Impressions - April 2014 - 4

first impressions
The $60
Hoodie

ike every other parent, having my kids involved in
sports and other activities during their upbringing
was very important.
My oldest son played travel ice hockey for 15 years,
while my daughter spent her younger and adolescent
years consumed with competitive soccer. In addition
to the many practices and games, a big part of their
participation was the necessary apparel for their respective sports.
Like many parents, I willingly invested in practice jerseys, game-day garb, fan
apparel, "Mom"-wear and more. It seemed like every time I turned around, one
of the kids needed money to fulfill the team's garments and accessories orders.
And because of my parental pride in their involvement in sports, I was happy to
purchase whatever they needed.
At one particular hockey tournament, a vendor was set up to do heat transfers
on site at the arena. The company came to the event with boxes of blank T-shirts,
hoodies and pre-imaged heat transfers featuring a design for the tournament.
There also were scores of letters and numbers so the kids could personalize their
garments by adding to the main preprinted design.
As I stood in line with the other parents, I knew the price I was about to pay -
literally - for getting my son exactly what he wanted so that he could show his
team pride. Of course, he didn't want the plain T-shirt with the tournament logo
on it. Because we were in Canada, my Texas kid wanted a hoodie with the main
design on the front chest, his name on the back, his team number on one shoulder
and - because he was the team captain - a capital "C" on the other shoulder.
As the vendor heat pressed these items on the various areas of the garment, our
simple order was adding up, with the final cost nearing $60. I knew it was outrageous, but I also knew I wasn't going to say, "No."
Proudly, I doled out the cash.
This type of on-site apparel decorating can be a lucrative part of the athleticwear, team and spirit markets. These niches collectively represent a huge portion
of the overall apparel decorating industry and show no signs of slowing down. After all, kids always will be involved in extracurricular activities and, as parents, we
show our support by outfitting them in everything they need to show team pride.
The same goes for adults; people are proud of what they do and want to show it.
As decorators, there's a plethora of new styles on the market to satisfy all of
your customers' needs. Check out some of the latest offerings in our product feature ("Gametime Garb") on page 22. Then, let your creativity take over and see
what different embellishments and placements you can come up with to make
your company's athleticwear the best in your region.

Marcia Derryberry
Editor in ChiEf

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EDiTorial

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aSSoCiatE Editor
LAUreN MitcHeLL
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Contributing writErS
MArk A. coUDrAy, DyLAN DerryBerry,
DeBorAH joNeS, GreG kitSoN, jiMMy LAMB,
jAMeS ortoLANi, MicHAeL j. PALLeriNo,
coNNie r. SMitH
ViCE prESidEnt/ContEnt
DoUG HoPe
SEnior ViCE prESidEnt
joe rANDALL

arT

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4

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Impressions - April 2014

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