be able to answer these questions yourself.

This sounds to me like a situation where she can create gifts for family and friends, and maybe sell some stuff on Etsy. Let her have some fun with it -- when she's off work from her day job.

~justfax

Calm Down.....

I have been in the Sign Business for over 40 years and have a clothing business running alongside.
I know full well how difficuly it is running a business.
In no way was setting her up going to be a quick fix. But it will need to be put in place eventually as they have orders building up for supplies and no stock.
This is because the owner is to busy chasing young boys!
Honestly the owner of the business she is working for is a complete a**hole.
I am not going to go into the reasons, but needless to say she is killing her business and will not realise until it has gone.

 

[heyskull]

Man, you guys are ruthless. Guy's asking a couple of questions regarding software and supplies, not to be lectured on how not to help his family.

Newbie comes on here and asks something similar without doing any research on their own, sure let em have it. But a longtime member asking for tips on how to help set his daughter up in a somewhat related industry.... I don't see the issue here.

Sorry heyskull I don't know anything about sublimation, but wish you and your daughter best of luck with the new venture.

Thank You

You have read my post for exactly what it is.
I hope this forum is not going to go how so many other forums go and be so negative.