Industry voices.
What practitioners are really talking about, on forums, in podcasts and at trade shows. Community monitoring: Reddit, T-Shirt Forums, Discord, YouTube, the trade press.
The topics that keep coming back
Aggregate sources: Impressions — Year in Review 2025 · ASI — PRINTING United 2025 · Screen Printing Mag · Talk Shop · Nessan Cleary
Cautionary tale Procolored: malware in DTF printer drivers
The budget DTF manufacturer distributed malware-laced drivers (including a Bitcoin stealer) for ~6 months — a YouTube reviewer caught it, and security firm G DATA confirmed it. The case deeply shook trust in cheap machines across decorator communities and sent “buyer beware” threads soaring on the forums.
Sources: BleepingComputer · G DATA
Where the conversation happens Community map
Reddit: r/printondemand (80K+ members), r/screenprinting, r/Tshirtprinting, r/dtfprinting, r/EtsySellers. Forums: T-Shirt Forums is still running, with its own DTF subforum, and what keeps coming back there is buying advice and doubt. “DTF - Hype versus Reality (do your own testing advised)” has been open since May 2024 and was still drawing replies in July 2026; so has “Is DTF dying slowly”, open since May 2025. Discord: Printful Official, Printify Community, POD Profits (~12K), Print on Demand Insiders (~8K), Shirt Show (screen printing). Facebook: the Screen Printing Q&A (14K+) and Print Hustlers groups.
Sources: Talk Shop 2026 · T-Shirt Forums · Printavo
Audio / video Podcasts and channels worth subscribing to
Podcasts (active, 2026): 2 Regular Guys · Custom Apparel Startups (ColDesi) · Shirt Show (Upstate Merch) · Print Hustlers (Inktavo) · Apparel Academy (Ricoma). YouTube — production: Ryonet, CatspitProductions, Stahls’ TV, Mikey Designs. YouTube — POD selling: Wholesale Ted, Michael Essek, Cassiy Johnson, Ryan Hogue, Detour Shirts. Newsletters: Merch Momentum (Essany), michaelessek.com, the Impressions and Images eNews.
Sources: 2RG · CAS · Feedspot · Merch Momentum
20 voices worth following
| Who | Where | Specialty |
|---|---|---|
| Marshall Atkinson | Consulting, Impressions columns | Shop strategy, AI adoption |
| Nessan Cleary | Printing & Manufacturing Journal | Independent DTF/DTG technology analysis |
| Debbie McKeegan | WhatTheyThink, FESPA Textile Ambassador | Textile trends, sustainability |
| Josh Ellsworth | Stahls' TV / LinkedIn | Heat printing, POD fulfilment at scale |
| Nicole Rollender | Screen Printing Magazine | Industry outlooks, shop management |
| Rick Roth | The Ink Kitchen | Veteran voice of screen printing |
| Erich Campbell | erichcampbell.com, trade columns | Embroidery and digitizing |
| Aaron Montgomery & Terry Combs | 2 Regular Guys podcast | The decoration and personalization business |
| Mark Stephenson & Marc Vila | Custom Apparel Startups podcast | DTF/embroidery economics for startups |
| Dylan Gilligan | Shirt Show + Discord | Screen-shop life, production technique |
| Michael Essek | Newsletter, YouTube | T-shirt design strategy, licensing |
| Michael Essany | Merch Momentum | POD niche research (weekly) |
| Cassiy Johnson | YouTube | Etsy POD tactics, store audits |
| Sarah Chrisp (Wholesale Ted) | YouTube | E-commerce/POD strategy |
| Ryan Hogue | YouTube | Amazon Merch, POD automation |
| Juna (Detour Shirts) | YouTube | Daily design, Merch by Amazon |
| Ryonet / ScreenPrinting.com | YouTube, blog | Screen printing education |
| Jonathan (CatspitProductions) | YouTube | No-nonsense screen printing tutorials |
| Sin (TshirtChick) | YouTube | T-shirt business + screen printing |
| Henry Ma | Apparel Academy podcast (Ricoma) | Embroidery/apparel entrepreneurship |
Subscriber counts and the channel roundup: Feedspot (list updated Jul 2, 2026) · Feedspot podcasts · Qikink. Counts move; these are the figures that list printed. Each name links to the person, not to the list they appear on.