Why do I have to pay a set up charge?

1 February 2021  |  Admin

A question we're asked on an almost daily basis is "Why do I have to pay a set up charge?"

Set up charges, or artwork charges as they're sometimes called, are usually only charged when we receive new artwork from a customer. If you're a new customer supplying your logo or image for the first time, or an existing customer who's changed your logo, you'll have to pay a set up charge. The charge is not based on how big or small your order is - it's the same regardless

Whether you require print or embroidery, your logo or image will have to go through a process to prepare it for production. In the case of embroidery, for instance, your logo will need to be 'digitised'. If you think about it, how does the embroidery machine know where to put the stitches and which colour thread to use? The process of digitising 'translates' your image into a language that the embroidery machine understands, and gives it the information it needs to recreate your logo or image in thread. As you can imagine, digitising is a skilled job that takes time and therefore incurs a cost.

Once we've created the file though, there's no need to do it again, so you don't get the set up charge the next time you order, unless you change your artwork.

The same thing applies to printed garments - your logo or image needs to be prepared for the appropriate processes.