Profitability of a print only studio.

[dgberg]

No trade secrets here, just the way it is. I know quite a few folks that want to sell their prints and of course print all the work themselves. I learned the hard way very early on that running a business off of printing alone can be bleak to say the least. It took several years to figure this out but today prints alone are about 20% of sales. That remaining 80% is photo mounting, framing and gallery wrapping. The money is in my framing and mounting shop. For example I am presently working on two larger canvas prints, 70x40 and 60x40. Both mounted to gatorboard in Larson-Juhl frames. The canvas prints alone would be around $450. Completely framed and ready to hang $1650.
To hand those prints to a client to take to a framer would cost me about $1200 in lost money. I realize not everyone has the shop space or the desire to mount and frame their own work but I can tell you if you want to make a true business with some real revenue it is the way to go. The print on demand craze has hurt many businesses like mine but there are still enough local artisans that want a local craftsman to do their work.

[mearussi]

Interesting, thanks for sharing this information.

[Panagiotis]

No trade secrets here, just the way it is. I know quite a few folks that want to sell their prints and of course print all the work themselves. I learned the hard way very early on that running a business off of printing alone can be bleak to say the least. It took several years to figure this out but today prints alone are about 20% of sales. That remaining 80% is photo mounting, framing and gallery wrapping. The money is in my framing and mounting shop. For example I am presently working on two larger canvas prints, 70x40 and 60x40. Both mounted to gatorboard in Larson-Juhl frames. The canvas prints alone would be around $450. Completely framed and ready to hang $1650.
To hand those prints to a client to take to a framer would cost me about $1200 in lost money. I realize not everyone has the shop space or the desire to mount and frame their own work but I can tell you if you want to make a true business with some real revenue it is the way to go. The print on demand craze has hurt many businesses like mine but their are still enough local artisans that want a local craftsman to do their work.

I have the same experience. I started printing only but everyone wanted framing or mounting also. So I found local suppliers for frames, mats and rigid materials and I know offer the finished product.

[louismccullagh]

I never used a framer and never gave the client a choice. I used bought in black metal frames.

If you use a framer I would go ahead but price the final product but add on the profit you would have made if you had framed it yourself. Then give the client both prices which ever they choose you make the same profit.

You should get a trade discount from the framer!

[Chris_Brown]

No trade secrets here, just the way it is. I know quite a few folks that want to sell their prints and of course print all the work themselves. I learned the hard way very early on that running a business off of printing alone can be bleak to say the least. It took several years to figure this out but today prints alone are about 20% of sales. That remaining 80% is photo mounting, framing and gallery wrapping. The money is in my framing and mounting shop. For example I am presently working on two larger canvas prints, 70x40 and 60x40. Both mounted to gatorboard in Larson-Juhl frames. The canvas prints alone would be around $450. Completely framed and ready to hang $1650.
To hand those prints to a client to take to a framer would cost me about $1200 in lost money. I realize not everyone has the shop space or the desire to mount and frame their own work but I can tell you if you want to make a true business with some real revenue it is the way to go. The print on demand craze has hurt many businesses like mine but their are still enough local artisans that want a local craftsman to do their work.

How much of the material you print & mount is shipped? Is it a PITA?

[dgberg]

Almost none. That would be a killer for me. (Hate wrapping stuff. Most of what I ship is printed canvas in a roll. Easy Peasy,
Presently lots of local work.

[Benny Profane]

A local photographer I admire and watch a lot works as a team with the husband, who does the framing. Pretty basic framing, but, she offers prints framed (which are very nice) at sometimes less than what a lot of photographers would charge for print only. Certainly not privy to her finances, but, I think she's fairly successful.

[John Nollendorfs]

Twenty some years ago when I  got my first Epson 9000, I was primarily a commercial photographer that wanted to make my own large prints. Life evolved, I invesitgated more archival inks, even tried to market more archival dye inks in the beginning for artists friends that wanted limited edition art prints done. At the time, making good reproduction prints via inkjet was hard. First problem was how to digitize the image (first digital  cameras were lucky to be 6MP expensive and not good enough for  large prints). Shooting 4x5 copy transparencies, and scanning those was expensive too, and trying to match the original's colors, very hard.

Now, business has changed, and commercial photography in a small market has pretty much dissappeared. National magazine work has dropped off the face of the world. My business has changed primarily into art reprodiuction copying and printing. The copying and printing to match the originals has become much  easier.

My most profitable  segment is canvas printing and stretching. I started off just printing, and  handed off the stretching to a local framer. Then I wised up, and started doing the stretching also, cutting delivery times in half, and making twice as much money off one print. Most of my art repro work is local. within a 100 mile radius.
John Nollendorfs

[dgberg]

Thank you John for your input. Gallery wraps are still popular here in se Pa. The canvas on gatorboard in frames is rapidly taking over around here. Many of the artisans I sell to just like the presentation better. Also less worries about the damage issues many have with gallery wraps. (A lot of scuffed corners) it is quite a bit of handling taking several dozen gallery wraps to an art show without messing up some corners. I started spraying a third coat of varnish on the corners which has helped some.

[mearussi]

Thank you John for your input. Gallery wraps are still popular here in se Pa. The canvas on gatorboard in frames is rapidly taking over around here. Many of the artisans I sell to just like the presentation better. Also less worries about the damage issues many have with gallery wraps. (A lot of scuffed corners) it is quite a bit of handling taking several dozen gallery wraps to an art show without messing up some corners. I started spraying a third coat of varnish on the corners which has helped some.

I just put mine in plastic trash bags.

[dgberg]

The damage is not at my end but from the resellers mishandling. All it takes is a little care to keep them like new.

[Roscolo]

For example I am presently working on two larger canvas prints, 70x40 and 60x40. Both mounted to gatorboard in Larson-Juhl frames. The canvas prints alone would be around $450. Completely framed and ready to hang $1650.
To hand those prints to a client to take to a framer would cost me about $1200 in lost money. I realize not everyone has the shop space or the desire to mount and frame their own work but I can tell you if you want to make a true business with some real revenue it is the way to go. The print on demand craze has hurt many businesses like mine but their are still enough local artisans that want a local craftsman to do their work.

Your post is perfectly timed for me. I've been looking for a laminator. My customers have been taking the mounting elsewhere, which is fine, but it's a natural progression for me to offer the service since the places they take them (sign shops) are doing less than stellar work.

What laminator do you use / recommend?

[Richard.Wills]

I've been on a Drytac JM44 for the last dozen or so years, use it daily for mounting and laminating. I'll flood coat materials (Kapamount, Forex, sometimes dibond) straight off a roll of self wound adhesive (sometimes, with gloss prints, I'll use facemount adhesive, but I tend to avoid these orders).

If I were doing canvas, I'd consider a heated top roller for lamination, but I only print canvas for a couple of artists who do their own stretcing. I don't have spraying facilities.

If you're looking to laminate prints, I'd definately get a motorised laminator - leaves you with a free hand to remove dust from prints.

My next laminator will likely be 60", have heated top roller, and have a motorised take up reel for roll to roll work. We now do enough banner printing and self adhesive vinyl to make this worth while. It'll also open up the option of laminating Phototex, which i think we'll need as we're aqueous printing.

We're a film processing, scanning, exhibition printing and mounting, but not framing studio.