Silk Screen Shirts

What Silk Screen Shirts does

Silk Screen Shirts, Inc. is a privately held, Carlsbad, California-based apparel decoration and uniform program provider founded in 1969. The company operates a single, vertically integrated facility housing 5 automatic screen printing presses capable of producing up to 15,000 prints per shift, supplemented by embroidery, sublimation, pad printing, and headwear decoration capabilities. Its core service is the design, manufacture, warehousing, and fulfillment of branded apparel and merchandise for franchise organizations, multi-location businesses, hospitality groups, and corporate teams across the United States, with select international drop-ship capability for major retailers and distributors.

The company's revenue is generated through four primary streams: apparel production (screen printing and embroidery sold as one-time production with screen setup fees), managed uniform programs (recurring sourcing, warehousing, fulfillment, and platform access), promotional products and corporate merchandise (sourced from global brands including Nike, Yeti, Owala, and The North Face), and full-package private label manufacturing (sourcing, ticketing, packing, and retailer drop-ship). Pricing is quote-based with minimum order quantities tied to screen setup costs (typically 72 pieces) and varying minimums for promotional products; managed programs use subscription-style annual billing without flat program fees.

The technology layer is a proprietary custom company store platform with role-based access control, approval workflows, budget controls, and real-time reporting, integrated with UPS and FedEx for shipment tracking and supporting CSV/ERP data exchange. This platform underpins the company's go-to-market as a consultative, account-managed enterprise and mid-market sales motion, supplemented by external catalog listings on Promoplace and Company Casuals for SMB reach. The company employs 11-50 people, has no disclosed funding events, and operates without public financial disclosure.

Name

Silk Screen Shirts

Legal name

Silk Screen Shirts, Inc.

Website

https://silkscreenshirtsinc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Silk Screen Shirts is a Carlsbad, CA-based apparel decoration and managed uniform program provider founded in 1969, serving franchise, hospitality, and corporate clients nationwide with in-house screen printing, embroidery, and a proprietary company store platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Apparel Manufacturing and Managed Uniform Services

NAICS

Apparel Manufacturing (315), Apparel Accessories and Other Apparel Manufacturing (31599)

SIC

Apparel & Other Finishd Prods Of Fabrics & Similar Matl (2300), Men's & Boys' Furnishgs, Work Clothg, & Allied Garments (2320)

akta.pro primary industry

Tops & Shirts Cut & Sew (T-Shirts/Shirts/Blouses) (IMAOAEAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Headwear Manufacturing (Hats/Caps/Beanies) (IMAOAFAA)

Keywords

• Custom screen printing
• Corporate apparel programs
• Managed uniform services
• Promotional merchandise sourcing
• Warehouse and fulfillment

Headquarters

HQ city

Carlsbad

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Apparel Production (Screen Printing, Embroidery): Core manufacturing revenue from in-house screen printing (up to 15,000 prints per shift on 5 automatic presses), embroidery, pad printing, sublimation, and headwear decoration. One-time production charges plus screen setup fees.
2. Managed Uniform Programs: Ongoing managed service revenue from uniform programs including sourcing, warehousing, inventory management, fulfillment, and online ordering platform access. Pricing built around products run, volume ordered, and services used. No flat program fee.
3. Promotional Products & Corporate Merchandise: Revenue from branded merchandise including drinkware, bags, tech items, writing instruments, gifts, headwear, and awards. Includes kitting services for onboarding kits, event merchandise, and corporate gifting.
4. Full Package / Private Label Manufacturing: End-to-end manufacturing for retail including sourcing, ticket, pack, and drop-ship to major retailers and international distributors. Covers trim inventories and quick-turn programs.
5. Fulfillment & Logistics Services: Warehouse and fulfillment services including pick-and-pack, multi-location distribution, direct-to-employee shipping, and inventory replenishment. Shipments tracked online the day of shipping.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Silk Screen Shirts provides managed corporate apparel and uniform programs, in-house screen printing (up to 15,000 prints per shift), embroidery, promotional products sourcing, and end-to-end warehouse and fulfillment services for franchise and multi-location businesses. Production, decoration, inventory management, and distribution are all consolidated under one roof at their Carlsbad, CA manufacturing facility, supported by a proprietary online company stores platform for employee ordering.

Product overview

Silk Screen Shirts operates as a comprehensive uniform and branded merchandise program provider with a platform-plus-services architecture. The core offering centers on Uniform Programs (managed multi-location apparel programs) and Screen Printing Services (custom high-volume decoration), supported by a suite of add-on modules including Embroidery, Headwear Programs, Sublimation, Online Ordering/Company Stores platform, Warehouse & Fulfillment, Inventory Management, Promotional Products, Creative Services, Full Package solutions, Factory Direct Manufacturing, and Kitting & Bundling Services. The proprietary Company Stores platform serves as the central technology layer enabling employee self-service ordering, approval workflows, and multi-location distribution. All production occurs in-house at their Carlsbad, CA facility with 15,000 prints per shift capacity, combining manufacturing, warehousing, and fulfillment under one roof.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Uniform Programs

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• RushOrderTees: Custom screen printing and embroidery company focused on fast-turn decorated apparel for businesses, teams, and events. Directly comparable on screen printing capabilities and target market, with stronger positioning on speed and online self-service quoting.
• 4imprint: Large promotional products distributor offering decorated apparel, drinkware, bags, and corporate merchandise. Directly comparable on promotional products revenue stream and B2B customer acquisition motion; competes on catalog breadth and online ordering.
• CustomInk: Online-first custom apparel decorator offering screen printing, embroidery, and promotional products to groups, businesses, and teams. Highly comparable to Silk Screen Shirts on decoration services and B2B customer base, but operates at a much larger national scale and on a self-service digital platform.
• Lands' End Business: Corporate apparel division of Lands' End providing managed uniform programs, custom embroidery, and corporate merchandise for enterprise clients. Direct peer on branded apparel programs and managed uniform offerings for multi-location customers.
• HALO Branded Solutions: Mid-market corporate apparel and branded merchandise supplier offering decorated apparel, managed programs, and promotional products. Closely comparable to Silk Screen Shirts' full-service offering with similar B2B sales motion and customer segments.

Broad incumbents

• alphabroder: Largest distributor of imprintable apparel and accessories in North America, supplying decorator customers including screen printers. Comparable on apparel decoration value-chain participation and access to apparel blanks, though operating as a wholesaler rather than decorator.
• Cimpress (Vistaprint): Parent of Vistaprint and other mass-customization printing brands. Indirectly comparable through customized promotional and apparel products targeted at SMB and mid-market — overlapping segments served by Silk Screen Shirts' promotional and direct sales channels.
• UniFirst: National uniform rental and supply company serving multi-location businesses with managed apparel programs. Comparable to Silk Screen Shirts on managed uniform programs for enterprise customers, but anchored in rental/linen services rather than screen printing.

Others

• SanMar: Wholesale apparel and accessories supplier serving the promotional and decorated apparel industry. Comparable as a key supplier relationship in the value chain, since Silk Screen Shirts likely sources blanks for full-package and screen printing production.
• Cintas: Largest North American uniform rental and corporate apparel services company. Operates a managed uniform program model with route-based distribution that overlaps with Silk Screen Shirts' enterprise program offering, but at vastly greater scale and breadth.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SilkScreenShirtsInc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/silk-screen-shirts-inc
• Instagraminstagram.com/silkscreenshirts

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Silk Screen Shirts