Starting a print on demand side hustle for a fitness business or active-lifestyle organization takes under an hour of initial setup. You upload your logo, select three to five products from the catalog, set retail prices with your margin built in, and share the shop link with your community. The first orders come in without any ongoing marketing if your existing audience is engaged. This guide covers each setup step and the decisions that affect how much you earn in the first 30 days.
Before opening your Bear Grips Pro Shops account, have these ready:
Go to shops.beargrips.com/signup and create your vendor account. The free plan gets you started with no monthly fee and three live products. VIP plans ($59/month self-service or $109/month done-for-you) unlock lower base prices and more product slots.
For most fitness businesses starting their POD side hustle, begin on the free plan. If the shop earns more than $100-150/month in margin, upgrade to VIP: the lower base prices will pay for the plan cost through improved margins.
Bear Grips Pro Shops: Custom Apparel for Your Team. No Minimums. Free Shipping.Upload your logo or design file through the shop builder:
If you want to offer multiple design options (a front logo and a back print, or a seasonal design alongside the main logo), upload each design separately and apply them to the relevant products.
For logo design guidance, see the logo design for apparel guide. The principles apply to all fitness business logos, not just running clubs.
Start with three products. Three gives members enough choice without creating decision paralysis. The recommended starting lineup for a fitness business POD side hustle:
Add more products after the first 60 days when you have data on what members are actually buying. See the side hustle apparel ideas guide for more product selection frameworks.
Pricing formula: base cost plus your desired margin equals retail price. Standard fitness community pricing:
| Product | VIP Base | Typical Margin | Retail Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Performance tee | $23.86 | $10 | $33.86 |
| Cotton tee | $19.88 | $10 | $29.88 |
| Crewneck sweatshirt | $34.88 | $13 | $47.88 |
| Hoodie | $36.88 | $13 | $49.88 |
| Mesh snapback hat | $25.88 | $12 | $37.88 |
Once prices are set and products are published, share the shop link. Send it in a personal message to your most engaged members first. Then post it in your group chat, email list, or class announcement. The personal message wave typically drives the first cluster of orders within hours.
See the custom shirt income guide for more on pricing strategy and margin optimization.
Under an hour to setup. No inventory. No upfront cost. Your fitness community is your first buyers.
Start FreeThe initial setup takes 30-60 minutes: account creation, logo upload, three products added, prices set, shop link copied. Sharing the link with your community takes another 15 minutes. The first sale can happen the same day you launch if you share the link with an engaged audience.
No. If you have a business or club logo, that file is all you need. Upload it, apply it to products, and launch. If you do not have a logo, a simple text-based design with your business name in clean type is effective and requires no design skills. More elaborate designs can be added later.
Yes. The Bear Grips Pro Shops free plan has no monthly fee and no upfront cost. You pay nothing until a member orders. The base cost of each item is deducted from the retail price the buyer pays. Your first month can be profitable from day one without any upfront investment.
The Done-For-You VIP plan ($109/month) means you send your logo once a month and Bear Grips Pro Shops builds everything else: picks the trending products, applies your design, creates front and back mockups, writes product descriptions, and sets optimal pricing. You get a live shop without doing any setup yourself. Best for gym owners and coaches with no time to manage a shop manually.
Bear Grips Pro Shops