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Crop to Campus: A Journey of Sustainable Fashion

Hanes Sustainable Fashion

The textile industry has been a major contributor to water waste and pollution. Manufacturers haven’t always put much thought into their sustainability practices. As a result of growing concern for the environment, many manufacturers are making strides to reduce waste and pollution by implementing sustainable practices into their supply chain process. Hanes is paving the way as an example of sustainable manufacturing for apparel. Their goal is to provide apparel in a low-waste, energy efficient manner without sacrificing comfort and quality.

Hanes hosted an advanced premiere last month of their new documentary titled Crop to Campus: A Journey of Sustainable Fashion. Christopher Fox, Hanes VP of Social Responsibility, and Michael Johnson, Hanes Director of Marketing participated in a question panel. They provided great insight into how the documentary came to be, and why Hanes places such a heavy emphasis on sustainability.

Furthermore, Michael Johnson explained that Hanes has a great story in terms of sustainability, people and planet. A lot of companies tell messages on these topics, but aren’t always fully transparent. Therefore, consumers have trouble believing in their stories and real practices. Hanes opened up the doors to four college textile students, allowing them to see everything with full transparency and honesty.

The premiere attendees learned what really goes into crafting sustainable apparel, why transparency is important when it comes to sustainable practices, and how to appeal to today’s generation. All attendees received a free ComfortWash tshirt in the mail as a “Thank You” for watching the documentary and panel discussion. Keep an eye out on our social media channels for a review of the ComfortWash tshirt from our Social Media Manager who was able to attend the online premiere.

Hanes ComfortWash Apparel

Transparency Matters

For the making of Crop to Campus: A Journey of Sustainable Fashion, Hanes invited four college students from the North Carolina State University Textiles program to take a first-hand look at the entire supply chain and manufacturing process of the Hanes ComfortWash Tshirt line. This started with a visit to locally owned cotton fields of North Carolina. Their trip ended at the energy-efficient sew and dye Hanes facility in El Salvador. The entire process was presented with full transparency to the students. This gave them a deep inside look at the level of care taken when it comes to Hanes sustainability practices. Mamie Trigg, one of the four students featured in the documentary, had this to say:

“There are so many steps that go into making a t-shirt that you don’t really think about. You just pay money for the final product. It’s cool to see every step in the process and not take it for granted.”

Sustainable from the Beginning

Every ComfortWash garment starts with U.S. grown cotton that is mainly raised and harvested in the southern states, on naturally irrigated local farms. At David Grant Farms in North Carolina, the 1500 acres of organically grown cotton is harvested by only four people. The farm uses very sustainable practices such as an advanced low-water irrigation system. As a result, the farm has lowered it’s use of fuel and diesel. The cotton then travels to Parkdale Mills –  a zero-waste, energy efficient facility where the cotton is spun into a superior, softer yarn. This facility wastes nothing and puts everything to use – even recycling the byproducts as cotton feed.

Next, the spools of yarn go to energy-efficient, low waste facilities across the globe for dyeing, cutting and sewing. The group of students went to the Hanes owned facility outside of El Salvador. This is the knitting, sewing, and dyeing facility where all the ComfortWash shirts reach the final stage of production. The facility utilizes on-site renewable energy production, including its water-treatment process. Hanes is the #1 employer in El Salvador, and they also place a heavy emphasis on workplace culture and wellness. They have many resources and benefits available like their Future Moms program and Green for Good volunteer program. Additionally, they have a school for employees to help advance career paths within the company.

From the cotton harvest to sewing and dyeing the final garments – every aspect of manufacturing for the Hanes ComfortWash line has sustainability in mind.

Sustainability is a big deal to this generation. Therefore, Hanes continues to work on meeting their sustainability and environmental goals with this and the next generation in mind. Hanes believes that the key to being a successful manufacturer is transparency about manufacturing and sustainable practices.

To view Crop To Campus: A Journey of Sustainable Fashion, click here!

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Tips for Making the Most of 2020 Holiday Gifting

Plan for 2020 Holiday Gifting

In case you didn’t notice, 2020 hasn’t been what everyone expected when the ball dropped on New Year’s Eve. Most of the world threw out their 2020 planners by mid-April, and we’ve all been in a constant state of adjustment to a rapidly changing environment. It’s the beginning of the end of the year with the start of Q4  – and although those 2020 planners are still chilling in the garbage, the holiday season isn’t cancelled and is quickly approaching. We know, we know – wasn’t it June just a few days ago?

With Q4 budgets in hand and everyone living in unprecedented circumstances, planning for the holidays may look a little bit different than usual. Even if your budget is small, and things seem challenging – don’t push holiday gift giving to the side! It’s more important than ever to show your employees and clients how much you appreciate them. When planning out gifts for this season, keep in mind the current environment and what items are trending. People are spending the majority of their time at home with their families, and your gifts should resonate with that. Here’s a few ideas to make the most of 2020 holiday gifting,  keeping Q4 budgets and today’s trends in mind.

Be Mindful of Sustainability

The demand for eco-friendly apparel and products is growing more and more people place a deeper focus on the environment. People are paying more attention to the sustainability of the products that they use, as well as the practices of the companies who manufacture them. Consider choosing products that are made from recycled materials, and that come from companies with environmentally friendly manufacturing processes. Consider the functionality of these products as well – just because it’s eco-friendly doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a useful gift. Choose items that your clients and employees are likely to incorporate into their everyday lives, that can be used to form habits that support the health of the environment. Reusable totes are a great example – these encourage people to avoid single-use plastic bags.

Left – Coffee mug made from recycled cups. Right – reusable shopping bag
Keep it Comfortable

These days, getting ready for work looks a little different. For example, you’re likely reading this post in a comfy pair of sweatpants from your home office. Comfortable logoed apparel is a great gift for this year as people continue working from home with their suits and dress shirts sitting in the closet collecting dust. Consider a neutral color hoodie or sweatshirt, or even a lightweight athletic jacket. Trucker hats are another great option that people are very likely to use, especially when quickly covering up messy hair right before morning Zoom calls (it’s cool, we know you just rolled out of bed).

Left – Sweatshirt made with 100% recycled fabric. Right – Classic mesh back Trucker Hat
Color is Key

It’s no secret that color can be a major influence when it comes to moods and emotions. Be mindful when you are choosing gifts for this season, to choose a color palette that blends well with the gifts you are sending out. For example, if you want to create an at-home spa kit, you would likely use light blue and lavender, which are known to invoke a sense of calm. If you are sending out backyard BBQ kits, you’d likely use red and yellow, as those colors create a sense of energy and happiness. Worried that the colors you choose won’t coordinate well with your company color palette? Consider using a black or white version if your logo on the products, or even leaving it off all-together. You can always brand the packaging, or a notecard inside of the gift.

Left – Backyard BBQ Grill Master Kit. Right – Luxury Bath Bomb Gift Set
Don’t add to the Clutter

People are spending lots of time at home, so choosing items that will be useful and not just take up space will be seen favorably. Think about items that can be incorporated into everyday life, such as kitchen gadgets, Bluetooth speakers, or fitness accessories. Another great option for sending a gift that won’t take up space is food. Gift boxes from Batch & Bodega make an excellent holiday gift that the whole family can enjoy.

  • Logoed Gift Baskets
Left – Bamboo engraved chips and dip tray. Right – Batch & Bodega Gift Basket
Choose Items for Everyone

Speaking of family, there is a lot of family time happening this year for many people (maybe a little too much at times). Choose a gift that can be enjoyed by everyone living in the home. We mentioned food baskets earlier, which are sure to be a crowd pleaser. Another great option is a family game night kit with a custom board game and gourmet popcorn included.

Left – Box set of gourmet popcorn. Right – Custom branded Monopoly.
Make the Most of Smaller Budgets

If you are working with a very tight gift budget this season, you can still create something memorable for your employees and clients. Consider investing in a high-end holiday card with a heartfelt message from your company executives. More often than not, words of appreciation and thankfulness will have a huge impact on people as opposed to a physical gift. Another great option to make the most of 2020 holiday gifting on lower budgets is sending vouchers for a food delivery service like DoorDash or UberEats. Taking care of the cost of a meal is always appreciated, and gives people to the chance to take a night off from cooking at home.

Pop up and spinner custom holiday cards.

Gift giving this year doesn’t have to be stressful or expensive. Let us help you make the most of 2020 holiday gifting, and find the perfect way to say thank you to your clients and employees. Contact us today to start your holiday planning!

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Six Current Promo and Apparel Trends

When it comes to promo and apparel, staying on top of current trends is very important in order to remain relevant to your target audience – but that doesn’t stop at just the products themselves. This year, trends revolving around actions are just as important as the ones centered on products and materials. Here are 6 trends you’ll see throughout 2020 that can help you capitalize on business:

1 – Prioritizing the Planet

2 – The 90’s are Back – Totally!

3 – Mix it Up with Materials

4 – More Function, Less Space

5 – Quality is King – but what brand is that?

6 – The Gift of Giving Back

Prioritizing the Planet

Eco-friendly products have always been prevalent in the industry, but this year the importance of the environment has taken on an even bigger presence in promo and apparel. Suppliers are making more of an effort than ever to use sustainable and recycled materials during the manufacturing and shipping processes. Reducing waste is a major aspect of environmental friendliness – things like drinkware, straws, shopping bags, and packaging are the biggest opportunities to replace plastic and disposable elements with reusable and/or recycled components.

 

The 90’s are back – totally!

Fanny packs. Color-blocked apparel. Sun visors. Scrunchies. Tie-dye. Chokers. Tiny bags – Sound familiar? The 90’s are coming back in full force. Some of the new products for the year are fully representative of this trend, while others have drawn inspiration from the decade in more subtle applications. The comeback isn’t limited to just apparel either – promotional products are showing heady 90’s influence with retro designs, bright color palettes, leather patches, metal lunchboxes, snapbacks and more!

 

Mix it up with Materials

Leather, cork, canvas, and soft touch lead the way in terms of materials trends we have already seen this year. Mixing materials is also a popular application – Stainless Steel bottles with a cork wrapped bottom as well as speakers and powerbanks with fabric casings are popular combinations. Leather is used across both promo and apparel, seen on many new lines of backpacks, journals, and hats. Soft touch has really grown in popularity – used on everything from pens and journal covers to drinkware and tech items.

 

More Function, Less Space

With the Millennial generation embracing the concept of minimalism as well as being the most environmentally conscious of all age groups – the appeal of purchasing, storing, or carrying a single product is much greater than the idea of having to keep track of multiple items. This is a big part of the rise in popularity of multifunctional products. This trend is very big in tech, but is also becoming more prevalent among other product categories such as travel and even apparel.

 

Quality is King – but what brand is that?

It’s no secret that when it comes to most products, consumers are more likely to choose a product with a well-known brand name attached to it as opposed to a “dupe” – regardless of the price. Suppliers have moved into tons of new partnerships with well-known retail brands, to bring that product into the B2B promo and apparel space. The North Face, Tommy Hillfiger, Patagonia, SkullCandy, Google, Apple, Amazon, Vinyard Vines, Corkcicle – to name a few. Consumers are more concerned with quality and popularity, so these retail promo and apparel partnerships will continue to increase throughout the year.

 

The Gift of Giving Back

Suppliers are making more of an effort than ever to implement corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs and give back to society in many different ways. They are using their resources and influence to help support a wide range of worthy causes – simultaneously creating an advantage over and putting the pressure on vendors who have not implemented CSR programs. Whether it’s a specific promo or apparel product line that a supplier offers that has a connection to giving, or the company as a whole has implemented a blanket CSR program to support in a bigger way – giving back is a trend that we hope never goes out of style.

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Who’s Your Scrub Daddy? How to Launch an Online Branded Scrub Program in 30 Days!

A standardized uniform program has a long list of benefits: a more professional image, enhanced patient relationships, a sense of team spirit, and brand recognition to name of few. Unfortunately, a small to mid-sized medical practice typically doesn’t have the resources to build, implement, and maintain a successful online scrub program. Until now…

Executive Summary

Raleigh Neurology Associates, P.A. is one of the largest and most respected neurology practices in the nation. Their 40,000 square-foot facility, conveniently located near Rex Hospital and Wake Medical Centers, offers complete neurological care, testing, and an on-site sleep center.

Newly hired medical staff are given an expense allowance to cover the cost of four (4) sets of scrubs. The practice covers an additional set for each employee per year. In addition, logoed apparel items (e.g., polo shirts, pull overs, jackets) are provided from time to time for non-medical staff.

 

Challenges

Employees purchase their own scrubs in whatever brand, style, and color that suits them. Decorating (via embroidery) individually purchased tops with the practice logo would have been a logistical nightmare, so all garments are worn “blank” with no company branding. In addition to missing out on the benefits of a standardized, logoed scrub program, processing expense requests for new employees and annual anniversaries is an administrative hassle. Finally, there isn’t an easy way to purchase logoed gear for other staff, so it is hit or miss on who has apparel to wear and who doesn’t.

 

Solutions

We deployed the Regency360 FasTrac™ Logoed Scrub Program. The client solicited input from employees, and landed on Cherokee and Dickies as their brands of choice.  Five tops, seven pants, and one jacket were made available for the women, along with two tops and two pants for the men. In an effort to get “buy-in” from their staff, the decision was made to initially to offer all colors, as they were accustomed to having complete control of their purchases. The customer planned to transition to a more limited, pre-approved color palette with the goal of a standardized uniform program in mind.

New employees were provided a $135 coupon code to use in the scrub store, eliminating the expense reimbursement process. A second bank of coupon codes in increments of $75 was created for employee annual anniversaries that management can distribute at will.

Also, employees were strongly encouraged to make their personal purchases (via credit card) for additional scrub sets from the company store. The combination of popular brands and styles, an easy online buying experience, the availability of logoed tops, and price points BELOW retail made this a no-brainer. Purchases could be made (via coupon code, credit card, or a combination of both) at any time, with no minimums, in quantities as low as one.

To meet their secondary need for additional branded apparel, another category was created for non-medical items including polos, cardigans, pullovers, woven dress shirts, and jackets. The company could use the platform to buy apparel for their staff at any time, and the client was billed directly. Employees that are interested in purchasing these items can do so at any time using their credit card.

Results

The client has an easy to use ordering platform that is now the springboard for a standardized uniform policy that will promote the company image, make a strong impression on patients, and provide a valuable employee benefit. All staff has easy, online access to quality, logoed gear and that can be ordered at any time, one at a time.

“We are excited about our new apparel platform.  It not only relieves an administrative burden, but also provides our team an opportunity to showcase our brand.  By adding additional “gear” for our non-medical staff, everyone can participate, and it gives us an engaging way to provide awards and incentives to our employees. It is great seeing our team members in their unique branded apparel!”

– KELLIE SCHMIDT, DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES, RALEIGH NEUROLOGY ASSOCIATES, P.A.

Phillip Batten, Account Executive at Regency360 said, “Once I had a chance to talk to Kellie, I realized very quickly that we could help them move to a scrub program that was flexible but still gave them more control. We worked closely together to avoid “culture shock” and insure a smooth transition for their employees. They plan on adding more products and categories, so it will be rewarding to see the platform grow.”