Printful and Printify Merger:
A New Era for Print-on-Demand
On November 5, 2024, two of the leading names in print-on-demand, Printful and Printify, announced their merger.
As someone who has used both platforms in the past, I was pleasantly surprised to see this headline.
Why? Because it's the equivalent of Amazon and Ebay merging, but in the Print-on-Demand space.
These are companies that anyone who has ever been in e-commerce has heard of (or used at some point).
With shared roots in Latvia, this collaboration sets the stage for unprecedented innovation, broader product offerings, and enhanced services for e-commerce entrepreneurs worldwide.
Before we jump into how this merger can benefit creators like you and me, let's talk a bit about these two companies.
What is Printful? What is Printify? Why should you care?
Printful Overview
Founded in 2013 by Lauris Liberts and Davis Siksnans, Printful assists e-commerce sellers in transforming ideas into brands and products through on-demand printing and fulfillment services.
"32 million customized products to customers all over the world. Printful integrates with the most popular ecommerce platforms and marketplaces, including Shopify, Etsy, WooCommerce, Wix, and Squarespace." - Printful
The company operates in-house production facilities across multiple continents, including a fulfillment center in Riga, Latvia, and fulfills over one million items monthly. In 2021, Printful raised $130 million in a Series A funding round, achieving a valuation exceeding $1 billion and becoming Latvia's first unicorn.
Printify Overview
Established in 2015 by Artis Kehris, Gatis Dukurs, and James Berdigans, Printify connects sellers with over 85 production partners across 117 locations worldwide. It focuses on small-to-medium businesses and has processed over 60 million orders to date.
"Not surprisingly, Printify’s largest market resides in the US where they now serve over 2 million registered creators." - Tech.eu
Printify also raised $45 million in its Series A funding round in 2021.
Why should you care?
To put it simply, these two companies innovated how people with no experience in merchandising can create merchandise
They made it super simple for people like me to create customized products such as apparel, home goods and other accessories. You simply have to:
pick your product (from a huge selection)
upload your design
add it to your Shopify store (or any other e-commerce platform e.g Etsy, WooCommerce, Wix, and Squarespace.)
Whether you own a company, run a YouTube channel, create content on social media, or are just trying to get into the e-commerce sphere, you'd be surprised at how simple it has become to create merchandise.
The creator economy has been growing drastically, especially after Covid, and there has never been a better time to follow your passions and create content around what you are passionate about.
I remember when I wanted to shift from drop-shipping through Aliexpress to something more reliable with better quality, better shipping, better tracking, etc. I landed on Printful.
I initially thought that the process of setting up a store, finding manufacturers, integrating tracking, etc. would be the hard part.
Turns out designing the products was the hard part, as I managed to setup the store and integrate Printful within a few hours.
All I had to do was create amazing design and market my store. I did have a few sales, but I wasn't able to continue working as I went to the military shortly after.
However, now that I have a deeper understanding on how to market, build websites and have established an audience, the though of diving back into e-commerce has been on my mind. Maybe it should be on yours too!
Okay, we've established each company and why you should care; now it's time to talk about what this merger means.
Benefits of the Merger
Firstly, we need to outline the main differences between each company in order to understand the benefits of this synergy.
Printful - Excels in building in-house production and fulfilling up to 1 million items a month.
Printify - Has a strong network of over 85 third-party production partners across 117 locations.
They complement each other by providing the same services through slightly different sourcing processes.
Better Product Selection:
Customers will now enjoy a broader product range, combining Printful’s in-house capabilities with Printify’s extensive third-party network.Improved Fulfillment:
The combined resources aim to deliver faster and more reliable fulfillment options for businesses of all sizes.Economic Impact:
By maintaining headquarters and production facilities in Riga, the merger cements Latvia as a key hub for tech innovation and entrepreneurship.
I'm more excited about being able to access a larger product catalogue. This is actually how I came to find out about Printify.
At one point in the recent past, I had an idea to create puzzles using images I generated through Midjourney.
I do not know the first thing about sourcing puzzles. So I got to researching to determine the feasibility of this idea.
And it was then that I stumbled on Printify, since Printful didn't offer that product.
You're probably wondering… That's actually a good idea, using AI and these fulfillment services to create a brand that you can operate from your laptop… I know. It's crazy how simple it has become. What a time to be alive!
Sooooo what other products could you source from Printify & Printful?
Thousands! I can't list them all but I'll share some of my favorites.
Supplements
Pickleball Kit
Puzzles
Mugs, Posters, Stickers
and hundreds of other choices!
This merger isn’t just a win for the companies. It is a significant moment for the broader print-on-demand industry. It reflects the trend of consolidation; industry leaders are combining strengths to better serve customers, from solo entrepreneurs to large enterprises.
Disclaimer: Written by a Human
This article was written by a human. As such, please always DYOR - Do your own research. No paid sponsorships are included in this article.
