Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris P.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Chris. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My degree is in psychology, and I worked social service jobs for several years, so selling shirts was never really part of the plan, but I’ve always been artistic, and I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart. My dad had a business right down the street from where my shop is and I’ve been hustling in some form or fashion since middle school.
A few years ago, I took a break from my professional career and started doing designs for a friend of mine who is a well-known screen printer. Over time I built my portfolio and skills up to a level that was getting my attention from all over the world. Before long, It went from charging $25 for a logo to having recording artists flying in to get custom work. Time magazine called me about a job we did. I did some super bowl shirts for one of my favorite teams. I think I had some work in a Chinese magazine at some point, but the language barrier made it hard to tell exactly what it was.
Initially, I was cool with just designing things for other people, but my friend was always pushing me to try and build something more; so being in the business and having the mentality I have, it was only a matter of time before I started to sell my own stuff. I taught myself how to build a website, invested the money I earned from my graphics into some equipment and started to build to the point where I could open up my own shop the neighborhood I grew up in. Now that I’ve reached that point, I’m just planning for the next phase of 713 Shirts’ growth.
Has it been a smooth road?
Nothing worth having ever comes easy, so of course, there have been bumps along the way, In order to build something sustainable, there has to be sacrificed in order to be able to reinvest in the business and help it grow.
There’s a lot of late nights and early mornings, but when you’re working for yourself it’s a labor of love. There’s always going to be people that want to hate or people that try and steal our designs, but stuff like that just shows me that we’re on the right path. I’ve never taken a class for anything related to this, so I’ve had to teach myself how to use design programs, build a website, repair equipment and much much more, and it hasn’t been easy, but after a few years of doing that, you come out on the other side with confidence in your abilities to adjust to any future issues that may arise.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the 713 Shirts story. Tell us more about the business.
I’ve been in the printing business for about five or six years now and I started the 713 shirts website about three years ago. After grinding it out online for a couple of years we were blessed to be able to open up our store at the end of 2016. We specialize in graphic design and direct to garment printing, but we also do other types of printing like screen prints and vinyl, and we do banners, stickers, and more.
Our graphics and creativity are probably the things that set us apart, but the shop itself is unlike any other place I’ve ever been to. Being the printer and the designer, I wanted to do something really unique with the shop. So my vision was to offer a custom retail experience to our customers where you can come in and select one of our many designs, pick a shirt color and style, and walk out with something completely original. So far it’s been really cool when our customers come in and embrace that.
We’re always dropping new designs, trying to stay current with whatever’s going on, and of course, we want to be affordable to everyone so we have a bunch of shirts for as low as $7.13. In addition to the shirts, we make some awesome stickers and recently launched our Sticker Slab line. Probably what I’m most proud of is the genuine love and respect that people have for our work. I try and do what I love, and when people embrace that, it’s a beautiful thing.
Where do you see your industry going over the next 5-10 years? Any big shifts, changes, trends, etc?
The fashion industry will probably be close to where it was 10-15 years ago by then if we assume that everything old is new again at some point. As far as the printing industry goes, they’ll probably be some advancements in technology that make my job as a printer easier, but people will always want custom items, so I don’t think that will change.
Artistic styles may change, but art will always exist, and as long as it does, so will people’s desire to see cool new takes on timeless themes.
Pricing:
- We have awesome shirts as low as $7.13
Contact Info:
- Address: 713 Shirts 8536 W Bellfort Houston, TX 77071
- Website: www.713shirts.com
- Phone: 281-501-1190
- Email: 713shirts@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/713shirts
- Facebook: facebook.com/713shirts
- Twitter: twitter.com/713shirts
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