Dylan

Still the default source for a first store, but everything around it has changed: shipping options, competition, and the margin on a $29.99 product.

A $24 shirt leaves about $6.30. What POD really costs, how Printful, Printify and Gelato differ, and the decision no POD tool makes for you.

Registration, the 6% referral fee, creator commissions and fulfillment, plus how to pick products before you list a single one.

The thread goes viral every few months, then the authors go quiet. What the live store and ad counts say, and what genuinely died.

Two useless answers dominate this question. The real ranges, why most stores make nothing, and the three levers that move your own number.

Product first, not niche first. The full sequence from supplier to first ad test, with a $300 to $500 launch budget and honest margins.

Eight failures that repeat across new stores, from no proof of demand to killing ads before the data lands. Each one with its fix.

Six ordered steps from a blank store to a live ad test, including the payments, shipping and policy setup that everyone skips.

Eight sections, no MBA filler: model, market, product, marketing, financials and operations, with the numbers you actually have to fill in.