Creative Imprint Systems

What Creative Imprint Systems does

Creative Imprint Systems is a family-owned custom printing business founded in 1974 in Erie, Pennsylvania, originally as a sporting goods store before expanding into screen printing services. The company operates three retail locations across the Erie, PA region (Millcreek/Erie, Harborcreek, and Meadville), serving local schools, sports teams, small businesses, community organizations, and a smaller industrial/manufacturing segment with custom apparel, embroidery, vinyl, and promotional products. Its service offering is built around physical production equipment, including two automatic and five manual screen printing presses, four embroidery machines, vinyl cutting and heat transfer equipment, and specialized industrial screen printing capability for metal and plastic substrates.

The company's revenue model is entirely transactional and quote-based, with a minimum order of 12 shirts for screen printing and per-item or bulk pricing across embroidery, vinyl, and promotional products. Distribution runs through walk-in retail, phone and website quote requests, and a self-service online Design Studio that allows customers to upload artwork and preview designs before ordering. Go-to-market is sales-led and community-focused, relying on local brand reputation accumulated over 50 years, social media presence on Instagram and Facebook, and word-of-mouth referrals rather than formal sales infrastructure or digital marketing at scale.

The business is privately held and bootstrapped, co-owned by Jeff Santos and Ron Santos, with no disclosed institutional investment, acquisitions, or parent company. The team of approximately 16 named staff supports a long-tail customer base across schools, SMBs, and community groups, with industrial screen printing representing a smaller but differentiated vertical extension. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, and there is no evidence of subscription, recurring, or enterprise contract revenue streams.

Name

Creative Imprint Systems

Legal name

Creative Imprint Systems

Website

https://creativeimprintsystems.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Creative Imprint Systems is a family-owned custom screen printing, embroidery, vinyl, and promotional products business founded in 1974, operating three retail locations across Erie, Harborcreek, and Meadville, Pennsylvania, serving local schools, sports teams, small businesses, and community organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Apparel Printing and Embroidery

NAICS

Commercial Screen Printing (323113), Commercial Printing (except Screen and Books) (323111)

SIC

Coating, Engraving & Allied Services (3470), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Custom Printing & Decoration Services (Screen Print, Embroidery, Laser) (BPAFAMAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sportswear Customization & Printing Retail (CRAMACAK)

Keywords

• Custom screen printing
• Apparel embroidery services
• Promotional products
• Vinyl decal printing
• Industrial screen printing

Headquarters

HQ city

Erie

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Custom Screen Printing Services: Custom screen printing on apparel and merchandise, including t-shirts, hoodies, uniforms, and custom designs. Operates with minimum order of 12 shirts. Revenue generated through per-order transaction pricing based on quantity and design complexity.
2. Custom Embroidery Services: Embroidery services for hats, polos, jackets, and corporate apparel with thread color matching to brand specifications. One-time transaction pricing based on stitch count and garment quantity.
3. Vinyl Products and Heat Transfers: Vinyl products including heat transfers, decals, stickers, window clings, and custom applications for car windows, helmets, and spirit wear. Sold as custom orders with per-item or bulk pricing.
4. Promotional Products: Branded promotional merchandise including pens, frisbees, cups, mugs, umbrellas, lanyards, and custom items. One-time purchase orders for events, giveaways, and corporate gifts.
5. Industrial Screen Printing: Industrial applications printing on metal and plastic parts for labeling, panels, and components. Custom orders with 3-5 business day turnaround for industrial clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Creative Imprint Systems is a family-owned custom apparel decoration business that provides screen printing, embroidery, vinyl graphics, industrial screen printing on metal and plastic, and branded promotional products for schools, sports teams, small businesses, community organizations, and industrial clients in the Erie, Pennsylvania region. Orders are taken via in-store consultation, website quote request, or the online Design Studio and produced in-house using automatic and manual screen presses, embroidery machines, vinyl cutters, and heat transfer equipment, with a 12-shirt minimum on screen printing and PMS color matching available.

Product overview

Creative Imprint Systems is a family-owned custom printing business offering screen printing, embroidery, vinyl, and promotional products as its core service modules. The company operates screen printing with two automatic machines and five manual presses, embroidery with four dedicated machines, and vinyl services for decals and heat transfers. An online Design Studio enables customer self-service customization. Industrial screen printing extends services to metal and plastic substrates. All services can be ordered individually or combined for comprehensive branding solutions, with a minimum order of 12 shirts for standard screen printing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Screen Printing Custom screen printing service using two automatic screen printing machines and five manual presses to produce single-color up to 12-color designs on apparel such as t-shirts, hoodies, and uniforms, with a minimum order of 12 shirts. Targeted at schools, sports teams, small businesses, community groups, and other local customers in the Erie, PA region.
• Embroidery Custom embroidery service using four embroidery machines to stitch logos and designs on hats, jackets, polos, and accessories with thread color matching to brand specifications. Designed for small businesses, schools, sports teams, and organizations that need a polished, professional look on corporate apparel and uniforms.
• Promotional Products Sourcing and branding of promotional products including pens, frisbees, cups, mugs, umbrellas, lanyards, and other custom merchandise for trade shows, corporate gifts, marketing giveaways, events, and school or community fundraisers.
• Industrial Screen Printing Specialized industrial screen printing that applies images and text onto metal and plastic parts using silk screening techniques, with custom color matching and scratch and wear protection meeting industrial durability standards. Standard lead times of 3-5 business days support manufacturing and industrial customers needing part labeling, panel marking, and component identification.
• Vinyl Custom vinyl products including heat transfers, decals, stickers, window clings, wall decals, vinyl banners, and standard names and numbers, used for spirit wear, vehicle graphics, helmets, and custom apparel applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3-5 business day standard lead time for industrial screen printing
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Emerging players

• Printful: Print-on-demand and custom apparel fulfillment platform with no minimums, competing for small-order SMB and individual customers that CIS also targets with its 12-shirt minimum. Different business model (dropship/fulfillment) but converging customer base.
• Stahls' (GroupeSTAHL): Specializes in heat-applied graphics, vinyl, and custom decoration equipment and supplies for apparel decorators. Overlaps with CIS's vinyl and heat transfer product line and serves a similar custom apparel trade customer base.

Direct peers

• RushOrderTees: Custom screen printing and embroidery shop specializing in fast-turnaround apparel orders for teams, schools, and businesses. Closest direct competitor in service model (custom screen printing + embroidery) but operates nationally online rather than through physical storefronts.
• Underground Printing: Regional custom apparel printer with multiple physical retail locations serving college students, local businesses, and organizations. Highly comparable hybrid model of storefront retail + custom screen printing/embroidery, though operating in different geographies.
• CustomInk: National online platform for custom screen printed and embroidered apparel, targeting schools, teams, and small businesses — the same primary customer segments Creative Imprint Systems serves, but at significantly larger scale and with instant online pricing.
• 4imprint: One of the largest promotional products distributors in North America, offering branded merchandise, apparel, and custom printed items. Directly comparable on the promotional products service line CIS offers, and competes for the same SMB and event-driven buyers.

Broad incumbents

• Alphabroder (Bode Apparel / Broder Bros): Largest wholesale distributor of imprintable apparel and accessories in North America, supplying blank garments to screen printers and embroiders. Adjacent/ecosystem peer — CIS is a downstream customer of similar blank-apparel supply chains and competes with Alphabroder's decorated-apparel customers.
• Vistaprint (Cimpress): Mass-market custom printing platform offering apparel, signage, promotional products, and marketing materials online. Overlaps with CIS across screen printed apparel, vinyl decals, and promotional products, with much broader catalog and digital-first ordering.

Regional players

• Marco's Printing & Signs: Mid-Atlantic regional commercial printing and signage provider offering apparel decoration, signage, and promotional products. Similar product breadth and SMB/local customer focus, but operates in a different region from CIS's Erie, PA base.

Others

• S&S Activewear (S&S): Wholesale distributor of imprintable apparel and accessories serving decorators and screen printers. Functions as a supplier/ecosystem participant to CIS rather than a direct competitor, but illustrates the upstream/downstream economics of the custom apparel value chain.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/creativeimprintsystems
• Instagraminstagram.com/creativeimprintsystems
• Xx.com/creativeimpsys

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Creative Imprint Systems