About the shop
One person, one press, one town
Alpine Apparel Co is me, Jesse Poteet, printing water-based in Castle Rock since 2017. No sales team, no account manager — you talk to the person who pulls the squeegee.
How it started
I fell for this trade in a small shop in Tennessee
Before Alpine, I spent four years as a graphic designer and production manager at a small screen print company in my hometown of Cleveland, Tennessee. That's where I learned the craft — and where I got opinionated about it.
In 2016 my wife and I moved our family to Colorado to be closer to her family. That move ended my time at the shop in Tennessee, and in 2017 I started Alpine here in Castle Rock. Starting my own shop meant I finally got to decide how things would be done.
I have 25+ years behind me as a graphic designer, which is why you don't need print-ready files to work with me. Bring an idea, a sketch, or a photo of an old shirt — I'll handle the artwork.
The decision that defines the shop
Going all-in on water-based ink
Most shops print plastisol. It's cheap and forgiving on press, and I understand exactly why they use it. But I kept running into the same thing as a customer: you spend real money on a soft triblend shirt, and then a thick plastisol print sits on top of it and ruins the very thing you paid for.
Water-based ink soaks into the fibers instead of sitting on them. It's harder to print, less forgiving, and takes longer to dial in — which is precisely why most shops won't commit to it. It's the only ink I use.
If you want the longer version, I wrote it up in what is water-based ink.
Wondering whether water-based suits your garment or your artwork? Ask before you order. Ask the chat →
How I work
Small on purpose
My goal was never to build the biggest print company in Douglas County. It's to work with good people and send out apparel that becomes someone's favorite thing to wear.
You deal with me
There's no queue of account managers between you and the press. The person who answers your question is the person printing your order.
Every piece gets looked at
Each shirt is checked before it goes in the box. If a print isn't right it doesn't ship, and you hear it from me before you hear it from your team.
I'll tell you when it's a no
If your job isn't a good fit — a deadline I can't hit, thousands of pieces at contract pricing, a job that genuinely wants stitching — I'll say so and point you at someone who does it properly.
Outside the shop
I teach this trade too
I run a YouTube channel and a podcast where I help other people start and run screen print companies from home. If you've ever thought about trying it yourself, that's over at StartupScreenPrinting.com. Consider it fair warning about how much I care how a print is made.
If you're a printer rather than a customer — learning the trade, looking to send water-based work my way, or after better software for your shop — that all lives on the page for printers.
Let's make something worth wearing
Build your order online and watch the price update as you go — or ask the chat first and order after.