What is Print on Demand? A Complete Guide for Creatives & Entrepreneurs

Remember the days when selling custom merch meant committing to a hundred units and crossing your fingers? Print on demand does away with all that. Products are only printed when someone actually orders them, no bulk runs, no inventory, no garage full of tees you're quietly gifting to relatives.

Here's how it works in practice. A customer orders from your store online. That order goes straight to your print partner, who prints, packages and ships the item directly to them. You don't even need to touch the product at any point. And what can you sell? Pretty much everything! Tees, hoodies, tote bags, caps, jerseys and a whole lot more.

The reason print on demand has become so popular with creators, small brands, and side hustlers comes down to accessibility. You don't need a massive budget, a storage unit, or a logistics operation. You just need a great idea paired with a strong strategy and a reliable print partner. It's one of the few business models where the main barrier to entry is creativity rather than cashflow. 

It all starts with an idea: How to Start a Print on Demand Business & Build Your Brand

Chances are you're here because you already have an idea. Perhaps you're a designer, podcaster or wanting to sell merch for a good cause. If you haven't yet landed on what you want your store to be then choosing what type of dropshipping store you’re creating is important

It’s time to brainstorm and think about a specific audience/purpose for your dropshipping store . For example, you could create funny/touching/cheeky birthday apparel or you could create gifts for passionate dog owners of Hungarian Vizslas (is that niche enough?). What about a store dedicated to people obsessed with fishing? Obsessed with surfing? Music-obsessed Swifties who want a different Taylor Swift t-shirt to wear every day of the week? The opportunities are limitless.

Think about your specific target audience and research online for other competitors and what they are charging for their apparel and accessories. Identify any gaps in the market - what are other stores doing well? What do they not have on their site that you could offer? 

It’s easy to sign up and create a dropshipping store, but the people who succeed and make the most revenue are those that treat it like a real business and hustle from day one. The creators who succeed are posting on social media everyday, and not just screen shots of mock-ups or design ideas from a webpage. We have creators vlogging, talking to camera, modelling their own tees and posting reels everyday. Consistency is key!

The Logistics: How to Create your Sustainable Print on Demand Business

Once you’ve landed on your niche and validated your idea, it’s time to set up the foundations of your print on demand business properly. Start by figuring out whether you need an ABN (in most cases, if you’re operating as a sole trader in Australia, you will) and get that sorted early via the official government site. Having this in place means you can legally operate, set up payment systems, and work with suppliers without friction down the line. 

Next, choose a business name that reflects your niche and feels distinctive enough to stand out. It should hint at what you sell or who it’s for, while still giving you room to grow. Before locking it in, check that the domain is available and that you can secure consistent social handles across platforms like Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. Once you have your domain secured, set up a dedicated business email to link your social accounts to. Consistency here makes a big difference when customers try to find or remember your brand.

Building a brand identity doesn't have to be complicated, but it does have to be intentional. Here's what to think about:

• Logo: Keep it simple and versatile. It should work at small sizes, in one colour, and across different backgrounds.
• Colour palette: Choose two or three colours and stick to them. Consistency across your store, packaging, and social channels is what makes a brand feel considered rather than cobbled together.
• Typography: Choose one or two fonts and use them consistently. Your font choices say a lot about your brand's personality before a customer reads a single word.
• Tone of voice: Decide early whether your brand is playful, straight-talking, premium, or something else, and keep it consistent across your product descriptions, social posts, and customer communications.
• Visual style: Think about the overall aesthetic of your imagery and social content. A consistent visual style makes your brand instantly recognisable across channels.
• Brand story: Why does your store exist? A clear, genuine reason for being makes your brand more relatable and memorable than one that feels purely transactional.
• Values: What does your brand stand for? Even small brands benefit from having a clear point of view, whether that's sustainability, community, humour, or craftsmanship.

You don't need to have all of this perfectly figured out before you launch, but the more intentional you are from the start, the less work you'll have to undo later.

How To Select Your Fulfilment Partner? 

Choosing your print partner is one of the most important decisions you'll make as a POD business owner, so it's worth taking the time to get it right. Your print partner affects everything from the types of products you can offer to print quality, turnaround times, and shipping reliability, and all of those factors flow directly through to your customer experience and your brand's reputation. A reliable partner helps you scale smoothly and confidently. The wrong one leads to delays, inconsistent quality, and the kind of customer complaints that are hard to recover from.

When evaluating potential partners, look beyond price. Consider the range of products and decoration methods they offer, their production turnaround times, how they handle errors or reprints, and whether they integrate with your chosen platform. If you're based in Australia or selling to Australian customers, working with a local print partner also means faster shipping times and easier communication if something goes wrong.

How To Price My Print on Demand Store

Before you set a single price, take the time to fully understand your cost structure. Your costs will typically include:

• Blank garment cost: The base cost of the product before any printing or decoration.
• Decoration cost: This varies depending on the method. Digital Printing, DTF, and embroidery can be priced differently, so factor in the specific method you're using for each product.
• Platform and transaction fees: Shopify and sometimes fulfillment platforms take a cut, so make sure this is accounted for in your margin.
• Shipping costs: Whether you're absorbing this or passing it on to the customer, it needs to be in the calculation.
• Packaging and returns: Easy to overlook, but worth factoring in from the start.
• Marketing spend: If you're running ads or paying for promotions, that's a business cost too.
• Your time: Often the most underestimated cost of all.

Knowing your true costs upfront will save you a lot of headaches later.

Pricing is where a lot of new POD businesses get it wrong. Underpricing is a common early mistake, usually driven by fear of not making sales. But customers buying custom or branded products expect to pay a premium, particularly when your designs, branding, and positioning are strong. The goal isn't just to cover your cost of goods, it's to run a sustainable business. That means factoring in everything above, not just the product itself.

A good starting point is to research comparable products in your niche to understand the market range, then position yourself accordingly and build in a healthy margin. Price with confidence. A well-priced product from a brand that looks the part will always outperform a cheap product from a store that doesn't.

The Tech Side: How to Create the actual Print on Demand Store?

Once your business foundations are in place, the next step is choosing where your store will actually live. There are a few popular ecommerce platforms to consider, each with their own strengths depending on how much control, flexibility and simplicity you’re after. The three most common options for print on demand are Shopify, Etsy and WooCommerce.

Should you use Etsy for your Print on Demand Store?

Etsy is a great starting point for beginners who want access to an existing audience. It’s a marketplace, so people are already browsing and searching for products like yours. This can make it easier to get initial traction without needing to drive all your own traffic. The trade-off, however, is that you have less control over your branding, you’re competing directly with similar sellers on the same platform, and fees can add up over time.

✅ Built-in audience ✅ Low barrier to entry ❌ Limited branding control ❌ High competition on platform ❌ Fees add up

Should you use WooCommerce for your Print on Demand Store? 

WooCommerce offers a high level of flexibility and control, especially if you’re already familiar with WordPress. It’s highly customisable and can be cost-effective, but it does require more hands-on setup and ongoing management. For many people starting out, it can feel a bit more technical compared to other options.

✅ Highly flexible and customisable ✅ Cost-effective ❌ More technical setup and ongoing management ❌ Not the most beginner-friendly option

Should you use Shopify for your Print on Demand Store?

For usShopify is the go-to choice. It strikes a balance between ease of use and full control over your brand and storefront. Unlike marketplaces, you own the customer experience from start to finish, which is crucial when you’re building a long-term brand rather than just making one-off sales. What makes Shopify particularly well-suited to print on demand is how simple it makes managing products and orders. You can easily upload designs, organise product variants (sizes, colours, styles), and keep everything clean and structured as your catalogue grows. It also has a huge app ecosystem, meaning you can plug in tools for marketing, reviews, upsells and, importantly, seamless integrations with print partners. This allows orders to flow automatically from your store to your print provider, who then handles production and shipping behind the scenes.

Another big advantage is that you don’t need to be technical to get started. Shopify is designed for non-developers, with drag-and-drop themes (fun!), simple navigation and plenty of templates to get your store looking polished quickly. You can have a professional-looking storefront live without writing a single line of code (yay).

✅ Full control over branding and customer experience ✅ Easy to use, no technical experience required ✅ Huge app ecosystem ✅ Seamless print partner integrations ✅ Scales with your business ❌ Monthly subscription cost ❌ You're responsible for driving your own traffic

In short, while all three platforms have their place, Shopify is often the best fit for print on demand sellers who want to build a strong, scalable brand with full control over how their products are presented and sold - and we at The Print Bar love Shopify.

How to Link your On Demand Store to a Fulfilment Partner

Once your Shopify store is set up, the next step is connecting it to your print partner so that orders flow through automatically. With The Print Bar, the process is straightforward. Here's how to get it done:

Link Shopify to The Print Bar Partner Portal:

1. Create a Print Bar account at theprint bar.com.au if you haven't already.
2. Log in to your account and select "Partner with Us Today" to get started.
3. Update your billing details on your POD store so you're ready to go when orders start coming in.
4. Head to Shopify and click on the "Apps" tab in the left hand column.
5. Search for "Print Bar on Demand" and install the app.
6. Enter your store URL in the specified field.
7. Copy your linking passcode from your Print Bar account and paste it into the specified area in Shopify.
8. Enter your store name and address to complete the setup.
9. Start building your range. Browse the product catalogue, upload your designs, set your prices, and publish.

Once connected, any order placed in your Shopify store will automatically be sent through to The Print Bar for production and fulfilment. No manual processing, no chasing up jobs — it just runs in the background while you focus on growing your store.

How to Create Print on Demand Designs

To build on this, it’s important to understand how to actually prepare your designs so they print correctly and look great on the final product. When it comes to file setup, PNG is the preferred format for most print on demand products, especially when you’re working with transparent backgrounds (so your design sits cleanly on the garment without a white box around it). You’ll also want to make sure your artwork is high resolution, typically at least 300 DPI at the size you intend to print. Low-resolution files might look fine on screen, but they can appear blurry or pixelated once printed, which is one of the quickest ways to ruin an otherwise great design.

If you don’t have design experience or access to software like Photoshop, don’t stress. The Print Bar offers an easy-to-use online design tool that’s perfect for creating simple, effective designs. This is especially handy for text-based graphics, logo placements, or quick merch ideas. You can experiment with fonts, layouts and positioning directly in the tool, without needing any advanced skills. We also have dedicated a blog [link] listing some of our favourite graphic designers that you can reach out to. Great designs = great sales.

If you already have artwork ready to go, the process is even simpler. You can upload your files directly into The Print Bar’s Partner Portal when creating your products. From there, you’ll position your design on the garment, select your sizes and colour variants, and prepare it for syncing to your store.

Here are the exact instructions on how to create merch in The Partner Portal:

1. Head to the "Merch" tab in your POD store.
2. Click "Create New Merch" to get started.
3. Select your garment from the product catalogue. Browse by category to find the style that suits your brand.
4. Add your design and size it exactly how you'd like it to appear on the product.
5. Choose whether you need a rush order, then click "Create Merch" to confirm.

It’s also helpful to understand the different decoration methods available, as this can influence how your design should be created. At The Print Bar, common options include DTF (Direct to Film), DTG (Direct to Garment) and embroidery. DTF is a great all-rounder and works particularly well for bold, full-colour designs with lots of detail. DTG is ideal for softer prints and more intricate artwork, especially on cotton garments. Embroidery, on the other hand, is best suited to simpler, more structured designs like logos or small chest placements, giving a premium, textured finish.

The key takeaway is to keep things simple, clear and high quality. You don’t need to be a professional designer to get started, but taking a bit of extra time to prepare your files properly will make a huge difference to how your products turn out and how your brand is perceived.

Is Print on Demand Profitable?

The honest answer: it can be, but it’s not a “set and forget” goldmine. Compared to bulk printing, print on demand typically has thinner margins per item, because you’re paying for the convenience of no upfront stock, no storage, and no manual fulfillment. That means your profitability comes down to getting your pricing right and generating consistent sales volume over time.

Let’s break down a simple example. Say your blank t-shirt costs $10, your print cost is $8, and you factor in around $3 - $5 for platform and transaction fees through Shopify. That puts your total cost somewhere around $21 - $23 per shirt (excluding shipping, depending on how you structure it). If you retail that product for $45, you’re looking at a rough margin of $20+ per sale before marketing costs. That’s a healthy starting point, but it also shows why underpricing can quickly eat into your profits.

It’s also important to recognise that sales don’t happen overnight. Building traffic to your store takes time, whether that’s through social media, paid ads, or organic content. The stores that tend to succeed are the ones with a clear niche, strong and relevant designs, and consistent marketing efforts. It’s less about uploading hundreds of products and more about creating designs that genuinely connect with a specific audience. The upside is that print on demand is one of the lowest-risk ways to start a product-based business. You don’t need to invest thousands into inventory, and you can test ideas quickly without being stuck with unsold stock. That flexibility is incredibly valuable, especially when you’re still figuring out what resonates with your audience.

With The Print Bar’s seamless integration with Shopify, you can launch a store, upload your designs, and start selling without a big upfront commitment. If you’ve been sitting on an idea or waiting for the “right time” to start, this is a pretty good sign to give it a crack.

Print on demand is one of the most accessible ways to turn your creative ideas into a real business with low upfront cost, flexible design freedom and scalable profit potential. Whether you’re just starting out or expanding a creative brand, POD is a powerful way to bring your designs to market without risky inventory decisions.

Ready to start? Head over to our Print on Demand platform to launch your store today!

Got any questions? Our team is here to help. You can email us at sales@theprintbar.com or call us on (07) 3854 0608.