559 merch combinations: method, product type, industry

Method against type: what the technique changes

Every technique has an entry condition that decides whether a given product is even in play. Screen printing needs a flat panel, because the screen transfers ink through a flat carrier. If a t-shirt has a seam across it, the part of the artwork that crosses the seam has to be applied by hand or dropped. Embroidery has a minimum stitch width, below which a fine detail of the logo disappears during sewing. Sublimation needs polyester, because the dye exchanges inside the fibre rather than sitting on its surface.

Those conditions are visible in the matrix on the other side of every description. Screen printing on a flat-weave product has its own page, and screen printing on a polo shirt has another, because a polo has a placket and seams that the screen cannot take. The difference in price and in the smoothness of the finish comes from the same cause. The harder the substrate, the more expensive the preparation and the more hand work per unit.

The technique also changes how artwork has to be prepared. Screen printing takes a vector file and separates it by colour, which means a separate screen and a separate preparation cost per colour. Direct to garment printing takes a raster file and prints it whole, with no limit on the number of colours, but it needs a light or white base and takes longer per unit. Heat transfer works on many substrates and at small volumes, though the transfer film can be felt under the finger, which matters for shirts worn under a jacket.

The numbers: minimum volume, lead time, price

Minimum volume is the most common reason two quotes differ by an order of magnitude. Preparation, meaning the frame, the screen and the plate, is a fixed cost for the project. At 50 units its share of the price of one unit is large; at 500 units it is almost invisible. That is why two orders of the same product in different quantities have completely different unit prices. We state the volume thresholds plainly so you can compare them with a supplier quote before the first invoice exists.

Lead time is counted from approval of the artwork, not from the moment of payment. Before production starts there is file preparation, a test print and its approval. A typical lead time is five to eight working days for a standard item. An express run, usually 48 to 72 hours, is possible for straightforward designs and costs an extra 20 to 30 per cent. Designs in several sizes, several colours and embroidery all extend that time noticeably.

Prices are given net in euro, and tax and accounting are settled separately. The invoice at 23 per cent VAT is issued through KSeF, so the document reaches the system without manual entry. For deliveries to other European Union member states we apply reverse charge where the conditions are met. Shipping leaves our hub in Warsaw, so a delivery inside Poland arrives quickly and predictably.

The brief in seven fields

The fastest quote comes from a brief with seven fields: product, quantity, decoration, size, colour, deadline and delivery city. That is enough for an answer with a price and a date. If one field is unknown, write it as a question and we will add a recommendation. The brief can go as an ordinary message, without a form, in your first email.

The order is practical, because each field narrows the next one. The product decides which techniques are possible at all. The quantity decides whether preparation is spread over a sensible number of units or whether the unit price will be high. The decoration decides the preparation cost. The size decides how many units to order in each variant. The colour decides how many screens there are. The deadline decides whether an express run is needed. The delivery city decides how long transport takes.

After the quote, one question usually comes back that is worth anticipating: whether the design appears in several variants on one product. Two variants are two screens and two preparation costs. The more variants, the higher the unit price at small volume. It is therefore worth writing in the brief whether the project is one design or a set, because that moves the quote in euros more than the choice of colour does.

Choosing a technique in three steps

The first step is the substrate, not the technique. The material rules out part of the options before you start comparing prices at all. Cotton and fibre blends lead to screen printing, direct to garment printing and embroidery. Polyester leads to sublimation and heat transfer. Hard surfaces and metal lead to UV printing, laser engraving and pad printing. The matrix states those limits next to every combination, so you can go from the material to the technique rather than the other way round.

The second step is volume, because it moves the price more than the choice of technique does. At a small quantity the preparation cost is spread over a few pieces and the unit price is high. At a large quantity the same technique becomes the cheapest one. That is why, for a single product, it is worth checking two or three alternative methods in the matrix and comparing the price per unit and the preparation cost, which enters small runs in full.

The third step is the deadline and the price of risk. An express run shortens the time and raises the price. A design in several sizes and several colours extends production and raises the preparation cost. When the deadline is tight, the better decision is often a simpler design with fewer variants rather than a more expensive technique. Each combination in the matrix carries those three numbers, the volume threshold, the lead time and the price, so the comparison happens in one place.

Sometimes the right decision is not to order at all. A single piece with a company logo has little value and says nothing about the quality of execution, and the preparation cost can exceed the price of several dozen pieces. If you need one item for a presentation or a technical sample, order a material sample decorated with the method you plan to use at volume. Such an order costs a fraction of the programme and gives you information a page cannot.

At high volume it is worth stepping off the most common path. A programme that has to reach a dozen branches repeats itself, so the preparation cost is spread over the following batches. At that point it pays to plan the artwork in a basic version and an extended version, to settle on one file format and to keep one set of colours. All of that is visible on the project page before the first question about price.

Do not forget the sizes either. On clothing an order breaks down into a full set of sizes, and each size is a separate piece in production. With a single fit the number of pieces grows by a dozen per cent against the size most people take. Put the proportions in the brief and we will add the size reserve and count it in the quote.

The practical conclusion is simple: the matrix is there to discard variants, not to force one choice. Work through it by material, check the volume, then the deadline, then the price. Usually one or two sensible paths remain and the choice becomes obvious. If three remain, write to us with the numbers you have and we will price them in a single answer.

Decoration methods in brief

The matrix shows every technique separately on every product. Here is the short version: what the method is, which material it handles best, at what volume it makes sense and where it stops. The exact thresholds are on the page for the combination, because one and the same technique behaves differently on a t-shirt than on a mug.

Screen printing

The cheapest method at high volume and the most predictable in colour. It takes a vector file, separates it by colour and makes a separate screen for each colour, so the number of colours is also the number of preparation costs. It needs a flat panel, because the screen transfers ink through a flat carrier. A typical volume is 100 units per colour, and 50 is enough with a single colour. It survives dozens of washes, and because preparation is a fixed cost, the unit price falls further at a few thousand units than with any other method.

Direct to garment printing

A method with no preparation: we print a raster file whole, with no limit on colour, so a logo with a gradient, a photograph or many colours comes out at no extra charge. In exchange it needs a light base, and it takes longer per unit, so at high volume it costs more than screen printing. It works well in small runs, for samples, and for projects that have to be done quickly, sometimes down to a single piece.

Heat transfer

An indirect technique that works on many materials, including synthetic fabrics where screen printing is weak. We print onto a film, press it onto the item and the film comes away. At small volumes one film serves many sizes, which lowers the cost. The limits are the thickness of the transfer, which can be felt under the finger on shirts worn under a jacket, and durability with frequent washing at high temperature.

Embroidery

The highest unit price and the highest durability. The logo is stitched, so it does not fade, does not crack and looks the same after a hundred washes. It has limits you need to know before sending the file: the minimum stitch width is four millimetres, and the number of thread colours raises the price straight away. It works on polos, sweatshirts and caps, where the logo is small and highly visible.

Sublimation

The technique for polyester, including recycled polyester. The dye enters the structure of the fibre, so the print is part of the material rather than a layer on top. There is no limit on the number of colours, an all-over print is possible, and durability on polyester clothing is very good. It does not work on cotton, and that is the most common reason an order goes wrong.

UV printing

Light-cured ink on hard surfaces: memory sticks, power banks, cards, metal items. There is no colour limit and no form to prepare, and durability is very high, because the image stays in the coating. The limit is geometry: the printed item must have a flat or slightly curved surface, and deep recesses stay unprinted.

Laser engraving

A durable and elegant method, limited to one colour. It works on metal, wood, bamboo, glass and leather. It looks like premium branding, and the mark does not wear off in the wash, because physically there is nothing on the surface to wear off. The downside is the power involved, which can distort thin metals, so state the material thickness when asking for a price.

Pad printing

Spot printing on small, shaped items: pens, keyboards, bottles, keyrings. One colour, a low cost at small volumes, a good fit for gadgets where the logo occupies a small area. The limit is the print field, which has to be flat or slightly convex, and at high volume the method gives way to UV printing.

Send the brief

Seven fields are enough: product, quantity, decoration, size, colour, deadline and delivery city. We answer within one working day from Warsaw.