To continue on with my ModPillows story, I have to address the obvious...the big black borders!
So what about those black borders?
So far the only downside to my new pillow store, is, unfortunately, the pillows themselves! Don't get me wrong, they are great soft pillows, they're a good size, they feel nice, the printing is nice, and I have some at home right now. I just am not a fan of the big black border I'm stuck with designing within. I'm doing my best to come up with designs that will look good within the confines of bold black borders, and I see my store as a starting point. But eventually I need to be able to expand my designs beyond these borders.
From my experiences with pillows and Cafepress, I've come to these conclusions:
1. Cafepress is the only place I've found where I can print and sell my own pillows on-demand.
2. They currently offer ONE style of pillow with black borders.
3. I'm guessing they aren't a huge seller for Cafepress (due to CP's lack of interest in my request for new pillow styles), and I know T-shirts are their biggest selling product. It is what they specialize in.
4. They may not sell well because Cafepress doesn't appeal to textile designers, and CP's pillows are best suited for printing T-shirt phrases and photographs (which don't typically sell well on pillows).
From these conclusions all I can say is that there needs to be another way. Another pillow design. More shapes, more styles, no borders. There is a market for this stuff! So I'll throw this business idea out there to any young, ambitious entrepreneurs:
If someone out there would create a print-on-demand website and service that focused on textile design, curtains, throw pillows, pillow cases, reversable pillow coverings, and maybe even sheets, placemats and cloth or paper napkins, you'd have me signing up before you can say "beta!" And I bet you'd attract a different type of designer.
Does anyone know of another print on demand pillow available? Is anyone out there willing to add them to their current line?
