The global custom t-shirt printing market size is expected to reach USD 6.9 billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 9.6% over the forecast period, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. Custom printed t-shirts are gaining wise popularity among companies and brands owing to their use for advertising, branding, showcase brand offerings, and increase brand visibility.

Companies all over the globe are using custom made shirts as an off-the-clock advertising tool. This advertising strategy involves less investment as compared to other forms of advertising such as hoardings and T.V. The entertainment industry has contributed significantly to the growth of customized t-shirt business. Logos, legendary dialogues/slogans of movies, and television series that become famous among the youth are most frequently printed on the shirts. Moreover, increasing disposable income of the consumers is acting as a driving factor for the custom t-shirt printing industry growth.

Customized t-shirts are printed using several techniques including screen print, digital print, and plot print. Screen printing technique uses a predesigned stencil to develop the print on the cloth and is one of the most popular techniques. Furthermore, this technique requires high use of labour, this technique has been observed to have high adoption in the Asia Pacific region owing to the availability of low cost labour.

Further Key findings from the study suggest:

  • Increasing use of customized t-shirts for the promotion of brand, company, movie, sports team or league, etc. is the major factor driving the market growth
  • The screen printing segment is anticipated to hold a substantial market share in 2019 owing to high color vibrancy provided by this technique
  • The digital printing segment is expected to register the highest CAGR over the forecast period owing to lesser time and efforts involved in the process
  • The graphic designed shirts segment held majority of the market share in 2019 owing to high demand for t-shirts with pre-printed graphics
  • Asia Pacific is expected to account for the highest share, followed by Europe, in 2019, owing to the presence of numerous market players in the region
  • The key players in the custom t-shirt printing market include Vistaprint B.V.; Threadbird LLC; Printful Inc.; CafePress, Inc.; and Blue Gecko (UK) Ltd.