What are Allseasons customers saying?

George from All In Stitches in Morgantown, WV, “we excited when left with our AllSeasons from the PrintWear show in Baltimore (2007), but we were over the moon when we printed over 1,200 ornaments in our first 3 months.  Even better for us was the margins ornaments afforded us.  Even for a fund raiser we can get $12.00 per ornament.  It sure isn’t like the margins of apparel.  We were also featured with our new machine in the local paper.  We could not be happier with a machine purchase like this.”

What are Fast T-Jet customers saying?

Fast T-Jet users tell their success stories and share their tips for making money with Fast T-Jet direct-to-garment technology.

Rave Reviews

Many T-Jet users are finding that the machine offers a perfect blend of cost, performance, and versatility.

"It has helped me open markets that I couldn't pursue because of screen printing's limitations," says Eric Auckerman, owner, Summerfield Screen Printing of Lihue, Hawaii. "And it has raised the bar in terms of quality and unlimited colors."

Auckerman was so impressed with the T-Jet that he plans to phase out screen printing completely, and he purchased two more machines so he could do bigger orders. "With all three T-Jet machines, we'll be able to do 5,000 shirts a month, no problem" he says.

Mark Francis, owner of Creative Concepts, Jonesboro, Ark., bought his first T-Jet in February after being turned off by the high cost of digital transfer systems. The company, which also does embroidery, is so pleased that it plans to buy another T-Jet within a few months.

Although the T-Jet Standard is ideal for profitably doing small orders, Mark Frances, owner, Creative Concepts, Jonesboro, Ark., also has successfully done large orders too. "We did 10,000 shirts within a few months of buying the machine," says Francis. "We've done orders as large as 1,500."

A big plus of the T-Jet Standard is it takes up only a fraction of the space a manual printing press would. Everything needed to produce finished shirts at Creative Concepts sits on one table.  Mark estimates his shop averages 25 shirts an hour.

"With digital transfers, it costs about $3 to $4 per shirt to decorate, and the Fast T-Jet costs about 70 cents," he says. "T-Jet products are the most profitable products we sell. The machine has already paid for itself.”

T-Jet users say there are lots of other benefits the Fast T-Jet offer ease of use

Direct-to-garment printing is a great alternative for businesses that don't want to invest in expensive equipment, don't have the room to accommodate it, or just don't want to be bothered with the mess.

Screen Masters had a few technical issues when it first started using the machine, but now its staff has no trouble using it. “They love this technology," Loraine (Owner) says.

Soft hand

"I love the way the shirt feels when it comes out," Lorraine says. "It's better feel than screen printing."

We print single shirts or larger orders. Screen Master orders are usually about three dozen, the kind of job where screen printing would be cost-prohibitive because of set-up costs, especially multi-color jobs.

Typical order size for Summerfield, which purchased its T-Jet in February, is about four-dozen shirts.

Girly Chic, which lets customers jazz up their custom designs with rhinestones, gets orders for print jobs where screen printing isn't economical. "For low volume, it's difficult for screen printers to take the job. So we do designs up to 400 pieces," she says. "People get shirts for cheer conventions or their daughter's volleyball tournament."

"We did 10,000 shirts within a few months of buying the machine," says Francis, who gets about 25 shirts per hour from the T-Jet. "We've done orders as large as 1,500."

Versatility & Profitability

"I'm totally amazed at how far the ink goes with it," Lorraine says. "Now we use our screen printing less, but process more jobs.  The T-Jet profitable for us."

Users have found that many types and brands of T-shirts print well in the T-Jet machines. Girly Chic prints on 6.1-ounce T-shirts, tank tops, baby-doll shirts, crew-neck T-shirts and more.

Auckerman has printed on tan, natural and ash shirts, and has also had good luck with blues, oranges, and yellows. "The only shirt that didn't print well was pink," he says. "Everything else was wonderful."

Profitability. Inks costs are less than they expected, T-Jet users say. "I'm totally amazed at how far the ink goes with it," Meserve says. "Now I don't use my embroidery machine much. The T-Jet is so much more profitable."

New customers and services

Meserve says that she has attracted new customers using her T-Jet without even trying. "I haven't gone out looking for new business," she says. "What I get is people coming in or calling and asking questions about it."

Eric Auckerman owner of Summerfield Screen Printing of Lihue, Hawaii, "I couldn't be happier with MY T-Jet purchase. It has helped me open markets that I couldn't pursue because of screen printing's limitations.

Lorraine of Screen Masters says, "We couldn't be happier with our T-Jet purchase. It has helped us open markets that I diddn't pursue because of screen printing's limitations for us.

Summerfield Screen Printing, serves restaurants and resorts, weddings, and special events has found that the T-Jet lets it offer a wider array of products. "I've come up with a bunch of new ideas because of the T-Jet," Auckerman says. "We take photos and put designs around them, add some text, and the wedding coordinator can provide a commemorative T-shirt."

Personalizing

"A T-shirt with a cat on it is nice. A T-shirt with your cat is even better," says Meserve, who attends races and takes digital pictures of the cars, then adds a name or logo and clip art, and outputs the designs onto T-shirts

"People appreciate a good, clear image of their pets, relatives, and friends. T-Jet was the natural choice because it's on demand and immediate," Auckerman says.

T-Jet Tips

Determine your prices. Auckerman says that each shirt costs about $2 to $3 to produce, so his price to customers is about $1 to $2 higher than screen printed T-shirts. He says he gets some objections but easily justifies the price. "I'm focusing more on the value and overall quality, which is better than screen printing because there are no graduated tones. It's photo-realistic," he says.

Girly Chic charges $20 for its custom T-shirts. "At 900 shirts, the machine will have paid for herself," Casabonne says.

Experiment

"I'd recommend that when you get the machine, you take two days and print a bunch of inexpensive shirts, and get it perfected," says Frances, who has put marks on her T-Jet shirt holders to help with proper placement. "You'll save yourself hundreds of dollars in wrecked shirts."

Try double prints

Double prints are a great way to get vivid colors by increasing ink saturation, as long as you don't remove the shirt before the second layer prints, which could cause a registration problem.

Know when to use it

Most users say that the T-Jet machines won't replace standard screen printing, but that's not what they're intended to do. They're designed as a complimentary technology that works when screen printing makes less sense.