How to start selling art prints online in India
How to choose print sizes and paper, protect your artwork from copying, and ship prints flat and undamaged across India.
Art prints are one of the more accessible categories to start in, since you don't need inventory until an order comes in if you print on demand, but the category lives or dies on print quality, accurate colour, and shipping that doesn't bend or crease the print.
Decide what you're selling first
Pick a consistent style or theme for your first collection — botanical line art, typography, a series based on a city or festival, abstract colour studies — rather than a random mix of unrelated pieces, since buyers who like one piece in a coherent series often want more than one. Decide on your print sizes early (A4, A3, or a couple of specific dimensions) rather than offering every possible size, since this keeps your printing, framing, and packaging simple and consistent.
Sourcing or making it
If you're printing on demand, test a few local printers or online print services for colour accuracy against your original artwork on-screen, since printer calibration varies a lot and a print that looks noticeably duller or warmer than the digital file is a common complaint. Choose your paper stock deliberately — matte, glossy, or textured fine-art paper — and stick with it consistently, since paper choice changes both the look and the price positioning of your prints. If you're selling limited editions, number them clearly and keep a record of how many of each print exist, since this detail matters to buyers who value scarcity in art.
Photos and descriptions
Photograph the print flat under even light with no glare, and also show it framed or mounted in a room setting, since buyers need help imagining how it looks on their own wall. Take a close-up shot of any texture or fine detail in the artwork that might be lost in a small thumbnail. In the description, state the exact print size, paper type, whether a frame is included or sold separately, and if it's a limited edition, the edition number and total run — size and paper type especially help set the right price expectation before purchase.
Pricing, packaging and shipping
Price according to paper quality, print size, and whether it's an original, a limited edition, or an open edition, and remember that a print's perceived value depends heavily on how it's presented and packaged, not just the image itself. Ship prints flat between two rigid cardboard sheets inside a stiff mailer or box rather than rolled in a tube, unless the print size specifically requires rolling — flat shipping avoids the risk of a customer struggling to flatten a rolled print at home. If a frame is included, pack the glass separately from the print itself where possible, and use ample padding, since a broken glass frame is one of the more expensive and disappointing shipping failures in this category.
Getting your first ten orders
Share the story or inspiration behind each piece, since buyers connect with the meaning behind art more than a plain description of size and paper. Post the making process if you draw or paint digitally — a time-lapse of a piece coming together tends to perform well and builds a following before you've made a single sale. Offer a small discount on a second print for buyers who purchase one, since art buyers who like your style often want to build a small collection rather than own just one piece.
Once you have a consistent collection, a store of your own with UPI and Cash on Delivery through Varchas Stores gives your art print brand a proper storefront without building a website yourself.
Your next step: finalise one theme and one paper stock, print three pieces as test samples, and check the colour match against your original file before you launch.
Get early access to set up your store.