Let us go back to 2015, a year when digital on-demand manufacturing was at its first phase. As the booming of the field was at its beginning, there was no platform to manage customized designs in a convenient method.
Printify, at this juncture, arrived with a fresh idea of digital on-demand manufacturing. It was all about bringing very novel approaches to the business. Printify's successful journey is a combination of innovative thoughts and persistence.
Even though a perfect marketplace for manufacturers was not developed, on-demand manufacturing was making its move in 2015.
As recognizing the shift from traditional printing analog to digital on-demand designing, the three young entrepreneurs, James Berdigans, Artis Kehris, and Gatis Dukurs, started Printify.
They introduced it pretending as an on-demand manufacturer. In reality, they were establishing a bridge between manufacturers and e-commerce owners for straightforward engagement, and they had a fair onset.
Firstly, they integrated the platform with different e-commerce channels such as Amazon, Shopify, eBay, and so on. The next step was connecting with plentiful online stores.
Later, they developed Printify app and launched on Shopify app store in September 2015. The instant success came on the path. The first three months were of numerous installs and fast growth. As a result, Printify nominated as the best apps on Shopify.
The game changed as new players arrived in the field. The on-demand manufacturing was gaining popularity, and the business demanded new skies.
It was no longer a better option to move with the old strategies. The new model from the team was a real online marketplace for on-demand manufacturers and e-commerce owners.
Back then, there was no platform to compare design, price, shipment, and so on. Developing a new business model that no one ever tried is not easy.
The hard work of four months ended up with nothing. Again, four months, zero results and received nothing in turn but sleepless nights and depression. The company fired several employees, and it was sinking.
Who can defeat someone with utmost self-confidence and immense belief in what he is doing? Around that time, Printify got selected in 500 Startups Accelerated Program but unfortunately, without a product.
The team took a whole year to build a product, meaning the marketplace. Eventually, in 2017, Printify reached the scaling point. The coming days opened the way for success. It registered an incredible growth of 32% month over month.
Now, Printify is an all-in-one on-demand manufacturing marketplace that no one ever developed. It has 250+ custom products and printing partners in more than 90 locations in the US, UK, China, Australia, and Germany.
In May 2019, it raised $3M investment from Bling Capital to expand the marketplace. As the first wave business model in this industry, the platform is a highly functional B2B platform where the designers can select products, design, and fix the price.
Besides, fulfillment and dropshipping are also managed by the team. So, business persons can completely concentrate on branding their business.
According to James Berdigan, what led the team to success is a set of good employees. He believes, hiring employees who have the right mindset is the first step of success. According to him, it is not easy to be defeated when you have such a persistent team.
