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Start a Garment Decoration Business with £500 to £1000

Start a Garment Decoration Business with £500 to £1000
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Start a Garment Decoration Business with £500 to £1000

A realistic and beginner-friendly guide to starting a clothing or gifting brand from home, using everything from Stahls’ UK.

What You Actually Need to Get Started

Starting a garment decoration business does not require thousands of pounds. With around £500 to £1000, you can set up a complete production workflow with a heat press, vinyl, transfers, blanks, design tools and even marketing.

Here is what you need to get going:

  • A heat press

  • HTV or transfers

  • Starter apparel

  • Design software

  • Heat press accessories

  • Free marketing using social media

Your Most Important Purchase: The Heat Press

For nearly every beginner decorator we recommend the Hotronix Auto Open Clam 40 by 50. It is simple to use, durable and versatile enough to handle almost anything you want to personalise.

Why it is perfect for new businesses:

  • Auto open feature stops scorching and makes production stress-free
  • Digital readout shows the exact time, temperature and pressureEven heat distribution avoids cold spots and ruined prints
  • Accurate pressure is essential for transfers and HTV
  • Built to last and comes with a warranty for peace of mind

This platen size is large enough for T-shirts, hoodies, totes, aprons, sweatshirts, beanies and most personalised gifts. Choosing a Stahls UK heat press means you are investing in a machine designed for longevity, so replacements are rarely needed under normal use.

Finance Options

The Hotronix Auto Open Clam costs £1720 excluding VAT if purchased outright. With a 3-year finance plan, beginners with less than three years of trading pay around £70 to £80 per month for the first few months. Experienced decorators pay slightly less per month, around £60 to £70.

This gives a clear idea of the initial outlay without tying you to long term totals.

HTV and Transfers – Where You Make Your Profit

HTV and transfers are the heart of your business. Buying everything from Stahls’ UK means you get professional-grade materials that work together for consistent results.

 

Option A – HTV

  • HTV is affordable and has a high profit margin. For beginners, choose around three to four colours to start.
  • You can use HTV for T-shirts, hoodies, tote bags and aprons. It is perfect for creating small designs like names, logos or shapes and for producing content for social media.

Option B – Transfers

  • For full colour designs or more detailed images:
  • UltraColour PRO is ideal for bulk orders but requires 10 or more sheets
  • InkTra offers soft-feel single-colour screen-printed transfers, also with a minimum order of 10 sheets
  • DTF transfers are perfect for one-off or small quantity full colour designs

Transfers work well for hoodies, college and university clubs, events, fashion brands, corporate gifts and both small and bulk orders. No weeding, no mess and faster production make them beginner friendly.

Apparel

A practical starter stock could include:

  • 10 hoodies
  • 10 sweatshirts
  • 20 T-shirts
  • 6 tote bags

This gives a range of products to create initial orders and social media content. The rough total budget for all starter apparel is around £400 to £450.

Design Software

For design you can start with Illustrator at £22 per month. Creative Cloud is available for £67 per month if you want everything including Photoshop and Premiere Pro. You do not need the full suite to get started. Free or lower-cost design tools can work for early projects.

Heat Press Accessories

Accessories are useful but not all are essential at the start. Key items to consider include:

  • Heat resistant tape £7.50 for holding transfers in place
  • Quick Slip lower platen protector £60 for 40 by 50 platen, makes printing quicker as applying and removing garments is faster
  • A3 release paper 50 sheets £13 to protect garments and prints

These make production smoother and help avoid mistakes.

Free Marketing

Social media is your best marketing tool and it costs nothing. Ideas include:

  • Showing HTV weeding or pressing a hoodie
  • Packaging orders
  • Before and after shots of prints
  • Displaying blanks
  • Workspace tours
  • Peel videos and tips

Consistent content helps build trust with your audience and grow your business for free.

Rough Budget Breakdown for the First Three to Four Months

 

Item

Approximate Cost
Heat press (finance first 3 to 4 months)

£250 to £300
HTV – 3 colours (1 metre each)

£18
Transfers

£20 to £50
Apparel (starter stock: 10 hoodies, 10 sweatshirts, 20 T-shirts, 6 totes)

£400 to £450
Design software          
£22 per month
Heat press accessories
£80 to £90

Immediate startup total: around £810 to £900

Including software and accessories: around £850 to £950

 

Want to start even cheaper?

You can choose a smaller heat press, select more affordable blanks, or hold off on accessories and Adobe Illustrator. Starting small is fine and you can scale as your business grows.

Final Takeaway

With the right equipment, HTV, transfers including DTF for small runs, starter apparel, accessories, design software and free marketing using social media, all from Stahls’ UK, you can launch a professional garment decoration business for £500 to £1000 with plenty of room to grow.

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