This is the MUST read report if you are considering buying uniforms or promotional clothing

An Insider’s Guide: How To Avoid The Most Costly Mistakes People Make When Buying Promotional Clothing And Uniforms

Hi my name is Anthony Barker, managing director of Southern Monograms based in Christchurch. Thanks for reading this report... you will be pleased you did.

Why have I written this report?

We get so many people coming to us angry after they went to a supplier and did not get the results they were after.

“The best mistakes to learn from are other peoples”

Many of the problems people have with clothing not fitting right, monograms not looking of high enough quality or merchandise falling apart could have been avoided if they were armed with some simple information.

Whether you use us or another supplier these are the things you need to know to make sure you get the results you are after

Let’s get started...

1. What Are The Biggest Problems In The Industry?

Suppliers who don’t really know what they are doing some even trying to operate out of their backyards.

Companies who advertise as specialist but do not even have print or embroidery equipment.

2. What Are The Potential Dangers Of These Problems?

1. Basically you won’t be happy with the result.

2. They will be unaware of which fabrics will suit certain work situations.

3. They will be unsure which method is best used for branding different fabrics.

4. They will try to offer something cheap & nasty.

5. Your garment may not stand up to the rigours of hard work.

6. You may find that your shirts are too heavy when you perform manual work outdoors, or fabric is too light in cold weather.

7. Your branding will deteriorate rapidly and your garments will look shabby.

8. When you deal directly with a company that has a production facility you are more likely to receive your gear quickly.

3. What Mistakes Do People Make?

1. Choosing garments that do not fit correctly.

2. Attempting to put too much information onto a garment.

3. Designing logos that look great when on large scale but do not reduce well for reproduction onto garments & headwear.

4. Going for intricate designs when simple ones are best i.e. Coca-Cola, Nike, McDonalds

5. Not checking proofs.

6. Buying garments from a retail store which are not suitable for branding and are unlikely to have continuity of supply.

7. Allowing too broad of a group to have an opinion as to what items will be chosen.

8. Failing to consider how their logo will look on various background colours.

4. What Misconceptions Do People Have About The Industry?

1. All suppliers have the same equipment, capabilities and experience.

2. Set-up for embroidery & screen-print is the same. They are quite different processes.

3. Embroidery is more expensive than print.

4. Price is always determined by how many colours in each design.

5. Branding can be done instantly.

6. Cheaper to just run text rather than using a full logo.

7. All garments are constructed the same if I am a large in one item I am a large in all items.

5. What Are Some Of The Rip-offs?

In general I’d say our industry is pretty good and there aren’t any real crooks out there as far as I know, but be on the look out for;

1. Being sold an inferior quality garment, you need to compare apples with apples.

2. Being charged for artwork set-up when the artwork is already on file with that particular company.

9. How can people make sure they avoid the problems and feel delighted with the product and the service they receive?

1. Be organized, allow yourself plenty of time.

2. Listen to any advice your branded clothing supplier gives you.

3. Get size guides or samples

4. Check all proofs carefully.

5. Follow washing and care instructions

6. We all get a kick out of seeing our gear on TV or in papers or magazines. We take great pride in the work that we produce.

7. I know that getting branded gear for any organization can have a great positive effect on morale & performance.

8. Good branded gear conveys an air of professionalism and quality to your potential market & it is a really cost effective & enduring form of advertising.

10. Questions to ask supplier

1. What type of machines do you have?

Some of the Chinese brands while cheaper also create an inferior finish, the best quality machines are Japanese: 'Tajima', & 'Barudan'.

2. How long will my order take?

Most suppliers will be able to produce artwork in 2 days and embroidery within a week, printing within two weeks.

3. What type of art work do you require? What formats can you use?

Getting good artwork to your supplier can influence the final quality of the finished product. This is especially true for printing, garbage in equals garbage out. Getting good quality artwork to your supplier straight away will help speed up the entire process.

4. What factors affect your pricing?

Embroidery is generally priced by the number of stitches in each design, when quoting this is an educated estimate. Print pricing is determined by the number of colours in each design. The quantity required will also influence pricing too. Naturally small orders are more expensive than larger runs on a per unit basis.

5. What type of digitising & graphics package do you run to create the logos and designs?

Ideally your embroidery company has an in-house process to create embroidery programmes. If not that will be unable to tweak and manipulate designs if required during the production process. Printers should have one or several of these graphics packages; Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw or Photoshop.

11. How do people get hold of you if they want any advice or a quote?

E-mail anthony@monograms.co.nz, check out our website www.monograms.co.nz

Phone 03-3791-861 or 0800-800-676

(click here to go to the home page) www.monograms.co.nz

Who Is Anthony Barker and Southern Monograms?

My name is Anthony Barker Managing Director Southern Monograms, I am married with 2 children their names are Ysabel & Rocco.

Southern Monograms has been a family business since 1978 and I have been involved in all aspects of the business since I was still at high school. After University and working in Wellington and London I returned to take the reins.

I took over the ownership of the business from my father 18 months ago, but have been the general manager since 2000. I love the industry we are in because we get to help people create stronger brands with their clients and form closer teams that can only be formed when people become more uniformed in the way they look which helps they way they think.