Ordering
What goes wrong when ordering custom shirts for a group?
Six things derail group shirt orders, and five of them are decided before the artwork ever reaches a press: size collection, the art file, the deadline, the minimum, ink color on dark garments, and proof approval. None of them are hard problems. They are just the ones that quietly add a week to an order, and every one of them is fixable in the hour before you ask for a quote. The 24-piece screen print minimum and the 7-10 business days standard timeline are the two constraints worth knowing before you poll the group.
Last updated September 21, 2026 · Printed in Santa Fe Springs, CA · (562) 407-3800
Collect real sizes, from real people
The most common group-order failure is a size run built from a guess. Someone estimates "mostly mediums and larges" and the order comes back with a stack of smalls nobody wants and three people who cannot wear theirs. Poll every person by name, in writing, and let them pick from the actual size range of the garment you chose, including the extended sizes.
Two practical notes. Extended sizes from 2XL up carry a size upcharge on the blank, so a group that skews larger prices higher than a straight small-through-XL run; that is a catalog fact, not a surprise fee, and the calculator shows it. And order a small number of spares in the middle sizes if the group is likely to grow, because a reorder of five shirts prices very differently from five extra shirts on the original run.
Send an art file that can actually be printed
A logo pulled off a website is typically 72 DPI and a few hundred pixels wide, which is fine on a screen and unusable at print size. What screen printing and embroidery want is vector artwork (AI, EPS or SVG) or, failing that, a PNG or PSD at 300 DPI at the size it will actually print. Embroidery has an additional requirement: the design is converted into a stitch file first, and fine detail and small text do not survive that conversion the way they survive ink.
If all you have is a low-resolution file, say so early rather than hoping. Redrawing artwork is a normal part of the job and is much cheaper to schedule at quote time than to discover on the day the proof was supposed to go out.
Work backwards from the date, not forwards from today
Screen printing and embroidery run 7-10 business days as standard and can rush in 3-5 days; DTG and DTF run 5-7 business days standard and 2-3 days on rush. The important detail is where the clock starts: production begins after you approve the proof in writing, not when you first email us. A day spent waiting on a group decision about the back print is a day off the production window.
If there is a hard date, name it in the first message. It changes which method we recommend and which blanks we will quote, because an in-stock garment and an approved file are what make a short timeline real.
Know the minimum before you poll the group
Screen printing starts at 24 pieces per design and embroidery at 24. DTF transfers start at 12 and heat transfer vinyl at 6. DTG has no minimum, which makes it the route for a group of twelve or a set of one-off name shirts.
The count is per design, so splitting a group across two artwork variations can drop you under the line twice. If the group is near 24, it is usually cheaper to run one design for everyone than two designs for halves.
Color on dark garments, and the proof
Colors do not behave the same on a black shirt as on a white one. A dark garment needs a white underbase laid down first so the design colors read correctly, which affects both the look and the price. If the group has picked a navy shirt and a bright artwork, ask to see how the colors will actually sit before you commit.
That is what the proof is for. Free digital proof on every order; production starts only after your written approval. Circulate it to whoever has an opinion, collect the changes in one pass, and approve once. Group orders that go badly usually went through three rounds of one-person-at-a-time revisions, and each round costs a day.
Frequently asked
How should I collect sizes for a group order?
What artwork file do you need?
How long does a group order take?
What if our group is smaller than the minimum?
Can everyone have a different name or number on their shirt?
Do we have to approve the proof before you print?
Get your real number
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