Lakeshirts
Lakeshirts is a Minnesota-based private apparel company founded in 1984 that provides custom garment printing and branded apparel (including stickers) primarily to resort and college market customers in the United States.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1984
- HeadquartersDetroit Lakes, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Lakeshirts does
Lakeshirts Inc. is a private, Minnesota-based apparel company founded in 1984 and headquartered in Detroit Lakes, MN, with 501-1000 employees. The company provides custom garment and apparel printing services, with a primary focus on resort-themed apparel (including ski resorts and related leisure destinations) and the college market, and a secondary focus on the broader general garment/apparel market. Its core offering is decoration and manufacture of branded apparel and stickers for these niche end-markets, with a value proposition centered on quality, customer service, and brand portfolio breadth.
Lakeshirts operates a multi-brand architecture. Its core operating subsidiary is TGT Stickers, a wholly-owned division managing sticker and apparel decoration products. In March 2024, Lakeshirts acquired EMI Sportswear (operated by Early Man Images Inc.), a Colorado-based resort apparel manufacturer known for its artwork and quality products, and integrated it into the TGT Stickers division under a newly launched combined brand, EMI/TGT. The acquisition extended Lakeshirts' geographic footprint into the Colorado/Western US resort corridor, complementing its Minnesota base, and broadened its brand portfolio for resort and college customers.
The company's business model is B2B custom apparel manufacturing and decoration, with revenue generated from selling decorated garments and stickers to resort operators and college customers. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, and no go-to-motion or sales channel details are provided in available sources. Lakeshirts has received private capital from Yukon Partners (2019) and Carlson Private Capital Partners (January 2020), and remains independently operated with co-founders Mike Hutchinson and Mark Fritz referenced in the leadership record. No public listing exists, and no revenue, funding totals, or financial metrics are disclosed.
Lakeshirts firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lakeshirts
- Legal name
- Lakeshirts Inc.
- Website
- https://lakeshirts.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1984
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Lakeshirts is a Minnesota-based private apparel company founded in 1984 that provides custom garment printing and branded apparel (including stickers) primarily to resort and college market customers in the United States.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Lakeshirts industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Custom Apparel Manufacturing
- NAICS
- Broadwoven Fabric Mills (313210)
- SIC
- Broadwoven Fabric Mills, Man Made Fiber & Silk (2221), Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Swimwear & Beachwear Cut & Sew (IMAOAEAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Denim & Twill Fabrics (CRAAAMAE)
Keywords
Where Lakeshirts is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Detroit Lakes
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Lakeshirts business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Lakeshirts product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lakeshirts is a custom garment and apparel printing manufacturer that produces branded apparel and stickers for resort and college markets. The company operates multiple brand lines including TGT Stickers and the recently integrated EMI/TGT brand, producing screen-printed apparel, resort-themed clothing, and related merchandise for business customers.
Product overview
Lakeshirts is a Minnesota-based apparel company offering a portfolio of resort apparel brands. The company operates as a multi-brand apparel manufacturer with divisions including TGT Stickers. In March 2024, Lakeshirts acquired EMI Sportswear and integrated it into the TGT Stickers division, launching the combined EMI/TGT brand. The acquisition expanded Lakeshirts' resort apparel offerings, combining EMI's artwork-focused products with Lakeshirts' existing quality-focused brand portfolio.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- EMI/TGT: Combined brand from EMI Sportswear acquisition, complementing Lakeshirts' existing portfolio
- TGT Stickers
Products and services
- EMI Sportswear A Colorado-based resort apparel manufacturer known for quality artwork and apparel products, now integrated into Lakeshirts' portfolio as part of the EMI/TGT combined brand.
- TGT Stickers A division of Lakeshirts that manages sticker products and has now been expanded to include the EMI Sportswear line, operating as EMI/TGT.
- EMI/TGT Brand A unified brand combining EMI Sportswear's artwork and quality products with Lakeshirts' existing resort apparel brands, marketed as part of Lakeshirts' brand portfolio.
Companies that use Lakeshirts
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Lakeshirts technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Lakeshirts partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- EMI Sportswear (Early Man Images Inc.)coreLakeshirts Inc. acquired EMI Sportswear, operated by Early Man Images Inc., a Colorado-based resort apparel manufacturer. EMI has been integrated into Lakeshirts' TGT Stickers division and operates under the combined EMI/TGT brand. The companies share similar resort apparel orientations and a focus on quality and customer service.
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Lakeshirts competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Alphabroder (S&S Activewear): Alphabroder is a major apparel and blank-imprintables wholesaler serving the promotional and decorated apparel industry, making it a broad incumbent peer operating in Lakeshirts' value chain rather than as a direct competitor.
- SanMar: SanMar is one of the largest apparel wholesalers in North America, supplying blanks to decorators like Lakeshirts; while not a direct competitor, it operates in the same apparel supply chain and serves overlapping screen-printer customers.
- Cimpress (Vistaprint): Cimpress, parent of Vistaprint, is a broad incumbent in custom printing and apparel, offering overlapping custom decoration capabilities to small businesses — a larger, diversified peer with related but broader market exposure than Lakeshirts.
Direct peers
- Rush Order Tees: Rush Order Tees is a custom screen-printing and embroidery shop serving schools, teams, and events with rapid-turn production, directly comparable to Lakeshirts' custom apparel printing model in the college and resort markets.
- BlueCotton: BlueCotton is a custom screen-printing and embroidery company focused on schools, teams, and businesses, making it a direct peer to Lakeshirts in the custom apparel decoration category.
- Underground Printing: Underground Printing is a custom apparel and screen-printing company with deep college-market roots, directly comparable to Lakeshirts in its focus on collegiate and event-based custom garment decoration.
- Custom Ink: Custom Ink is a direct-to-consumer custom apparel decorator offering screen printing and embroidery to groups, schools, and businesses — a closely comparable business model to Lakeshirts' custom garment printing services.
- Printful: Printful is a print-on-demand and custom apparel decorator serving brands and creators globally, comparable as a custom garment printing peer, though delivered via a digital/fulfillment network rather than Lakeshirts' traditional shop model.
Emerging players
- Real Thread: Real Thread is a custom apparel decorator focused on brand-quality screen printing and embroidery for businesses and merchandise programs, comparable to Lakeshirts as a smaller-scale peer in the custom garment printing space.
- Threadless: Threadless operates a community-driven custom apparel and print-on-demand model, partially overlapping with Lakeshirts' resort/college apparel decoration services but with a distinct online, artist-led positioning.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Lakeshirts social profiles
Digital presenceLakeshirts financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lakeshirts leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Lakeshirts subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Lakeshirts funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lakeshirts M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lakeshirts
What does Lakeshirts do?
Lakeshirts is a custom garment and apparel printing manufacturer that produces branded apparel and stickers for resort and college markets. The company operates multiple brand lines including TGT Stickers and the recently integrated EMI/TGT brand, producing screen-printed apparel, resort-themed clothing, and related merchandise for business customers.
Is Lakeshirts a public or private company?
Lakeshirts is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Lakeshirts founded?
Lakeshirts was founded in 1984. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Lakeshirts based?
Lakeshirts is headquartered in Detroit Lakes, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Lakeshirts's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Alphabroder (S&S Activewear), SanMar and Cimpress (Vistaprint). Direct peers are Rush Order Tees, BlueCotton, Underground Printing, Custom Ink and Printful. Emerging players are Real Thread and Threadless.
Does Lakeshirts have an API?
No public API is recorded for Lakeshirts.
What industry is Lakeshirts in?
Lakeshirts's product category is Custom Apparel Manufacturing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAOAEAH, Swimwear & Beachwear Cut & Sew, with a secondary code of CRAAAMAE, Denim & Twill Fabrics. Its NAICS code is 313210 and its SIC code is 2221.