Printer to printer (in town relationships)

[Dottonedan]

I am in a small town but it's getting heavily populated with small printers. Garage shops (like mine).  But they all try to avoid conversations with each other and get a little squirrelly when you approach them.


One guy moved his shop into my town, I tipped him off on a nice building...I know him well through another association. We are casual acquaintances in that other association. I thought this would open the gates to talk shop with him when he started his print shop (that I tipped him off on a space for).  He was a tad stand off-ish at that time but I just assumed that was a shy personality.


He moved, to about 7 houses down from me just after starting his shop a few year ago. I pass his house about every other day and waive. He waives back and smiles.


So, he shuts his print shop down and he and his partner start into some other business.  He's got new and used equipment. I inquire about it to see if I can purchase some of it. He tells me he's only selling it in one package. Not breaking it up. Even at that time, he didn't really have a price in mind (or wouldn't tell me what it was). I senses some hesitancy.


Long story short,  a year later, (today),  I get an email from another local printer (the only one in town that is interested in talking to me and uses me for some seps) asking me if I know this guy and if he's ok to deal with.  I says yeah, he's a good guy.  (He is).


So, this guy that shut down who lives down the street is apparently going to break it up....but never contacted me on any of the days I see him as I pass.  If we get along and he's been real nice,  why hide that from me? Why not ask me if I want any?  Strange.  People are strange.


Just thought I'd complain to those who understand.

[jasonl]

EXACTLY the same thing just happened in my town!

[RICK STEFANICK]

down here its stupid like competetive. they all talk about each other behind there backs. everyone thinks they are the best of the best. I had one guy calling marketing companys telling them i was using couterfeit money and a bunch of other crap.  Its even apparent at a local tshirt supplier. everytime i pick up for a new customer they act like im taking food out of another guys mouth. hey we dont steal customers we lose them for a variety of reasons. the guys around here think they own this town. they consider customers theirs. they own them. how could you print for MY customer i have had said to me.We are the only guys around here running waterbase and discharge and that with alot of referals has really stirred things up. Its unfortunate because i would love to have relationships with other local shops.

[balloonguy]

That is very strange. I have a printer that is walking distance from. We are always bouncing images off each other. We share ink, emulsion, screens...
It is better to have friendly competition than enemies.
Matt

[GraphicDisorder]

Just last week we had a big flood in town.  Local screen printer got a lot of water in her building.  She had liked my facebook page and we had bounced a few friendly messages back and forth but never met her.  Anyway she got flooded so we decided to show up next day and offer her any help we could.  Even told her to bring her screens and shirts to the shop and we would let her use our auto.  She ended up getting through, but she was super thankful and even made a post on her facebook where she has hundreds of clients seeing that. 

I feel like if I am in a bind she will extend help to us if she can.  So for us it was a win win situation. 

Other times I have called local printers if I needed a extra shirt that was shorted or something on a order.  I got the "who are you" and when I would tell them they would be like "oh" we dont have any.  Clearly up tight scared people.  If I wanted their customers I could get them, so I dont understand what reason it would be to be an ass. 

[JayzTeez]

I actually talk to one of my competitors but the other one they are too good to talk to ya.  the our crap don't stink type place.

[Denis Kolar]

Mark (Sparkie), Sweets, Pierre and me get along just fine.

There is plenty of work for all of us out there. Pierre helped me starting up and I went there to help him when he was short on people.
Roger knows that he can call me if he need any pool lessons   and/or any other help. I have met Mark once on ISS show, but went back and fort few time via PM's and emails with trying to help each other.
I say that it is always better to have a friend for a competitor than an enemy.

[sweetts]

Funny this came up I was just talking about this. I have had nothing but good stuff from local printers. Only one Guy was really rude when I started almost mean but this year he had issues with his printer I offered to help out. He agreed then later said never mind I think he is a bit shady but I was willing to help if I could. I act like I do and will help who ever I can. People have helped me so much its wrong not to. I really think those people just don't get it. I even ask my customers why they are not using their old printer. I don't try to take anyone's customers, there are billions of people on this planet and they all wear shirts so why fight over them.

Sent  from samsung gem(the worst smart phone ever)

[Gilligan]

Yeah, I have a couple of guys locally that bend over backwards to help me out and help me learn.

Then there is another shop that is COMPLETELY closed doors.  When they were contract embroidering for me I would walk in the back no problem (Hell, they'd send me back there if I needed a blank shirt).  Then when I got my big ol' single head PR-650 and asked about stabilizer to use on a Nike Polo... they shut it down.  I was told I wasn't allowed to go back there any longer and she flat out told me they would not help me out with what stabilizer to use on what material because "she spent too much money going to all these conventions to learn this stuff".  The other embroidery shop not only told me what I needed but tried to GIVE me some stabilizer for the job.  I just got a small sample so I would know what to get exactly but didn't want to take any of his supplies, I would just order my own.

The other guys that are helpful often laugh and try to kick me in the arse to just buy gear and start making money.  One has an idea for something though he hasn't completely told me what yet that he things we can fabricate and make money together with.  He wants to bounce ideas off of me about it and have me help fabricate it.  He's also sewn some work for me for free, and I in return have done computer work for him for free.

I have another shop that I've stopped in on to introduce myself and such... they seemed a bit stand-off'ish but did  come around a bit... didn't invite me in the back or anything but whatever (no auto so I wasn't really that interested anyway   ).

I made a delivery to a place next to a shop in a town about 30 mins away... I smelled the tale tale smells of a print shop as well as the sounds of an auto and ventured over there and hung out.  They were a little leery at first but I don't blame them as it was odd for me to just pop into their production area and start talking shop with them.  Warmed up in no time, they only checked to make sure I wasn't head hunting their printer... but they had NO need to worry about that. LOL  I spoke with the owner about an embroidery machine that was in storage and came back another day to check it out and spent another couple of hours hanging out with the print crew.

[Mr Tees!!]

...the place that I was last employed by is like that. They recently lost their print manager that went to work for a supply company, in a different territory. When their rep for said supply company showed up, they told him that they werent gonna buy from them, he wasnt welcome there anymore and threw him out! I know of three ex employees from there (myself included) that have gone on to start our own shops, and they badmouthed us all. To this day, I have not pursued ONE customer of theirs, but they still claim so. Now have I had some of them show up here looking for better pricing, service etc? You betcha!

...Id also like to point out that being friendly to the competition has actually been profitable for us. I have at least three small manual shops here that send me most any job that is a high quantity, or too complex for their skill level. I make money, they make money, and everyone is happy. We all borrow the occasional tee, quart of ink, pallet, etc from each other...and it saves our ass sometimes. Last week, I hurt my back BADLY, and couldnt run a big job that was due. I called a friends shop, he ran them for me and charged me a little less than what I was charging my customer (his prices are normally higher than mine). He also loaned me one of his employees for the week that has been printing the big jobs here until my back recovers.

...yknow, thats what makes the forums such a wonderful resource. Technically, we are ALL in competition with one another here. But we can put that aside and talk shop, complain about the common crap we all deal with, and help each other out. VIVA TSB!

( whoa, enough happy hippy amphibian talk, we already have one of those here.... )

[Dottonedan]

The biggest company here in town is not a good one and not that big. Just does a bunch of business.
He sells asi and prints signs/banners etc.


He and his wife don't talk to me. I once had an auto and we talked about sharing it while it would be stored in his shop.  Wife said no deal as she thought I might come in and steel everything. Oh bother.  It was better that way anyways. So, now, they don't even have time to chit chat. Cold grouchy people.  They did some sad 4 color process. Every photo looking art gets for color process for them and it's bullet proof.  He showed me when I first spoke to him. I was surprised how he could print 4 color process and get the dots to be raised of the shirt like that. It was as if he printed cmyk using High Density inks with no blending. Just hard dot next to hard dot.  Funny stuff. He was proud of it tho.  Amateurs. 

[Sbrem]

You know Dan, you do unto others as you would have them do unto you, it just doesn't always work... forgive and forget, but it does make one wonder.

Steve

 I had a "genius" show me his 4CP one time, honest to God it looked like a one color navy ink. He told he could teach us to do that

[Dottonedan]

( whoa, enough happy hippy amphibian talk, we already have one of those here....  )

HA!  Ask him if he gives rebates. rebates.

[Parker 1]

I only speak with 1 or 2 of the local shops (out of app. 36) on a regular basis.  Sad to say some have stated that they are going to put everyone else out of buisiness, bla, bla, bla.  I will still lend anyone a shirt, ink, emulsion, thread ect... and never give it a second thought.  What I will not do is give them art work, Digitizing or Color seps.  I also will not do Sep. for them.  Although I have given them contact info for artist that will help them out.  Some are even on this forum.

 

[Gilligan]

I'm in the fortunate business of being the "new kid on the block" and not having much of a business it would be rather crass of me to tell someone that is clearly "successful" how to run their shop.  So if they coat 1:1 and have ZERO EOM, I'm not one to tell them how that is "wrong" as I'm am the one that is hanging out in their shop learning things and they didn't come to me for advice.

Now, if he were to ever actually ask me, then by all means I'd give my opinion (I think everyone here knows that LOL ).

I'm not at all being "stingy" with my knowledge, I just think it's rude to tell someone how to run their business when they have more business than I do.  I say "fortunate" because I know how to get the "upper hand" in quality due to the knowledge learned here and at Alan's shop and I will use that to help set myself apart without having to "directly" compete with them.