Screen Printing Shop
The original custom merch machine — and it still prints money
Screen printing is a $4.6B US industry that sits at the intersection of manufacturing and creative services. A local shop produces custom apparel (t-shirts, hoodies, hats) for sports teams, schools, events, restaurants, and corporate clients. What's surprising: margins are extraordinary. A shirt bought blank for $3–$5 sells for $15–$35 printed. Established shops doing $500K–$2M in revenue routinely command 2.5–3.5x SDE multiples. The business is sticky — customers with recurring event or uniform needs come back every season, and switching costs are real (artwork approvals, turnaround relationships).
Avg Revenue
$600K
Profit Margin
32%
Acquisition Multiple
2x - 3.5x
Startup Cost
$30K - $150K
Difficulty
3/5
How It Works
Shops use manual or automatic screen printing presses (plus embroidery machines) to print designs on blank apparel. Orders come from direct retail walk-ins, online quote forms, and repeat B2B clients (schools, restaurants, gyms, corporate offices). Revenue peaks around school seasons, summer events, and the fall sports season. Shops charging a setup fee per color plus a per-unit price create high gross margins on volume runs.
Revenue Range
Pros
- +Exceptional markup: blank shirts cost $3–5, sell printed for $15–35+
- +Recurring B2B customers (school teams, restaurants, corporate uniform programs)
- +Acquisition upside: add embroidery, DTF printing, or online order portal to existing shop
- +Equipment is durable — a used press from 2010 still runs
- +Strong acquisition market from roll-ups consolidating local shops
Cons
- -Highly seasonal revenue spikes (spring sports, summer events, fall school)
- -Art setup time and order management software create operational complexity
- -Competition from online-only DTG (direct-to-garment) providers squeezes some segments
- -Color matching and print quality require trained operators
Best For
Buyers who want a manufacturing/creative hybrid with strong repeat B2B revenue and real asset value
Operating Costs
Major costs: blank inventory (largest COGS), ink/screen materials, equipment maintenance, 2–4 employees, and facility lease. Owner-operated shops run highest margins.
Where to Buy
Screen printing and custom apparel shops listed for sale nationwide
Printing and apparel businesses available for acquisition
Print shop valuation benchmarks: SDE multiples run 2.6x–3.26x
Quick Facts
- Category
- physical
- Difficulty
- 3/5
- Acquisition Price
- $1.2M - $2.1M
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BizBite.io
Screen Printing Shop
$600K/yr • 32% margins • 2x–3.5x multiple
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