Launching Your First 100 Units: A Real Budget
A 100-unit first run is the right scale to test a clothing brand. Big enough to reach actual strangers, small enough that a wrong bet does not ruin you. Here is what it actually costs.
Why 100 Units Is the Right Test
Fifty units is too small. You sell out before you know if demand is real or just friends-and-family support. Two hundred units creates a cash commitment that stings badly if the colorway or the fit does not land. A hundred units gives you enough inventory to reach strangers, enough data to know what is working, and a total budget that most founders can fund out of personal savings or early revenue. It is also the threshold where most production processes reveal their weaknesses before they become expensive habits.
The Blank Budget: $300-$1,200
Your blank is usually your biggest line item. Wholesale pricing varies by style and supplier. Here are honest per-unit ranges for the four most common first-drop blanks, applied to 100 shirts.
- Gildan 5000: $3-4 per unit = $300-$400 total
- Next Level 3600: $5-7 per unit = $500-$700 total
- Bella+Canvas 3001: $6-9 per unit = $600-$900 total
- Comfort Colors 1717: $9-12 per unit = $900-$1,200 total
The Transfer Budget: $54-$720
DTF transfers at Golden DTF start at $0.06 per square inch with no minimum order. Your transfer cost depends almost entirely on design size. A small left-chest logo at 3x3 inches (9 square inches) costs $0.54 per shirt, or $54 for 100 shirts. A full front-chest graphic at 10x10 inches (100 square inches) costs $6.00 per shirt, or $600 for 100 shirts.
Building a gang sheet packs multiple copies of your design onto one sheet and is the most cost-efficient way to order at this scale. Orders ship same day when placed before 1 pm ET, and shipping is free over $49.
Packaging and Overhead: $100-$250
Packaging is easy to underestimate. You need poly bags, mailer bags or shipping boxes, and some form of branded insert. None of this needs to be expensive, but none of it is free.
- Poly bags (100 count): $15-30
- Mailer bags or boxes: $40-80
- Printed insert cards (100 count): $30-50
- Hang tags if using them: $30-60 for 100
- Tape, tissue paper, miscellaneous: $20-30
Total Budget and Profit Math
Here is a realistic total using Bella+Canvas 3001 blanks and a 10x10 front-chest graphic on 100 shirts: blanks at $700, transfers at $600, packaging at $150, a marketing budget at $150, and platform and domain fees around $50, adding up to approximately $1,650, or $16.50 per shirt.
At a 3x markup, your retail price lands at $49.50 and your gross profit on a full sell-through is $3,300. The goal of a first drop is not maximum profit. It is learning what your customer will pay and whether your production process holds at that scale. Sell 80 of 100 units and you have real proof of concept and a clear path to the second drop.