Merchandise

Two models sit under the word. Print on demand makes each item as the order comes in, so there is no stock and no money down, and the margin per unit is thin. Buying inventory reverses all of that: better margins, cash tied up in boxes, and somebody has to pack them. Most creators start with the first and move to the second once a design sells reliably. The mistake is treating merch as passive income. It is a product business with returns, sizing complaints and customer emails attached, and it lives or dies on whether the design stands up on its own.