Proxy Sales vs. Licensing
Proxy sales are where you make the art and you make the stuff, but then you have someone else sell things for you at an art show, at a convention, in a shop, etc. This works for many people, but a proxy sale is only one kind of arrangement–there are many more that may suit your needs! Proxy sales come with a lot of risk (money invested to create the products ahead of time, guessing what products will sell well, shipping costs and risks, etc.), so how about a way to sell your art with little risk?
Licensing can sound like a grand-scale, official word that only big corporations can use, but you can license your art to people too! All it means is that you allow someone some rights to do things with your art (use, make items to sell, etc.) and you can determine what rights that person gets. You don’t have to let go of the art unconditionally–it still stays yours, and you can make some money off of it too!
Licensing Arrangements
It’s all about making more opportunities to get your artwork out there and available for people to purchase and enjoy! You get paid for the awesome stuff you design, and we create the custom products on-demand.
We love working with artists and have a variety of arrangements available for licensing artwork to print and sell. Here are some of the most common licensing arrangements:
Art Purchase (we buy the art from you)
- One payment up-front
- Art transfers to us – we own it (but there can be some conditions/limitations for use)
- You can keep a license to use (make/sell/keep on social media etc.)
- Permanent
Limited Rights Purchase (we get some rights, you keep ownership)
- One payment up-front
- We get a license (to make/sell/advertise items)
- You keep ownership (and can license it to others, sell items, etc.)
- Can be permanent or with a duration
Royalty (you keep ownership, we sell stuff, you get money for what gets sold)
- Ongoing payments based on sales (if we sell items with your art on it, you get a cut!)
- We get a license (to make/sell/advertise items)
- You keep ownership (and can license it to others, sell items, etc.)
- Generally has a duration, or at least until canceled
Short Run (you keep ownership, we get the rights to print a limited number of items)
- One payment up-front
- We purchase a license to make a limited number of items (10, 20, 50, etc.)
- You keep ownership (and can license it to others, sell items, etc.)
- Has a definite duration, based on the number of prints agreed on
None of these sound like the right fit for you? Want to keep control of the entire process? You can DIY your own products using our machines!
