Nowadays, in the corridors of major shopping malls, you can see various unmanned machines selling claw machines, blind boxes, and lucky bags. However, this project is not about setting up such a business, as the market for these products is already saturated. Unless you can find a suitable location, it’s not worth pursuing. What we’re talking about here is a new type of unmanned vending machine—a DIY smartphone case self-service printer.

1. What is a DIY smartphone case self-service printer?

As the name suggests, it is an intelligent, unmanned, and store-free device that allows you to operate a dedicated phone case specialty store. Users simply scan the QR code on the device, log in to the platform’s mini-program backend, select a template, and identify their phone model. The phone case DIY self-service printer will then begin working, completing the customization in 1–2 minutes, after which customers can receive their customized phone case.

2. What are the advantages of this DIY mobile phone case self-service printer?

First, a quick online search into the sales volume of ordinary mobile phone cases will reveal how significant the market is.
In the rapidly evolving digital electronics industry, mobile phone manufacturers continuously release new models, and the widespread adoption of 5G has further shortened the product lifecycle. With each new mobile phone model launched, corresponding updates to phone cases are also released simultaneously. Among young consumers, women place particular emphasis on phone cases, especially those with unique and creative designs, which drive their purchasing desire. Data shows that there are nearly 2 billion smartphones in circulation in China, and the update rate for phone cases averages once every 2.5 months.

Given this consumer market and data, the high replacement frequency and market demand have led to the emergence of this DIY self-service phone case printing machine project. Furthermore, there is currently no major brand for DIY smartphone case self-service printers in China. In this highly competitive smartphone case market, DIY smartphone case self-service printers represent a blue ocean opportunity.

3. What are the costs and benefits of DIY smartphone case self-service printers?

The price per order for DIY smartphone case self-service printers is approximately 20–30 yuan. To recoup franchise costs within 3-4 months, each machine must generate 20,000 yuan in monthly revenue. Long-term data: With a 30% monthly repurchase rate, each DIY smartphone case self-service printer can attract over 10,000 new users annually. Assuming an average transaction value of 25 yuan per case, 10,000 transactions per year equate to 250,000 yuan in annual revenue.

4. Investment Recommendations

Currently, the price of a DIY mobile phone case self-service printer is around 26,000 to 28,000 yuan. You also need to negotiate with the mall for the rental of the venue, and the venue fees vary by city. If you choose to franchise, there is also a franchise fee. In terms of funding, franchising a brand is relatively better than purchasing equipment on your own.
Personally, I think it’s better to keep the project low-cost. We can shift our perspective: why not open a store on platforms like Taobao, Pinduoduo, or other e-commerce platforms to directly sell the products?