D M.

In CafePress, you spend a lot of time figuring out what commission you want on products carrying your design. They have a base price, and to that you add your commission.

Just like another reviewer, as a shopkeeper I was not paid the commission which I had set out for my designs, but only about 1/8th of that. Even though I had reports and documentation for back-up, they didn't even address the issue when I complained, but went through company double-speak. The end result was that they kept 95% of their inflated prices for products with my designs on them! I call that stealing.

My friends and I went on the site and couldn't even find my shop through their search engine using the shop name OR keywords associated with the products. Their customer service for shopkeepers, again, never addressed these or other troubling issues.

They are VERY, VERY, VERY slow at shipping unless you pay inflated prices. Moreover, their overpriced products are shabby and embarrassing. A pair of earrings with a base price of $15--that's before adding commission for the artist--turned out to be made out of thin, cheap metal. Mugs had dirt in them and the color started to wear off after only a few uses. Their base rates are higher than anyone should pay for a complete product. Adding a modest commission by the artist makes the prices absurdly high... most people just won't pay that much. And guess what? You won't even get the commission you thought you were going to!

There's just no way to make money with these scammers. And of course, they charge you $25 when you close your shop. If you choose NOT to close your shop and just let it sit there, they charge you another fee for inactivity. You are doomed in any event. They're going to suck all your profit away from you, even though you are the artist and deserve a fair share.

Read the fine print in their contract. Again, their site is full of gobble-dee-gook; you need an attorney to explain what their system is, and it is all tilted wildly in their favor.

A good business is courteous to their affiliates and does everything to try to keep them happy, (for one thing, to avoid reviews like this one!), and that courtesy includes addressing problems, fixing them, and apologizing when they have made an error. Not CafePress. If they actually address your issue, they don't fix it, but instead justify with spin. The shopkeeper is always wrong in their eyes. I am a nice person, but I would end up shaking after trying to deal with them. They refuse to listen or respond to logic, but apparently have pat, pre-formatted replies that do not address the actual issues. Hope someone with enough money to do so takes them to court. This rip-off business needs to be shut down. Please do not share your precious artwork or original ideas with them.