My reason of conducting this short interview is to get the answer of why people keep choosing CafePress despite many new similar companies offering "open you free online shop". The conversation itself has open my eyes little bit about Cafepress, these are the lines
1) Tell me a little bit about Detour Designables?? What's inspired you to start T-shirt label despite the saturated market?
Detour Designables was founded by 2 graphic designers in Utah on May 5, 2005. Yup, Cinco de Mayo. We decided to start an online shirt company after reading a great article on the internet about how an online t-shirt business can increase your profits. Our graphic design business was called Detour Design, so naturally we called our t-shirt shop Detour Designables. We weren't really concerned about the saturated t-shirt market at the time. We were confident that we would be able to make our shop and designs different enough that we would stand out.
2) Why did you choose CafePress over other companies (if there was any)?
There were a few reasons why we chose CafePress. First, their site looked the best. We are graphic designers, how something looks is important. Second, it was easy to use. There wasn't anything confusing about how anything worked. Third and probably most important was that it was free to try. We tried their free basic shop and in a matter of a couple weeks we had enough sales to know that we needed to go premium. And actually, at the time, CafePress was the only one we actually had heard about!
3) So how is it going so far with Cafepress? Have your sales target achieved?
So far, we are having a blast. It's what we love to do. We are happy with the many changes that CafePress has made since we started in 2005. We have been lucky to work closely with some of the members of the CafePress team and know that they listen to their shopkeepers. The community is really what makes CafePress great. The article we read back in 2005 said that some companies make an extra $3,500 a month selling shirts online. We haven't reached that yet, but we are getting closer every year.
4) CafePress says there are 2.5 million members/partners like Detour Designables. Have you ever felt being intimidated by, let say, general perception as another "CafePress store"?
We love the competition. 2.5 million members/partners are also potential buyers. From the beginning we have always separated ourselves from the crowd. We are Detour, we like to take the different way. Our website is totally customized. We though about how and where everything should be as we built it. No cookie cutter templates for us, thanks. Another reason we stand out is our shirt designs. Most of our designs are one of a kind. Anybody can cobble a quick idea together and make a t-shirt. Being graphic designers, however, we have the skills and tools to make some outstanding designs.
5) Last question, what's your future plan for Detour Designables?
Right now we plan to stay with CafePressCafepress, they have been good to us. We love the convenience. We will definitely continue to add new designs to our shop often. Our plan is to have many different specialized shops, instead of one giant store. For example, we have seen an increase in sales for our TV inspired shirts. Because of that, last month we created a new shop for our called TV Teez at www.tvteez.com. We are just beginning. Detour Designables is here to stay.
** End of conversation, thanks Juna**
There few point I can make from this interview; CafePress was in the market long before other similar companies. Is it Cafepress that created booming of onsite-printing T-shirt service? Or vice versa? My opinion mixed. After all, as we heard from Juna, it’s the “service” and "community" that makes Detour Designables stay happily for two years, or even longer, with CafePress. I've gotten the lesson, do you? [visit Detour Designables]
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source & image: detourdesignables.com
continue reading: Testing out Spreadshirt Beta.../ T-shirt Subscription Gets.../ Happy 1st Birthday,.../Interactive T-shirt Gallery.../
6 comments:
As a long-time Cafepress shopkeepers I've always been curious about companies offering a similar solution. Cafepress has always stood out for many reasons, not the least of which is their great marketplace directoy, which helps drive sales to your shop. They even buy ads from Google which drives even more sales to shopkeepers.
thanks for your input, t-shirt blog. similar solution such as comboutique, zazzle, shirtcity, spreadshirt, printfection, err... I think that's all I know.
I also like to find if there's someong doing one by one comparison, should be great for starter guide, isn't it? =)
Just wanted to makes sure that I said thanks. I have to say thanks to my savior. I need to thank my family, my wife for being so supportive. Big thanks to my moms. Thanks to all the fans, Cafepress, Tshirt Island. We wouldn't have this post without all of you.
You guys rock.
Thanks to you too Juna, keep the good work ;)
Nice Interview, Good job! Really enjoy reading your blog!
http://www.tshirtdujour.com
Thanks, Clement :)
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