Client wants to send me on tour for them...

[im_mcguire]

So here is the deal.  I got an email from one of my clients (A State Agency).  They want me to go on tour on behalf of them to sell shirts at their events.

I am in California, and this tour will run for 6-7 weeks, mostly weekends, possibly a few weekdays.

We will pre print the fronts of the shirts (about 10K shirts)

Here is the kicker, they want us to bring a vinyl plotter and heat press, so people can customize the back of the shirt with a 1 word phrase. 

I came up with a travel cost per hour, a daily minimum sales, set up cost, hotels per day, food, ect. that would be highly beneficial to us. 

Would any of you guys do this for a client?  Does it sound worth it?

[Sbrem]

You might want to be sure that the person asking has the authority to meet your demands... I would not do it myself, but maybe if considerably younger.

Steve

[im_mcguire]

This client does have that authority.  This agency is not afraid to spend.  I gave them CRAZY numbers, thinking that they would shy away from it, but they thought it was a fair price.  Also we get 50% of sales of the shirts on top of the printing of the shirts...

[3Deep]

I'm like Steve I wouldn't do it now but a younger me would do it and I could see it as a big opportunity for more sells in the future or at least put us in front of some different clients.

[Prince Art]

The two biggest things I'd be looking at:
1) how "safe" of an arrangement it really is (i.e., you definitely get the money, keep the client, & don't end up sued if something goes wrong part way through the tour. That sort of thing.)
2) can it really work logistically? (First thing that occurs to me: Do you have a crew member(s) that you trust and can spare for that long? When will their days off be? Are you going to work them 7 days a week all summer, or work without them during the week? If you plan to be that person (sorry, don't recall the size of your shop), can you really handle all other aspects of your business adequately while doing this?)

If everything can be figured out up front, including some contingency plans in case Plan A goes awry part way through, then sure, knock it out of the park. Doing out of the ordinary stuff sometimes makes you all the more the go-to guy, and and sometimes just makes life more interesting.

[Frog]

Interesting, a California state agency that is not afraid to spend "CRAZY" numbers while other parts of the state are crumbling due to no money, and facing more taxes on gasoline to keep our highways usable.
This is a budget item I would love to see.

Now, what if some citizens group puts the kibosh on this seemingly frivolous waste of money? Do you have good attorneys? The state's are on retainer.

[sweetts]

I did customizing on the spot, it was really hard to keep pace. If you could pre cut the sayings that would help a lot.

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[mk162]

Interesting, a California state agency that is not afraid to spend "CRAZY" numbers while other parts of the state are crumbling due to no money, and facing more taxes on gasoline to keep our highways usable.
This is a budget item I would love to see.

Now, what if some citizens group puts the kibosh on this seemingly frivolous waste of money? Do you have good attorneys? The state's are on retainer.

Show me any govt. that doesn't do the exact thing...Cali doesn't have a monopoly on poor money managers.

As for the on site stuff, what happens with the shirts that don't sell, or are those "pre-sold" and you are only billing for customization on site?  I would hate to see you only sell 1,500 shirts and get stuck with 8,500.

[im_mcguire]

Interesting, a California state agency that is not afraid to spend "CRAZY" numbers while other parts of the state are crumbling due to no money, and facing more taxes on gasoline to keep our highways usable.
This is a budget item I would love to see.

Now, what if some citizens group puts the kibosh on this seemingly frivolous waste of money? Do you have good attorneys? The state's are on retainer.

Without getting too specific.  This is a agency that is in charge of a privately funded client who we did a lot of work with over the last 3 years. They do everything from billboards you would see of of the highway to shirts to cups and promo items.  They span the gamut.  So I guess it technically isnt a "state job" just handled by a agency that works for the state.  It is a little confusing to me still??

[im_mcguire]

As for the on site stuff, what happens with the shirts that don't sell, or are those "pre-sold" and you are only billing for customization on site?  I would hate to see you only sell 1,500 shirts and get stuck with 8,500

They are pre paid as a printed garment to the client.  I take that inventory to the site, and the customer will create their "word / words" we make the vinyl, then press it and charge them accordingly.

[im_mcguire]

If everything can be figured out up front, including some contingency plans in case Plan A goes awry part way through, then sure, knock it out of the park. Doing out of the ordinary stuff sometimes makes you all the more the go-to guy, and and sometimes just makes life more interesting.

We have what we call a "Kill Fee" if things fall apart any time within this "job", we have a fee to charge for all of the work that will have gone into this project up to that point. 
This is an already agreed upon cost going into this.

The shirts, and printing of the shirts will already be billed as a regular job. 

[GraphicDisorder]

Can you afford to piss off all the normal customers you service in that time frame for what may be a 1 time deal customer?

If so, I would suspect you better price this in the 3-4x range that you'd normally make in that period. You will be gone from home. Your shop will look closed. This is how rumors start....and thats all if the deal goes well.

[Maxie]

If you don't mind the traveling sounds like a great way to make some money.

[XG Print]

Screw the cutter.....Do plastisol transfers....Cheaper, faster, and looks better.  I spent many of years traveling from one event to the next on the weekends...Made a boat load of money but when the kids came along I had to aim my printing business in a different direction.  Do I miss it? Sometimes when the money was great but weather and many unforeseen circumstances can effect your bottom line. Sounds like you have yourself a good deal just make sure expectations from both sides are clear.  Good Luck!!

[im_mcguire]

Screw the cutter.....Do plastisol transfers....Cheaper, faster, and looks better.  I spent many of years traveling from one event to the next on the weekends...Made a boat load of money but when the kids came along I had to aim my printing business in a different direction.  Do I miss it? Sometimes when the money was great but weather and many unforeseen circumstances can effect your bottom line. Sounds like you have yourself a good deal just make sure expectations from both sides are clear.  Good Luck!!

The thing is, the client wants the customer to be able to add a custom word or phrase of their choice... hence the vinyl plotter.