Brand Tags, aka custom clothing labels, replace the conventional fabric tag that comes sewn into the manufactured blank garment. Woven tags that come in blank shirts can be annoying, scratching at your neck. So, why not replace them with printed brand tags? Custom printed clothing labels are especially great for clothing companies and retail stores that want to fully brand their products and stand out from the amateurs. We make custom brand tag printing very affordable and it doesn’t change your turnaround time. Retail stores also agree that custom printed brand tags give your brand more credibility and they will take your brand more seriously if you have them.
We prepare custom brand tags on high mesh screens in order to minimize the amount of ink printed and maximize the softness of each print. With 3 standard brand tag ink colors, we recommend you let us pick the proper ink color combination for your tags. We have the experience to maximize your brand tag visibility and minimize the possibility of your tag being visible through the back of your shirt. Do you have a project that involves custom-printed brand tags?
Our brand tag costs are amongst the lowest in the industry. When printing on t-shirts, tank tops, and long sleeves, we only charge $0.90/garment both to remove the existing tag and print your custom tag. We require a minimum of 6 pieces per tag, i.e. 6 pieces per size, per fabric content, per ink color. Less than 6 pieces per tag requires a $5/tag setup fee + $2/tag for printing. We charge the standard $20/color for ink color change fees.
We recommend keeping your tags within a 3” x 3” square, with a max image size of 4” wide x 4” tall. We can print larger on the inside of your t-shirts, but anything larger than 4×4” is no longer considered a tag print. At that size, we will have to charge you for a separate print location.
We have 3 stock brand tag inks that we use to maximize print visibility and minimize the risk of the tag print showing through the backside of your shirt. Our stock brand tag inks are Pantone colors Cool Grey 1C, Cool Grey 6C & Cool Grey 11C. For very thin and light colored garments that are partially transparent, the brand tag may be visible on the backside of the garment but we do everything we can to minimize the visibility.
Please keep in mind we need to create 1 tag screen for each tag in your order, that include every variable. For example, every shirt size, multiplied by each fabric content and each country of origin. Rather than sending a dozen files, we prefer your designer put each tag on a different artboard in one Illustrator file.
When designing tags, please keep in mind that bolder graphics and fonts usually work better since the final print size is fairly small. Every font is different so there’s no magic font size, but we suggest keeping all image areas to at least .5 point line in Adobe Illustrator. Additionally, if you keep your font sizes to 8pt or higher, they should be legible and make for a good print.
1. Include the garment size, your brand name or logo, and your website.
2. Companies commonly include fabric content or country of origin when they have something to be proud of, such as Made in the USA or 100% organic cotton. If your shirts are made in Honduras or Nicaragua it’s probably not adding any value to your brand by including the country of origin on your tag. We suggest leaving it off or just labeling it as “Imported.”
3. Most of our clients also include care instructions. The general consensus is that most t-shirts and related apparel styles are pretty straight-forward. As adults, we should all know how to wash the basics. Seriously, who reads the label on a t-shirt for washing instructions? It’s totally up to you, though. Include washing and care instructions if you want. Just know that it will make your tags more cluttered.
4. Adding an RN# to your garment brand tags is pretty rare in the USA. An RN # is a Registered Identification Number issued by the United States Federal Trade Commission (when requested) to businesses that manufacture, import, distribute or sell textile, wool or apparel products. Some clients think they have to include an RN# for FTC regulations, but that is not true. Every garment must have a tag that identifies the brand making or selling the shirt. The RN # can be used to replace your business name on that tag, but why would anyone do that? Wouldn’t you rather use your brand name and get the marketing recognition and value from your brand? Yeah, we know.
The United States is the only country to use the RN#. If you’re in Canada, you’ll want to look at CA # and that might be required for shipping across international borders. If you want more info on FTC tag labeling, dive down this rabbit hole of FTC textile and apparel labeling requirements, but keep in mind this is a free country – so do what you want!
If your shirts have tear-away tags, then you’re super cool in our book. While we don’t charge any differently, tear-away tags are designed to be removed, thus they’re easier and will look much better in the end. Sewn-in tags are not as simple, but we have a pretty good system in place that minimizes the tag remnants. Regardless of the type of tag, tag remnants are possible and part of the nuance of custom brand tags.
We consider standard brand tag print location to be about 1/2” below the collar seam. You can request we print in another location, but that print will be priced as an unconventional print location, not as a brand tag.
We don’t suggest printing directly on the inside of sweatshirt fabric (aka fleece) and we don’t offer it. Unfortunately, the fluffy texture of interior sweatshirt fabric doesn’t make for a quality, flat printing surface.
