Custom Pins Manufacturer

Starting an enamel pin business can be an exciting venture! Here are some steps to help you get started:

Market Research: Identify your target audience and understand their preferences, interests, and buying behavior. Research competitors in the enamel pin market to understand pricing, designs, and market trends.

Define Your Niche: Determine what sets your enamel pins apart from competitors. Consider unique designs, themes, or customization options. Decide if you want to focus on a specific niche or cater to a broader audience.

Create Designs: Develop a range of enamel pin designs that appeal to your target audience. You can hire designers or create designs yourself if you have the skills. Consider themes, colors, and styles that resonate with your target market. Hire a designer or using the suppliers’ artist team to finalize your designs.

Choose Suppliers: Find reliable suppliers for manufacturing your enamel pins. Look for suppliers with experience in producing high-quality enamel pins. Consider factors such as pricing, production time, minimum order quantities, and shipping options. As a starter you may try to find an original factory, like buysupermerch.com instead of a middleman. No minimum order quantity is required and the pricing is affordable for small business.

Set Up an Online Store: Create an online store or website to showcase your enamel pins and facilitate sales. Platforms like Shopify, Etsy, or Big Cartel are popular choices for selling enamel pins. Optimize your store with high-quality images, detailed product descriptions, and easy checkout processes.

Marketing and Promotion: Use social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest to promote your enamel pins. Share images, engage with followers, and run targeted ads to reach your audience. Collaborate with influencers or bloggers in your niche to showcase your enamel pins to a wider audience.

Fulfill Orders:Once you start receiving orders, ensure timely production and shipping of your enamel pins. Provide excellent customer service and address any issues or inquiries promptly. Consider packaging options that reflect the quality and appeal of your enamel pins, such as branded packaging or custom inserts.

Monitor Performance and Feedback: Track sales, customer feedback, and market trends to evaluate the performance of your enamel pin business. Continuously innovate with new designs, promotions, or product offerings based on customer feedback and market demand.

Get to know the process of how the enamel pins turn out and what is the limitation for an enamel pin. This article helps to improve your design under production limit.

The Process

Enamel pins are essentially metal pins or badges made up of two main elements: Plated metal and enamel paint. 

To make enamel pin, we will take your artwork and create a die which is used to stamp your design into a sheet of high-quality metal which is then cut out around the outline of your design.  The cutout shape is then plated in a choice of finishes; either gold, silver or, the most popular black nickel, before raised areas are polished to a quality finish and recessed areas are filled with enamel paint.  The colored enamel areas of your designs can be color matched using 'Pantone Solid Coated' color values.  Each color sits in its own recess with raised metal areas acting as a barrier, surrounding each color and preventing them from mixing together.  The enamel paints are then set using high temperatures before any additional finishes, such as resin domes, are added.

Minimum Raised Metal Line Thickness

Each enamel color of your design has to be separated by a line of raised metal, which acts as a barrier, preventing colors from mixing together. These lines should be no thinner than 0.2mm

Minimum Areas of Color

Colored areas of enamel paint are added to the recessed areas of your pins using a thin, needle-like applicator.

Text Size

The smallest text that we recommend using is 5pt. Please note that this is based on a plain font, such as Helvetica. More complex fonts will require a larger font size.  When using text in your designs, please make sure that you follow the size rules for the minimum raised metal line thicknesses and the minimum filled areas of color.

Any raised metal areas of text should be no thinner than 0.2mm and should contain no recessed areas of color smaller than 0.3mm.

Pantone Color Match

For the most accurate color matching, we recommend using the 'Pantone Solid Coated' guide. Clearly, indicate which areas of your designs you would like to be colored by using the correct color values when creating your artwork or by clear instruction when placing your order.

Download pantone color swatches here ...

And for those who weren't listening at the back...

0.2mm minimum raised metal line thickness

0.3mm minimum recessed area for enamel colors

Minimum 5pt font size based on a plain font like Helvetica

All text converted to outlines

Use the Pantone Solid Coated guide for accurate colors

Storing and displaying a pin collection can be a fun and creative way to showcase your pins. Here are some popular methods:

Pin Boards: Use a cork-board or a fabric-covered board to pin your collection. You can arrange them by theme, color, or design. This method allows you to easily rearrange and add new pins.

Shadow Boxes: Shadow boxes are deep frames with a glass front that can hold and display your pins. You can arrange the pins inside the box and hang it on the wall for a neat and organized display.

Display Cases: Acrylic or glass display cases with compartments or shelves are ideal for storing and displaying pins. They protect the pins from dust and damage while allowing you to view them easily.

Lanyards or Display Strips: Use lanyards or fabric strips with clips to hang your pins. This method is great for wearable displays or hanging on walls for a decorative touch.

Albums or Binders: Use pin albums or binders with clear sleeves to store and organize your pins. This method is convenient for larger collections and allows you to flip through and view each pin individually.

Framed Displays: Frame individual pins or small groups of pins in frames with a velvet or felt backing. This method creates a more formal and artistic display for your collection.