During the pandemic, it quickly became apparent to students everywhere that as their professors droned through a Zoom meeting to a grid of disabled cameras, the multitasking possibilities were unlimited. Behind Cody Campbell’s disabled laptop camera during an asynchronous class, he busied himself operating a full-sized four-color screen printing press in a crowded one-car garage.

Printing began as a side hustle for Campbell when he was 13. Seeking an affordable mode of merch production for his YouTube channel, where he uploaded Madden Mobile gameplay videos, Campbell taught himself how to print on clothes using a sublimation printer and a heat press in his mother’s living room. Ten years later, his screenprinting business, Big Little Prints, is a blossoming merchandising company, serving both local and national clients.

In high school, Campbell worked on a few vinyl printing projects but stopped as he began college at the University of Oregon. Campbell’s merchandising journey was reignited when his leader from Young Life, a Christian youth organization, moved to Eugene to start a branch of the organization at UO and reached out to Campbell to print merch for the group. The two went in on a screen printing press and began working out of the garage of the Young Life house.

“At first, it wasn’t too bad. It was just kind of a side thing,” Campbell said. “But by my senior year, I was pretty much running a full-time business while also being in college.”

Having graduated in 2024 with a degree in business & entrepreneurship, Campbell explained that the most important things he has learned were self-taught. “You just learn the business stuff from doing business,” he said. “They don’t necessarily teach you the stuff you really need to know.”

Being self-taught, Campbell emphasized the importance of communication and customer service. “We did an order that we initially messed up, but just owned up to it and were like ‘hey, I’ve never done this before. Let me just redo it for free,’” he said. “It cost us $1,000 to fix it, but they’ve been a customer ever since.”

Campbell explained that constructive communication has been central to Big Little Prints’ success. “Showing clients that you care more is definitely the biggest thing,” he said. “When you do good once, it spreads.”

Unlike their devotion to communication and quality, the real key to Big Little Prints’ success is not learnable but rather something you just do: persevere.

“I was sitting in my marketing class in my senior year, and the teacher was talking about when you should stop doing what you’re doing because it’s not going to grow. At that point, I was like, ‘okay, my teacher’s saying I’m not niche enough to make it.’ So I went to my co-owner and I’m like, ‘I’m about to graduate college, and we’re still printing in a garage, only making, like, $15,000 a year, so this isn’t going to work for me. I can’t do this,’” Campbell said. “And my co-owner said, ‘No. We need to push.’ And then we did. And now we’re here.”

Having watched his hard work pay off, Campbell encourages the aspiring student/business owner to “just go for it.” Even though the early stages of owning a business usually entail slim margins of profit, Campbell explains that the work is rewarding in other ways. “Merch brings a community together,” he said.

In concluding his advice for the young entrepreneur, Campbell was reminded of a quote that stuck with him: “Your worst outcome is someone’s normal.” Just go for it, he urges, because “the worst that’s gonna happen is you gain a ton of really good experience. You failed, and now you can move on to what’s next. Also, create an LLC so that you don’t lose any of your personal assets.”

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