I think you’ll agree with me when I say:
Ready-made products and custom-made products look more or less the same. Why the supplier is keep asking me to decide which should I choose?
Well, it turns out, they are actually not the same.
In fact, they are very much different in terms of how they’re manufactured and how they’re priced.
Let’s figure out which suits you the best now.
- What are ready-made products? (Pros and Cons)
- What is custom-made products? (Pros and Cons)
- The 4 ultimate factors that help you to decide which one is good for you.
1. What are ready-made products?
Ready-made products is mass-produced finished products of the digital printing industry. They are not custom-made, but rather have a standardized color, paper, and offset printing design.
For example, a series of standardized polo tee has been printed in mass production, so we always have the supplies ready from our side.
Pros:
The cost is relatively low as it has been produced massively by the printing industry.
Production lead time is shorter (4- 10 days) compared to the process of custom-made (14- 21 days) depending upon the quantity of product.
Cons:
The fitting and print design is fixed, In other words, you can only choose from the standardized fitting, fabric color/material, and print design.
2. What is custom-made products?
Custom-made means customization.
It can be done according to your preference from A to Z.
For example, as a streetwear brand manager, you may want to consider adding hem tag, sewing your own label, having a specific fitting, or having an overlapping printing design from front to back on your streetwear product.
As such, it is a type of custom made process.
Pros:
- You can customize the fitting.
- Custom-made products have a larger print area compared to ready-made products.
- You’ll be able to customize your preferred fabric color & print design on it.
- You have more freedom to choose the print colors, quality of the print, print area, fabric design, and the size you want in it.
Cons:
- Higher costing* as it involves a lot more manufacturing/printing process.
- Longer production lead time (2 – 4 workdays).
*Depends on quantity, the cost will be reduced if it’s a bulk order, e.g. more than 500 pcs.
Well, now you can differentiate ready-made vs. custom-made.
It’s time to decide which you should choose.
Here are the factors that could help you in making a decision, let’s have a look.
3. The 4 ultimate factors that help you to decide which one is good for you
a) The budget
If you have a tight budget, it’s preferable that you take the ready-made option.
Why?
Due to its mass production nature, the cost of ready-made clothing is relatively low compared to custom made.
Unless you are ordering more than 500 pcs, then the cost of custom-made does not vary much here.
b) The print design and material that you are looking for
If you are looking for a basic design, then go for ready-made.
If you have lots of ideas for the design and fitting requirement (e.g. overlapping design, an extra-large size, curvy bottom, putting brand label…), then custom-made is the answer.
On top of that, if you are looking for more freedom of choice in terms of print material, the custom-made options will satisfy this preference as well.
c) The estimated quantity
If you’re ordering less than 50 pcs, it’s recommended to go for custom-made. This will reduce your cost and speed up the production lead time.
If it’s more than 50 pcs, you may consider taking custom-made.
d) The estimated time of delivery
If you’re in a rushing mode, no doubt, ready-made is your best friend.
If you’re planning to go for custom-made, make sure you plan ahead and allow some slack time for test and trial.
Now you know what to consider when deciding between ready-made and custom-made.
Both have their strength and limitation.
But one thing for sure, choose the one that fits your need best.
Contact us and let us assist you now!
Experienced in working with individuals, schools, corporates, and other brands you will be able to talk to our experienced and resourceful digital printing team.
