Hiring a T-Shirt Designer? Need to know how and where to find the best candidates? Here is a comprehensive guide to finding the best T-Shirt Designers. Read on!
How to hire a T Shirt Designer?
Who are T shirt designers? Tshirt Designers are professionals who create unique and appealing t shirt graphic design for t-shirts. T-shirt designers are usually proficient in graphic designing and other software that enable them to create t-shirt designs.
If you are a recruiter looking to hire t shirt designer to help you with a t-shirt design then this guide will walk you through all the necessary steps and provide information you should know before hiring someone. It includes topics such as market trends, skills, and qualifications to look out for, interview questions, popular job boards, etc.
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Hiring market for a T Shirt Designer
T-shirt designing is a huge industry worldwide. It generated a revenue of 562 million dollars in the USA in the year 2019. This industry has shown a growth rate of 9.5% annually for the last five years. Almost 181 businesses are active in the field of t-shirt designing.
The global custom t-shirt printing market is expected to rise by a CAGR of 6.3% through the forecast period from 2019 to 2027. The markets of North America and Europe are going to have a sluggish growth rate compensated by the increased demand from Asia Pacific regions.
The anticipated growth rate in Asia Pacific countries such as China, India, the Philippines, Malaysia, etc is due to the rise in e-commerce and evolving fashion awareness among the masses. Custom t-shirts are emerging as a popular attire due to their low cost and easy availability.
It not only lets people showcase their interests but also proves as a great marketing tool for companies. This has led to an increase in demand for a t shirt graphic designer who can provide unique designs based on customer requirements. Freelance t shirt design artist is in demand to work on a project-to-project basis.
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Top 15 recent job titles for T Shirt Designers
T shirt graphic design company hire t shirt design illustrator for several roles based on their interest, expertise, experience, qualifications, skill set, etc. Here are the different job titles for which companies are hiring t-shirt designers,
1. Visual Merchandisers
Visual Merchandisers are responsible to create attractive designs to make appealing and eye-catching visual displays for retail outlets. To apply for this job role a minimum of 1-2 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $44,231 is offered to people working as Visual Merchandisers.
2. Graphics Designer
A Graphics Designer is responsible for creating visual communications through illustrations, logos, layouts, and photos. They work closely with UX designers. To apply for this job role a relevant experience of 2-3 years is required. An annual average salary of $49,282 is offered at Graphics Designer roles.
3. Product Designer
Product Designer holds the responsibility of designing and developing consumer products. They are responsible for the user experience of the product. To apply for this job role a minimum of 2-3 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $121155 is offered at Product Designer roles.
4. Creative Designer
Creative Designer usually works in the marketing and advertising sector of the company focusing on creating different materials such as brochures, product labels, etc. To apply for this job an experience of 1-2 years is required. An annual average salary of $45,677 is offered to Creative Designers.
5. Associate Graphic Designer
Associate Graphic Designers are entry-level graphic designers who assist senior graphic designers in fulfilling orders or tasks as assigned. To apply for this job role a minimum of 0-1 years of relevant experience is required. An annual average salary of $50713 is offered to Associate Graphic Designers.
6. T-shirt Production Artist
A T-shirt Production Artist develops, prints, and sketches creative ideas for T-shirts. They are responsible for bringing ideas to life on a t-shirt. To apply for this job role a minimum of 1-2 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $56,074 is offered.
7. Illustrator
Illustrators are artists who use their creative skills to create original artwork for different printed and digital products as per the client briefing. To apply for this job role a minimum of 0-1 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $56,090 is offered to Illustrators.
8. Graphic T-shirt Designer
Graphic T-shirt Designer is graphic designers who specialize in creating designs for T-shirts based on the client’s requirements. To apply for this job role a minimum of 2-3 years of relevant experience is required. An annual average salary of $46,000 is offered to Graphic T-shirt Designers.
9. Fashion Designer – Tshirt
Fashion Designer who works specifically in designing and creating t-shirts are known as Fashion Designer – Tshirt. To apply for this job role a minimum of 1-2 years of relevant experience is required. An annual average salary of $39,000 is offered at Fashion Designer – Tshirt job roles.
10. Streetwear Designer
A Streetwear Designer specializes in designing casual clothing such as t-shirts, jeans, footwear, sneakers, etc which is suitable for daily wear. To apply for this job role a minimum of 2-3 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $53,030 is offered to Streetwear Designers.
11. Custom T-shirt Designer
Custom T-shirt Designer is responsible for designing T-shirts for specific functions, events, brands, or purposes for a particular brand or individual. To apply for this job role an experience of 1-2 years is required. An annual average salary of $50,000 is offered to Custom T-shirt Designers.
12. Apparel Designer
Apparel designers are responsible for creating original clothes, footwear, and accessories based on current fashion trends that will be appealing to the customers. To apply for this job role an experience of 1-2 years is required. An annual average salary of $68,960 is offered to Apparel Designers.
13. Junior Graphic Designer
Junior Graphic Designer is an entry-level job role that employs fresh graduates and new candidates in the industry. They generally assist senior-level design professionals. To apply for this job role a relevant experience of 0-1 year is required. An annual average salary of $53,680 is offered.
14. Senior Graphic Designer
Senior Graphic Designers are responsible for managing a team of graphic designers under them and delegating several tasks to them. To apply for this job role a minimum of 4-5 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $76,980 is offered to Senior Designers.
15. Apparel Color Designer
Apparel Color Designer is a color consultant that creates color solutions as per the client’s needs. They specialize in the effects of colors. To apply for this job role a minimum of 1-2 years of experience is required. An annual average salary of $59,176 is offered.
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Qualifications to look for in T Shirt Designer
Recruiters should look for the following qualifications while looking for t shirt designers for hire,
1. Bachelor’s Degree
A t-shirt designer should have a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree or Associate’s degree preferably in Fashion Designing, Graphic Designing, or related fields. Although having a degree is not a necessity to become a teeshirt designer. A GED certification is enough to pursue a career in t-shirt designing. We have listed down some renowned graphic designing institutes,
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of Florida
- Boston University
- University of Miami
- Rhode Island School of Design
2. Certification Courses
Knowledge of Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator is mandatory hence an online or offline certification showing such proficiency is desirable. Candidates can also opt for Graphic Design courses if there is no prior knowledge. Several online learning sites such as Coursera, Udemy, Skillshare have plenty of classes covering different aspects of t-shirt designing.
3. Create Portfolio
A t-shirt designer must start creating unique designs to add to their portfolio. Internships and small opportunities might help in building up the portfolio and enhance the designing skills. Knowledge of different designing software is an added skill. A portfolio gives an insight into designers’ work.
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Skills to look for in T Shirt Designer
While looking for t shirt graphic designers for hire, recruiters should watch out for the following technical and non-technical skills in a graphic tee designer,
1. Adobe Photoshop – The candidate should show proficiency in Adobe Photoshop as it is an important tool for t-shirt designing process.
2. Adobe Illustrator – Adobe Illustrator is another tool frequently used by professional t shirt design artists to illustrate their ideas.
3. Creativity – A creative and artistic mindset is required to churn out new and fresh ideas every time.
4. Graphic Designing skill – A graphic designer for tshirts must be skilled in graphic designing tools and techniques.
5. Detail-oriented – A detail-oriented mindset helps avoid mistakes in the design process.
6. Professionalism – It is not only necessary to create a design but also to deliver them within the timeframe. Professionalism is highly required.
7. Communication skills – Good communication skills help explain ideas to others and understand the client’s requirements.
8. Perfectionist – When it comes to designing one has to be a perfectionist to deliver the most flawless designs.
9. Resilience – Resilience is a virtue that keeps artists going despite failures and hardships.
10. CorelDraw – Candidate must show theoretical and hands-on knowledge of t-shirt designing software such as CorelDraw.
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Certifications to look for in T Shirt Designer
While going through the potential candidate profiles, recruiters can keep an eye out for the following certifications,
1. T-shirt Design Workshop 01: Foundation
This is an on-demand course for people who want to create a design on t-shirt and want to pursue a career as a graphic artist for t shirt design. It includes 9 class projects for the students to get a practical learning experience of tshirt printing.
2. Designing Graphic T-shirts Class Online
This open lesson video by CreativeLive helps designers and illustrators to learn the art of t-shirt designing. It teaches what kind of graphics work the best, position and coloring in tshirt, etc. to be able to create professional t shirt designs.
3. Designing Effective T-shirt Graphics
This online video is hosted by Skillshare and targeted towards entrepreneurs and graphic designers. It takes through the different elements of illustration, design, promotion, etc.
4. Learn T-shirt Printing and Design
This is a LinkedIn tutorial which is designed for people who want to learn to design and to produce t shirt with fine printing.
5. The Definitive Guide to T-shirt Design and Manufacturing
This online tutorial by skillshare gives a complete insight into the process of tshirt designing.
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Rate per hour of T Shirt Designer
T shirt graphics designer are mostly paid on a per-project basis. Few Freelance tshirt designer professionals can also be hired on a per-hour basis on a permanent position. The rates may vary according to the type of employment, job location, years of experience, skillset, etc. Freelance t-shirt design artists on Upwork charge between $15 to $150 per hour as per their design portfolio.
In the United States, the average annual pay for shirt designers is $31,880 per year. The average hourly rate of $25 is charged by t shirt graphic designers. Europe has almost similar rates for hiring tshirt graphic designers when it comes to availing t-shirt design services. An average annual rate of $32 per hour is charged in Europe and UK.
Most of the t shirt design work is being outsourced to South Asian countries such as China, India, the Philippines, Malaysia, Japan, etc due to the easy availability of cheap labor. The cost of designing and printing are both low in these countries making it a top potential t-shirt market. Freelance tshirt design artists can be hired at as low as $9 per hour.
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Top 10 job boards to find best T Shirt Designer
To find the best t shirt designer for your project, it is necessary to prepare an enticing job description that has details of the project and the company. This detailed job description should then be posted on several job boards to target the respective professionals and reach the maximum number. Search for “T shirt designer near me” to find designers in your area. We have listed down the top 10 job boards that would help in finding top tshirt designers,
- Upwork
- Freelancer
- Behance
- unremot.com
- Guru
- PeoplePerHour
- Fiverr
- Dribbble
- 99designs
- Printful
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Top 10 companies hiring T Shirt Designer and salaries offered
We have listed down the top 10 companies that are hiring tee shirt designers and their respective salaries,
- UberPrints is an online custom printing company that is hiring merch designers at an annual salary of $38816 annually.
- Shirts N More Inc is a screen printing shop hiring designers at $58958 annually.
- Thekyshop is a vintage apparel brand looking to hire custom tshirt designers at $34,000 -$46,000 per annum.
- TravisMatthews is a golf apparel and lifestyle brand hiring graphic t shirt designer at $59,000 -81,000 annually.
- Eighty Sixed is a premiere merchandising and apparel brand hiring tee shirt graphic design artists at $47k -61k per annum.
- Haddad Brands is a leading children’s wear manufacturer looking for a shirt graphic designer at $71k -91k annually.
- Garney Construction is a leader in water and wastewater construction hiring designers at $44k -63k per year.
- Everlane is an American clothing retailer hiring t-shirt graphic design artists at $38k -52k per annum.
- Bethel Bakery in Pittsburgh is looking for a t shirt design illustrator at $28 -36k per annum.
- Think Pro is a graphics and printing company offering $34k -49k per annum.
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Top 10 interview questions for T Shirt Designer
Here are the top 10 interview questions recruiters should be asking the potential t shirt design illustrator candidates,
1. How do you approach a new project?
Rationale: Helps in understanding the problem-solving capability of the candidate.
Sample Answer: Look for candidates who have a process in mind to handle a new project. They should be able to understand the client’s requirements and challenges and work through them to provide solutions.
2. What are your methods to handle conflict with a client?
Rationale: This question will help see if the candidate is resilient.
Sample Answer: Candidates must tell what they do to stand their ground and at the same time remain respectful and professional. They should be able to have an honest conversation with the client.
3. What do you think makes a good Tshirt designer?
Rationale: This will let you know the candidate’s priorities and motivation.
Sample Answer: See if the designer is covering the necessary skills required to be a good t-shirt designer and also including design terms in the conversation.
4. What design products do you admire the most?
Rationale: This gives an insight into the candidate’s character and preferences.
Sample Answer: Candidates should explain the design products they like most along with reasons including technical jargon to support their choice.
5. What kind of clients do you look out for?
Rationale: Check your compatibility with the candidate with this question.
Sample Answer: There are no wrong answers to this question. Look out if there are any deal breakers from either side concerning payment method, working style, management style, etc.
6. Could you take us through your design process?
Rationale: To understand their working style.
Sample Answer: Candidates should be able to explain in detail their working style and the process of handling newly assigned projects.
7. Please walk me through your portfolio.
Rationale: To see the designer’s previous work and assess their skills.
Sample Answer: Candidate can show their portfolio in an online or offline format displaying both professional and personal projects. They can also showcase their personal favorites.
8. What motivates you the most about T-shirt designing?
Rationale: This question will help you in understanding where a designer drives motivation and inspiration.
Sample Answer: There are several places from where a designer can take inspiration. Candidates should mention what keeps them motivated and passionate to pursue tshirt designing as a career.
9. Tell me about the project you are most proud of and Why?
Rationale: Allows seeing the candidate’s best work.
Sample Answer: Candidate can either show their best work or tell about it in detail giving technical reasons about why it is their favorite. They can include their hardships, failures, success, learnings from this particular project.
10. How do you deal with feedback?
Rationale: To see if the candidate can take healthy criticism.
Sample Answer: It is important to take feedback positively to improve further. Candidates should showcase that quality with examples from their previous projects.
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