Impressions - April 2016 - 24

trend has infused comfortable, athletic-like garments with
everyday styles.
"Athleisure - depending on what city you're in - could go from
more of a yoga outfit to a more fashion shirt or sweat shirt type of
styling," Yeung says. "It depends on which region you're in. We're
seeing athleisure influences within our marketplaces on the designs
that we create. Athleisure is a combination of comfort, as well as
some type of athletic appeal, depending on the performance or
stylingof the garment."
The beauty of athleisure is that, in many instances, the garment can
be used for multiple purposes. Apparel worn to play tennis or take a
brisk walk can later be worn to the mall or a restaurant.
"With the advent of athleisure, customers are now more
comfortable buying an athletic-inspired product that has multiple
end uses," Winters says. "Women in particular - they're wearing
these higher-end tights or athletic-inspired tops, not just to
participate in yoga, cross-training or athletics, but to lunch with
their friends or to class. By and large, we're seeing this athleisure
component become more acceptable as an everyday part of
one's attire."

The athleisure trend is
popular in athletic wear,
especially among women
who find multiple end
uses for such garments.
Photo provided by
Expert Brand.

Poly Appeal
Polyester reigns above all when it comes to athletic
wear, whether it's used exclusively in a garment
or as part of a blend.
There are several reasons for its appeal: it's
light, drapes well and can easily be modified with
moisture-wicking or antimicrobial properties.
"I'm producing tons of [garments] in poly and
poly-based performance fabrics," says Vince
Winters, founder, Elbowgrease Athletics. "The people
that are buying them from me don't even care that
they're wicking and antimicrobial. They just like
the novelty component of poly fabrics."
Simply put, people like the way polyester feels
on their skin. It's the driving force in athletic
wear trends - something that's not exactly a new
development - and the proof is in how many different ways it is used.
"We are seeing a lot of polyester and a lot of
performance fabrics driven by polyester, especially in the athletic wear market place," says
Elson Yeung, director, private label design and
merchandising, alphabroder. "The unique thing about
using polyester in these performance fabrics is
you're not restricted to using it on base-layer
fabrics. You can use it in performance fleece.
People wouldn't usually think of a layering piece
having wicking performance. We have that, [and]
we've applied that."
Sure, polyester is a huge part of the comfort
factor, but suppliers are experimenting and coming up with blends that also contribute to the
popularity of some of these garments. Simply put,
developments in polyester, poly/cotton blends and
tri-blends are major contributors to the fabric's
craze among consumers. - J.B.

P.24

I M P R E S S I O N S M A G . C O M APRIL 2016

"By and large, we're
seeing this athleisure
component become
more acceptable as
an everyday part of
one's attire."
- Vince Winters, Elbowgrease Athletics

Soft fabrics and bright
colors highlight trends that
will be prevalent in
the future for athletic wear.
Photo provided by Hanes.
http://www.IMPRESSIONSMAG.COM
Impressions - April 2016

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