91–100 of 112 posts
Threadless announced Artist Shops in 2015 and rolled them out to Threadless’s general community in early 2016. Artist Shops, still in existence, allow designers to sell items printed with any design (allowed by Threadless’s terms and conditions) directly to customers and receive royalties on each sale.... The shift to a more equitable royalties and rights model removed the gamification elements of Threadless that mad…
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isn't that the way the "American dream" works?
The American Dream is a middle class lifestyle. Post-World War II America saw a vibrant middle class. Post 9-11/Great Recession America has replaced its vibrant middle class with the ‘gig economy’
Prior to the Great Depression, 90%+ of the US population was independent workers.
It's been a very short period in human history where lifetime employment, sitting still in one job for 30+ years, became fashionable.
It only became fashionable when the US government saw an opening to conquer the world, but needed to insure they didn't drop the ball, and tried to institute workers rights and the like, in a very hacky way, at that.
There's really no reason it has to look at all like it has to live a fulfilling life of creative output.
The whole dream of acquiring a stash of capital to free oneself from the daily grind seems largely illusory to anyone under the age of 50, thanks to many other things but the gig economy (IMO, the gig economy itself being a reaction to shitty office life conditions; the people are saying FU to oatmeal cubes, and staring a screen, being hassled by coworkers to do their job for them.)
A modern hunting-gathering lifestyle has been shown to promote positive moods on life as well.
Perhaps the notion of corralling the masses into "problem solver" groups (corporations) focused on some billionaires "problems" (not enough billions) isn't a sustainable model given inherent features of human biology and desire for free agency.
If you think about it, it's really just paid servitude to a rich master. Not really the American notion of freedom given history.
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Why is it so surprising? From both the designer and shopper perspectives, the Old Way does seem better. With the Old Way: Designer: does N work to create a design and has X% chance of winning $2500. They focus on what they love (i.e. design) and can get a nice quick payout if they're good. This is even better than a lottery, because it has the same excitement, but talent is also a factor which is very motivating. The…
I totally agree, but I bet it changed because the Old Way is worse from the perspective of Threadless . Specifically, each contest needs to result in a shirt that they can sell more and more of in order to maintain growth. That pushes you toward a bland, inoffensive, mass-market design. They think they can ultimately maximize profits by doing the etsy/cafepress model, where it's loads of vendors on the ground doing t…
They had a sustainable small business model. They could have consciously leveled off when they hit their natural equilibrium and remained a profitable niche vendor in perpetuity. Instead, it appears they threw out their existing succesful business model and a good chunk of their reputation trying to scale beyond their natural limits.
What's wrong with being small if you're good at it?
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I totally agree, but I bet it changed because the Old Way is worse from the perspective of Threadless . Specifically, each contest needs to result in a shirt that they can sell more and more of in order to maintain growth. That pushes you toward a bland, inoffensive, mass-market design. They think they can ultimately maximize profits by doing the etsy/cafepress model, where it's loads of vendors on the ground doing t…
Yeah, but why did Threadless possibly need to "maintain growth"? They had a sustainable small business model. They could have consciously leveled off when they hit their natural equilibrium and remained a profitable niche vendor in perpetuity. Instead, it appears they threw out their existing succesful business model and a good chunk of their reputation trying to scale beyond their natural limits. What's wrong with b…
MBA disease: Every MBA learns their reason for existing is to grow the business and extract maximum value for shareholders.
I got everyone in my family hoodies recently, and the quality of the printing is atrocious. Obviously "printed" and flaking almost entirely off after regular wear.
Never again. They had me as a fierce loyal proponent. Now they have an enemy who will warn people away. :(
> Concerns about controlling quality make sense given that artists on Threadless’s forum complain that they’re unable to promote their work because the print quality has dropped to the point that designs flake off after a few washes. Reviewers say the sizing, feel, and weight of Threadless’s shirts is inconsistent and getting worse over time, with some customers reporting that shirts bought five to 10 years ago are s…
Who would have thought that people stop coming back to your business if the quality of your products goes way downhill?
Are there any alternatives to Threadless? Tees from my last order have a completely horrible quality.
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I usually go to qwertee ( https://www.qwertee.com/ ). As I've said in another comment I've had some minor sizing issues but the print quality is decent enough.
Side note: I am looking at Qwertee and want to find out about their business model and designer compensation, but whenever I approach the page footer, a new batch of T-shirts thumbnails is loaded in the page content pushing the footer away… Someone didn't think that one through. Edit: > Artists/Designers receive 1 Euro per shirt sold or USD or GBP equivalent. You also retain all rights to your artwork before, during…
Threadless legal notice states you own and will maintain ownership of your design(s) after submission.
On a side but related note: It might be interesting to read any stories about how some of the original dot-com companies are doing nowadays, those that survived, that is - from the 1997-2001 period.