Inside Carytown’s new 1,500-square-foot T-Shirt Studio. (Photos by Michael Thompson)
A New York-based custom apparel store is looking to add its imprint to Richmond’s retail scene.
Kamran Shaikh last week launched the T-Shirt Studio at 3037 W. Cary St. Shaikh signed a five-year lease for the 1,500-square-foot space in November.
Kamran Shaikh, left, and his son Hadi.
T-Shirt Studio customizes apparel for women, men and children, adding customers’ ideas or stock graphics to T-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, collared shirts and even onesies.
“Anybody can come up with any sort of design and we can print it for them,” Shaikh said.
Shaikh would not say how much it’s taken to launch his second T-Shirt Studio location but did say it was less than $100,000. The heat press used to affix designs to apparel cost a few thousand dollars, and the machine that cuts the designs cost about $4,000. Shaikh said he is financing the launch of the Carytown store with personal savings.
A basic custom shirt costs about $20, a customized hooded sweatshirt goes for about $35 and a customized tie-dye shirt goes for about $25. Shaikh said that individual orders drive the business but that he’s hoping to do more bulk orders.
Stock designs can be pressed in minutes, simple custom designs can be pressed within a few hours and more complicated custom designs can take up to two weeks.
Shaikh said he was persuaded to move to Richmond because of “the student population and weather and attraction of Carytown as a business district.”
He launched his first store in 2007 in an upstate New York town called Horseheads. Shaikh previously worked for T-Shirt Express in Ithaca, N.Y., for about seven years.
“Once I had enough experience and some capital in place … I decided I wanted to do my own business,” Shaikh said.
In 2009, he started researching the markets in Austin, Philadelphia, Boston and Charlottesville, before eventually deciding to move to Richmond.
The shop at 3037 W. Cary St.
The home of the new T-Shirt Studio, which is next door to Modern Artifacts and across the street from Fiamour, was previously home to Richmond Sports Gear. Real estate firm Spotts & Carneal brokered the lease, Shaikh said.
Shaikh, 46, is hoping his collection of tie-dye shirts and quality customer service will set his business apart from his competitors.
T-Shirt Studio gets its apparel from 10 distributors from across the United States, including the Petersburg-based Virginia T’s.
Shaikh is applying to be able to use Virginia Commonwealth University’s logos, a process he said could take months. He can print small signs now and hopes eventually to offer custom banners and posters.
Shaikh’s son, Hadi, 21, is taking a semester off from school to run the store. Shaikh said he would hire two more people in March to help his son.
Shaikh said he plans to open another store in Charlottesville next year once the Richmond store is running smoothly.
Inside Carytown’s new 1,500-square-foot T-Shirt Studio. (Photos by Michael Thompson)
A New York-based custom apparel store is looking to add its imprint to Richmond’s retail scene.
Kamran Shaikh last week launched the T-Shirt Studio at 3037 W. Cary St. Shaikh signed a five-year lease for the 1,500-square-foot space in November.
Kamran Shaikh, left, and his son Hadi.
T-Shirt Studio customizes apparel for women, men and children, adding customers’ ideas or stock graphics to T-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, collared shirts and even onesies.
“Anybody can come up with any sort of design and we can print it for them,” Shaikh said.
Shaikh would not say how much it’s taken to launch his second T-Shirt Studio location but did say it was less than $100,000. The heat press used to affix designs to apparel cost a few thousand dollars, and the machine that cuts the designs cost about $4,000. Shaikh said he is financing the launch of the Carytown store with personal savings.
A basic custom shirt costs about $20, a customized hooded sweatshirt goes for about $35 and a customized tie-dye shirt goes for about $25. Shaikh said that individual orders drive the business but that he’s hoping to do more bulk orders.
Stock designs can be pressed in minutes, simple custom designs can be pressed within a few hours and more complicated custom designs can take up to two weeks.
Shaikh said he was persuaded to move to Richmond because of “the student population and weather and attraction of Carytown as a business district.”
He launched his first store in 2007 in an upstate New York town called Horseheads. Shaikh previously worked for T-Shirt Express in Ithaca, N.Y., for about seven years.
“Once I had enough experience and some capital in place … I decided I wanted to do my own business,” Shaikh said.
In 2009, he started researching the markets in Austin, Philadelphia, Boston and Charlottesville, before eventually deciding to move to Richmond.
The shop at 3037 W. Cary St.
The home of the new T-Shirt Studio, which is next door to Modern Artifacts and across the street from Fiamour, was previously home to Richmond Sports Gear. Real estate firm Spotts & Carneal brokered the lease, Shaikh said.
Shaikh, 46, is hoping his collection of tie-dye shirts and quality customer service will set his business apart from his competitors.
T-Shirt Studio gets its apparel from 10 distributors from across the United States, including the Petersburg-based Virginia T’s.
Shaikh is applying to be able to use Virginia Commonwealth University’s logos, a process he said could take months. He can print small signs now and hopes eventually to offer custom banners and posters.
Shaikh’s son, Hadi, 21, is taking a semester off from school to run the store. Shaikh said he would hire two more people in March to help his son.
Shaikh said he plans to open another store in Charlottesville next year once the Richmond store is running smoothly.
A t-shirt store in Carytown? Hope it sticks around longer than the last one: http://www.yelp.com/biz/bang-on-richmond