Today we’d like to introduce you to Zach and Beth Welch.
We started Forest Ink as a graphic t-shirt company when Zach was a Sophomore in high school to promote his art. Zach was very passionate about becoming an artist. I wanted to show him how difficult promoting his art and self-employment would be, but boy did that backfire! I had a background in retail and a in retail marketing.
In the early years, we sold mostly at small local holiday bazaars, which grew into big holiday shows like Chi Omega and Neath The Wreath. Our first permanent location became a reality in 2014 when we leased a space at Frisco Mercantile. We managed to continue promoting and growing our business while Zach was getting a degree in graphic design at Stephen F Austin. In 2015, we opened our second location at Richardson Mercantile and the following year we launched our online shop www.forest-ink.com.
I have to say, making decisions on what lines to purchase for the shops can be a challenge between this 53-year-old mom and her 23-year-old son. What started out as an idea to teach Zach how difficult self-employment can be, turned out to be a successful business.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We have almost given up several times along the way. One of our biggest struggles was finding a printer that was consistent. While Zach was away at college, keeping up with designs was very challenging and we were constantly having to adjust to an ever-changing market. Time management is always an issue because although I can work at this full-time, Zach works full time as a graphic artist for Whole Foods Market.
Please tell us about Forest Ink.
Zach designs all of our graphic t-shirts by hand with pen and ink. He is fitness enthusiast and loves designing workout tanks, so that has become a new focus! We are participating in the Europa Expo in Dallas this June to promote our fitness tanks.
Although we design t-shirts year-round, we specialize on the seasonal t-s with a focus on Halloween and Christmas.
We are proud of how we have developed our business over the years and have tripled our revenue in the last year.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Beth – I had a clubhouse above my garage as a kid that my friends and I painted and decorated with cheap buys from auctions.
Zach – playing as the woods in our backyard in Minnesota with my brother.
Pricing:
- Graphic Workout Tanks $25
- Graphic t-s $36-42
- Novelty Socks $9-20
- Patches $6-9
Contact Info:
- Address: Richardson Mercantile
101 S. Coit Rd
Richardson, TX 75080Frisco Mercantile
8980 Preston RdFrisco,
TX 75034 - Website: www.forest-ink.com
- Phone: Beth 972-342-1910
- Email: info@forest-ink.com
- Instagram: @forestink or zachwwelch
- Facebook: facebook.com/forestink
- Other: www.etsy.com/shop/zach26
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