Pricing, Confidence, and Growth
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The Hardest Lesson in Running a Print Shop: Pricing, Confidence, and Growth
Running a print shop is one of the most rewarding challenges I’ve ever taken on — but it has also been one of the most humbling.
Today I want to talk about one of the biggest hardships we’ve faced at Ztrange DeSigns: understanding pricing, building confidence, and learning the true value of our work. I’ll share our successes, our failures, and some of the things I wish I had known before stepping into management.
This will be part of an ongoing series where I document the real experiences behind building a print and signage company.
Learning the Machines Before Learning the Margins
In the beginning, a tremendous amount of time was spent simply familiarizing ourselves with the machines.
We had to understand:
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How to properly run each machine
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How to fix each machine
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What materials each machine required
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How long it took to produce a finished product
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How consumables affected long-term cost
Every detail mattered. Ink usage, cutting bits, blade wear, film waste, maintenance cycles — it all had to be accounted for.
All of this eventually flowed into pricing.
And that’s where things became difficult.
The Early Pricing Struggle
When I started managing Ztrange, I understood business conceptually — but I didn’t consider myself a professional. Pricing custom products is not as straightforward as it seems.
In the early stages, I struggled.
I wanted to win clients. I wanted opportunities. I didn’t want to lose a job over price.
So sometimes, I undersold.
I priced nervously.
I discounted too quickly.
And what I learned is this:
Underselling does not build confidence. It builds pressure.
Over time, I began to grow more comfortable standing behind our numbers.
Mentorship and Confidence
One of the most pivotal moments for me was meeting Facundo Miller, owner of SVN Designs in Miami, Florida.
I spent a month mentoring under Facundo. During that time, I was able to:
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Compare their pricing structure to ours
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Analyze materials differently
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Understand cost efficiency at scale
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Most importantly — gain confidence
If you truly believe your product is worth a certain amount because of quality, innovation, and craftsmanship — you must price it accordingly.
Someone will see the value.
Never sell yourself short.
Pricing Is Not Static
Even today, pricing is not something you “set and forget.”
Wholesale suppliers adjust pricing. Material costs fluctuate. Shipping changes. Ink and consumables increase.
We constantly adapt.
One tool that has helped tremendously is ShopVox, an online POS system designed specifically for custom manufacturing businesses like print shops, sign companies, and apparel decorators.
ShopVox makes it much easier to:
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Build product pricing formulas
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Track materials
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Calculate machine rates
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Maintain consistent quoting
That said, no system is perfect. We’ve experienced frustrations integrating ShopVox with QuickBooks — particularly when matching check payments that deposit into QuickBooks but don’t properly reflect inside ShopVox.
But overall, it has been a powerful tool for understanding machine and material pricing at scale.
Competitive Research (Yes, We Did It)
Another strategy I used — and still occasionally use — is reaching out to other print shops.
Sometimes I would send a project request (as a customer) to compare pricing. This gave me:
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A real market comparison
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Insight into regional pricing trends
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A benchmark for quality and turnaround
From there, I could evaluate:
Are we faster?
Is our quality better?
Are our materials superior?
If so, we price accordingly.
Confidence comes from knowing your value relative to the market — not just guessing.
The “Friend Discount” Trap
Here’s another lesson I wish I knew earlier:
Stop giving friend discounts.
If someone genuinely wants to support your business, they will.
Undervaluing your product rarely translates into long-term growth — unless you have a strategic marketing plan behind it.
If you discount, it should be calculated:
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Are you running paid ads?
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How many conversions are needed to break even?
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What is the lifetime value of the customer?
Discounting without strategy is just margin erosion.
Where We Are Today
At our current stage, pricing is something we review constantly. It’s dynamic. It evolves with the market, materials, and our internal efficiencies.
We’ve learned that:
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Quality justifies price.
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Confidence closes deals.
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Systems create consistency.
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Underselling creates stress.
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Growth requires refinement.
Pricing was one of our biggest struggles — and continues to be one of our most important disciplines.
What’s Next
This will be a continuous series where I break down the real lessons behind building Ztrange DeSigns.
In the next post, I’ll talk about something that may be even harder than pricing:
Getting sales.
In my opinion, it’s one of the most challenging parts of building any successful business.
Thanks for taking the time to follow along with our journey.
— Isaiah