New Business an 'Ideal' Place for Custom Apparel

by Austin Arnold   Bluffton’s latest business is opening up in a familiar spot, but the items on the shelves will be much different than years past as the products sold there will now be wearable. Rachel Webster of Bluffton has opened Ideal Images, which will feature both custom and retail sporting and company apparel at 114 East College Avenue.
      About a year and a half ago Webster started thinking about getting into the sportswear business. Since her children are involved in sports, sporting apparel was very much a part of Webster’s life even before making it her business. However, Webster said even if that personal connection was not there, team and company apparel is still clearly a good business to break into.
      “Even if my kids weren’t in them, I enjoy going to the different events and I’m on the Athletic Booster board and I see that the market is definitely out there for it. Also, if you go to any doctor’s office, a lawn care place or a corporation, those people have a customized T-shirt they wear or embroidered and logoed apparel. If you really look around, it makes you realize how much people use that type of product.”
      It took some research for Webster, but she ultimately decided to start her own sporting wear company, and she designed a business plan that was completed in November. But, there were some logistics to be figured out along the way, like where the business would be located. Ironically enough, it was at a sporting event where an answer dawned on Webster.
“The question that was kind of always in the back of my mind was where am I going to put the business and where am I going to have room to grow and put the equipment. And, I was sitting at a football game one Saturday and happened to look over and thought, ‘oh my gosh, this is just the perfect place.’”
      The location is something she is very pleased with. Not only does the building have a nostalgic feel from the town, being the former home of Terry’s Drive Thru and Morey’s Coffee Shop, but it also sits in a great spot, according to the new owner, as it sits so close to the high school and Main Street.
      “If you’re from Bluffton and you say I’m in the old Terry’s building, you know where it’s at, it’s just part of the thriving downtown area,” Webster said. “And, I also think it’s a great area from the marketing standpoint of being in between Lima and the Findlay area to grow a business. I can go North, South, East or West and there are different schools, corporations and businesses I can [market] to.”
      Custom apparel will be a big feature at Ideal Images. With the tech savvy machines Webster has purchased for the business, she will have the ability to create an image or design as close to what the customer envisions as possible using her computer software. Once the image is complete she can send the design to her embroidery machine or digital imaging machine. In fact, Webster even spent some time in Philadelphia, PA to do some training on the Neo Flex DTG machine.

See full story in The Bluffton News