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A Blogging Break for Damage control…

Entrepreneurship
Posted by DT
Jul 22, 2006
(11 comments)

A warm welcome to you dear reader! If you have not already, why not subscribe to my RSS feed, or get my latest thoughts on Industrial Design in your Email Inbox for free?

Thanks for visiting and please keep in touch? ~ D.T.

OMG…since posting my iPoor Gestalt graphic concept on my blog, I have now come to know the effects of what is known as Viral Marketing. Besides being posted at Design Spotter, I had the concept covered in quite a few other design aggregators sites, as well as emails asking for coverage and most surprisingly people wanting to purchase it.

What started out as a fun little project and a means for my creative outlet could actually become a fun little entrepreneurship project that could amount to something. Just imagine, I had just wanted to print like 20-30 pieces and give them away to friends and family for Christmas! What ever the end result,the cost of my experience in the purest form of retailing will be priceless! I’m digging this.

But what’s not is that I now need to take a break from blogging for a couple of days for damage control and to actually figure out how to make this t-shirt a reality and get the stock back in!

Anyways, here I am an experience product designer, sometimes able to style award winning products, but most of the time able to navigate the trenches knee deep in the extreme technical complexities of manufacturing and mechanical engineering issues when I was asked on the phone:

T-Shirt Vendor: So Sir what kind of printing do you want?
Me: errh (struggling to not look stupid)
TSV: You know the graphic on your t-shirt?
Me: err…what about offset printing?
TSV: (Silence)
Me: *slaps head*, ok so what kind of printing process do you have?
TSV: oh, why not you send me your graphic and I’ll suggest to you?
Me: Right aawwway! *click*

So do stay tuned, I have quite a few things to do including re-designing the graphic as its going to be one color. Anyways I should, bar my baby son telling me otherwise, have the iPoor T-Shirt page up and running by the end of the weekend for your enjoyment!




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Comments

weisheng
Jul 23, 06 – 12:01 am

That’s great news! Have you thought of submitting the design to Threadless? May make a bigger impact there! Meanwhile, you could either try the local printing uncle or consider an online service. The only one I’m aware of is CafePress, but it seems it isn’t too renowned for quality.

Design Translator
Jul 23, 06 – 9:34 am

Wow, as usual you have been a great help! I will try out Threadless. Thanks alot! I really appreciate it.

I hate cafepress, their system is slow and placement positions very restricted. Also they refuse to print my design, cos they don’t want to piss off apple. I appealed and argued my case that this showcases apple love and design is the shape is a U, Circle and a Square nothing like a shape of the ipod which is a trademark. To me its free publicity for apple.

I felt after a few emails back and forth they are a business run by people who do not understand design, so i decided not to deal with them and i gave up eventually.

Now you mentioned that the quality is bad, honestly I am not surprised!

weisheng
Jul 23, 06 – 9:44 am

Yeah, I’ve read lots of complaints about CafePress, they’re probably not worth the trouble but I can’t think of any other online printers. You’re better off going to the printing uncle.

Regardless, submitting to Threadless is going to be good publicity, remember to include the URL to your entry :) Users there can be quite finicky but since the response to your design has been so good I think it’ll do well at Threadless. Give it a shot and let me know the URL if you submit your design!

Design Translator
Jul 23, 06 – 11:52 am

Haha,

In fact the discussion I had in my blog was with a printing “uncle”, he was very helpful. Offset printing is actually a printing process on paper not t-shirts!

Going online will be very useful as it helps me with all the downstream stuff like manufacturing and distrubution. Doing it myself I need to set everything up!

I’ll try to submit it tonight to Threadless as i’m still refining the design. I’m still wondering if the responses is truly good or am I deluding myself! ;)

BL
Jul 24, 06 – 2:12 am

Hi DT,

Yes, I want a free T-shirt for the IPoor.. I am a Mac fan.. heheheheh

Anyway, hope that all are well.

yours sincerely,
BL

nil sine labore
Jul 24, 06 – 11:49 am

Hey i saw a similar themed t-shirt by a designer selling his ipod stickers at the MAAD bazaar. cept his is in gold outline, very bling bling.

Design Translator
Jul 24, 06 – 12:28 pm

Hi BL,

For you special 1 beer for 1 t-shirt?

Hi nil sine labore,
Thats interesting, I’ve never seen it, can you describe it a little more?

nil sine labore
Jul 24, 06 – 10:03 pm

sure. It’s just a gold outline of a nano with its strap hanging from the neck portion of the t-shirt. No iPoor wording. Hah!

weisheng
Jul 25, 06 – 2:15 am

The Threadless link on your main page doesn’t lead to your submission? I’m interested to see the response to your design :) I’ll be voting for it!

Design Translator
Jul 27, 06 – 9:17 pm

Hi Weisheng,

I was all for submitting for Threadless untill I read their terms and conditions. One of which was I cannot reproduce it anywhere else until 90 days after the voting. Therefore I’ve decided against it.

But not to worry as I am confident that I can produce it here in the same quality!

weisheng
Jul 27, 06 – 9:54 pm

I’m sure you will, good luck with production! Maybe you should set up an email newsletter of sorts to keep people informed when it’s available. I’ll be ordering when it’s out!


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