CafePress Launches Tfund, an Apparel-based Fundraising Platform

On September 10, 2013, CafePress Inc. introduced Tfund.com, the new fundraising platform that enables groups, organizations or individuals to fundraise through sales of T-shirts for projects, charitable organizations or events without incurring overhead expenses.

Tfund easily allows users to set a fundraising goal, design custom T-shirts or leverage content from CafePress.com, and pre-sell them in support of a cause or event without any upfront expenses.

"Fundraising opportunities have exploded with the advent of crowd-funded campaigns," said Patrick Cerreta of CafePress. "Tfund is unique in that it gives campaigners a quick, easy and no-cost way to start earning money for a special cause or idea."

Most groups and organizations fundraise through the sale of T-shirts by anticipating necessary inventory of T-shirts to benefit a cause or event. But Tfund eliminates the need for initial investment or risk because T-shirts are only produced and shipped once the minimum sales goal is obtained.

It takes just four quick steps for a campaigner to set up a Tfund fundraiser:

• Create a T-shirt: An intuitive interface guides organizers to quickly design a T-shirt with text, art and color, utilizing pre-formatted design templates or allowing uploads of existing artwork or logos. Campaigners may also utilize certain content from www.cafepress.com to support their project.
• Establish a Goal: Set a T-shirt price and sales threshold.
• Raise Awareness: Spread the word through social media and email campaigns that direct supporters to the unique campaign URL generated when the fundraiser is launched.
• Earn Money: There is no maximum on the amount of net revenue that can be earned by the campaigner.

Once the threshold goal is met, Tfund collects the money, produces the T-shirts and fulfills the orders (including shipping and customer service). The campaigner then receives their check from CafePress for the net revenue from the sales. If content was leveraged from www.cafepress.com for a campaign, the designer may receive a royalty on net revenue as well.