VGkids

What VGkids does

VGKids, Inc. is a privately held custom screen printing company headquartered at 884 Railroad Street in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1997 by James Marks originally as an all-vegan grocery concept called The Vegetarian Grocer, the business pivoted to screen printing in 1999 and has operated continuously for over 25 years. The company specializes in custom screen printing on garments (t-shirts, hoodies, tote bags) and flatstock posters, serving a primary customer base of bands, independent artists, record labels, and zine publishers from the punk and indie music scene, alongside a secondary segment of general SMB and consumer buyers seeking event merchandise and promotional materials.

The core technology stack is industrial screen printing using plastisol inks (phthalate-free, baby-safe), water-based and discharge inks for eco-friendly applications, and specialty inks including puff, fluorescent, and glow-in-the-dark variants. Production capabilities include up to 8 colors per garment (4 on tri-blends), spot color process, CMYK, and simulated process printing, with standard, XL, and XXL screen sizes. A dedicated art department handles digital proof creation at 600 DPI with Pantone Solid Coated color matching, billed at $50/hour. Finishing services include compostable garment bagging, tag removal/relabeling, embroidery ($5.16/item), and numbering/stamping. Underpinning the operation are downloadable PSD/AI design templates, a self-serve e-commerce storefront, email-assisted quote workflows, and a portfolio of completed work featuring collaborations with artists such as Robert Gleason, Tom Whalen, Daniel Danger, and Kilian Eng.

The business model is direct-to-consumer, project-based custom manufacturing with quote-driven pricing. Standard garment unit pricing ranges from approximately $5.40 (Gildan budget tees at 100-unit quantities) to $38.60 (Champion hoodies at 20-unit quantities), with volume discounts kicking in at 20/50/100 units. Minimum order quantities are 10 pieces per garment setup and 50 pieces for posters. Revenue is generated across four streams: custom garment printing, screen printed posters, art department and design services, and customization/finishing add-on fees. Distribution is exclusively domestic (US Midwest-focused) via UPS shipping or local pickup at the Ypsilanti facility. The company carries no external investors, has no parent company, and is operated by a leadership trio (Steve Emshwiller, Aaron Bobzien, Sean Hickey) that assumed shared management responsibilities from founder James Marks in 2011.

Name

VGkids

Legal name

VGKids, Inc.

Website

https://vgkids.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

VGKids is a privately held Ypsilanti, Michigan-based custom screen printing company founded in 1997, serving bands, independent artists, record labels, and SMBs with custom-printed apparel (t-shirts, hoodies, totes) and screen-printed posters via direct-to-consumer e-commerce and quote-based ordering.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Screen Printing Services

NAICS

Commercial Printing (except Screen and Books) (323111), Graphic Design Services (541430)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Prepress, Plate-Making & Artwork Services (IMALAKAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Finishing & Post-Press Services (Cutting, Folding, Collating, Laminating, Foil, Emboss) (MPAJALAF)

Keywords

• Screen printing services
• Custom garment printing
• Screen printed posters
• Custom apparel merchandise
• Promotional printing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Ypsilanti

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Garment Printing: Screen printing on customer-supplied or company-sourced garments (t-shirts, hoodies, totes). Revenue based on per-item pricing with quantity discounts. Minimum order 10 pieces per setup. Additional fees for custom inks, specialty services.
2. Screen Printed Posters/Flatstock: Custom screen printing on paper/posters in various sizes (8.5x11 to 24x36). Minimum order quantity of 50 pieces. Paper options include 100# French Paper, Colorplan, Coventry Rag, and house paper.
3. Art Department and Design Services: Charged at $50/hour for artwork modifications, $25 for text-based additions, $25 deposit for pre-flight mockups. Ink switching at $15 per switch.
4. Customization and Finishing Add-ons: Tag removal ($0.25/item), tag relabeling ($2.75/item), fold & bag ($0.75/item), embroidery ($5.16/item), numbering/stamping ($0.25/item), custom ink mixing ($15/color).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

VGkids is a custom screen printing company that produces screen-printed apparel (t-shirts, hoodies, tote bags) and flatstock posters for bands, artists, businesses, and individual consumers. The company operates an e-commerce storefront where customers can browse catalog options, request custom quotes via email, and receive digital proofs before production. It offers a full-service experience including an in-house art department for design assistance, multiple ink options (plastisol, water-based, discharge, specialty inks), and finishing services such as folding, bagging, embroidery, and numbering.

Product overview

VGkids operates as a screen printing merchandising company offering two primary product lines: Custom Shirts + Totes (apparel printing on t-shirts, hoodies, and bags) and Screen Printed Posters. The company provides downloadable Design Templates to help customers prepare artwork properly, and maintains a Portfolio Showcase displaying completed work from various artists. The service includes an online ordering platform with customization options for ink colors, garment styles, sizes, and finishing services like folding, bagging, numbering, and stamping.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Custom Shirts + Totes Custom screen-printed apparel including t-shirts, hoodies, and tote bags with options for front, back, and sleeve printing in multiple ink colors and types. Available in various garment brands (Gildan, BELLA + CANVAS, Next Level, Comfort Colors, Champion, Independent Trading Co., ASCOLOUR, Q-Tees) with quantity-based tiered pricing. Minimum order of 10 pieces per setup.
• Screen Printed Posters Custom screen-printed posters available in multiple standard sizes (8.5x11, 9x24, 11x17, 12x18, 12x36, 18x24, and 24x36) printed on various premium paper weights including 100 lb French Cardstock, Colorplan 130c, Coventry Rag, and house paper. Minimum order quantity of 50 pieces.

Quantifiable outcome

• Standard garment turnaround: typically 2 weeks
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• CustomInk: Direct competitor in custom apparel screen printing and embroidery for bands, businesses, and events. Operates at much larger scale with self-serve online design tools targeting similar SMB and group-order customers.
• Underground Printing: Custom screen printing company founded in a college town (East Lansing, MI), with similar roots in music/underground culture and comparable custom apparel and poster offerings.
• Rush Order Tees: Custom screen printing and embroidery shop specializing in fast-turnaround apparel orders. Directly competes with VGKids in custom t-shirts, hoodies, and team/group apparel.
• Real Thread: Custom apparel printing company (screen printing, embroidery, DTG) serving bands, brands, and businesses with similar premium positioning and service tiers.
• Broken Arrow Wear: Specialty screen printer focused on music merchandise, band tees, and entertainment IP prints — a closely comparable niche competitor serving similar artist and band clients.
• Threadless: Custom apparel and artist-designed t-shirt company with strong ties to the indie art community, directly comparable to VGKids' artist-collective origins.

Broad incumbents

• Printful: Large-scale print-on-demand and custom apparel company with automated fulfillment. Competes on convenience and scale rather than specialty/small-batch screen printing.
• Cimpress (Vistaprint): Mass-market printing and custom products platform. Overlaps with VGKids on custom apparel and printed materials but serves a much broader SMB audience.
• Alphabroder (now S&S Activewear): Major wholesale distributor of blank apparel and decorator supplies, supplying the same garment brands (Gildan, BELLA+CANVAS) that VGKids uses for its screen printing services.

Emerging players

• Sticker Mule: Custom printing company that has expanded from stickers into apparel and packaging — an adjacent peer that competes for some of VGKids' custom merchandise customers with a more tech-forward self-serve platform.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/vgkids
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• Instagraminstagram.com/vgkids

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 VGkids