I need to make 100 t-shirts for my friend's band...

[Katherine Brengle]

and my head hurts.

I'm really excited to do it - I actually took the initiative and asked them if they were interested in having shirts to sell at their shows, and they were really excited about it.

The problem is, I'm not sure they understand the cost. I'm not doing it to make a huge profit, but even just at slightly over cost it's going to be a $300-400 project -- a lot cheaper than having a regular screenprinting company do them, but still.

How do you, if you sell your skills/work, work these things out with your customer? Especially if said customer is a friend?

Selling my work is a new frontier for me, and it's quite daunting. I also have a custom renaissance cloak request from another friend (this one understand the cost of materials and labor though, so that's fine) and I'm finding the dealing with friends+money dynamic a little stressful.

They want to sell the shirts for about $10 each so that more people will be able to buy them, and I'm all for that, but I need to make them understand (without causing a rift) that because I'm just an independent I can't front the cost and then take a commission per piece sold, kwim?

Anyway, any tips or suggestions on handling this would be greatly appreciated.

[Coyote_Bandit]

1. Ummmmm

Friends are friends and customers are customers. Try to mix the two and trouble easily arises.

Before doing anything explain the costs, time and skills involved in producing the product. When you explain the costs, come to an agreement regarding compensation for your time and effort. Insist on having the cost of materials paid up front before you do anything. And don't forget to figure some allowance for spoilage into those costs. After completing production insist on receiving the remainder of the balance due before releasing the product for sale. Worst thing that happens if you do this is you are not compensated for your time and skills and you have a hundred or so t-shirts. Terms of your agreement should be that you can sell the t-shirts if your customer does not pay the full balance due. And if you do original artwork you will want to reserve the rights to that as well.

[Katherine Brengle]

2. Thanks --

I did the math yesterday and told them the cost - I was right, they were very surprised, so it's good that I got it out there immediately.

Good advice on withholding/selling the shirts if for some reason they don't pay me.

And yeah, I don't think I'll do something like this for a friend again, not on this scale, it's just too stressful.

[Katherine Brengle]

3. Update:

I just received the first fifty shirts and I'm printing them tonight. The band paid for the shirts and some of the materials (I bought a few things I was planning to buy anyway so I don't count that as a financial loss).

Here are the samples I made for them a few days ago:

[Why Syzygy]

4. Love the

black on red. Will you be doing any red on black?

[Katherine Brengle]

5. Not this time around, but

I think it would be cool. I might try one for myself to see how it comes out.