T-Shirts Ring In the New Year

Decorators and consumers alike look to lower price point items such as T-shirts to help them ride out the recession.
Jan 1, 2009

Gildan's ladies long-sleeve T-shirt is made from 10.1-ounce 100% pre-shrunk cotton jersey. It features a double-needle collar and bottom hem, feminine shoulder, arm and sleeve pattern, and taped neck and shoulders.

By Haley Hobson, Associate Editor — Digital Media

Some T-shirt manufacturers already are getting battered by the current recession, while others have hardly been scathed. The good news for manufacturers and decorators alike is that overall T-shirts sales may take some hits, but the market will still be standing when this economic storm passes. "As all markets, we are feeling the recession," says Todd Proffit, marketing director for Alstyle Apparel, Anaheim, Calif. "However, in this tough time, people are still purchasing T-shirts."

Premium apparel business — higher-end polos, outerwear and fashion apparel — is more vulnerable during a recession, says Garry Bell, vice president of global marketing for Gildan, Montreal, Quebec. "I believe T-shirts are better positioned to weather the storm," he says. Some drivers of consumption such as event merchandising and tourism/souvenir apparel will be impacted, but segments such as school uniforms and team apparel likely will fare better, he adds. "One thing we are already seeing is a 'trading down' similar to the last downturn in the 1980s," he says. "Our product line is very basic and has always been designed to deliver premium features at value-driven prices. The result of these economic times will likely be downward pressure on pricing of even basic commodity items."

Some companies like American Apparel and Hanes report they are weathering the storm quite well. Los Angeles-based American Apparel projects another successful year and expects no major decreases despite the recession, according to Mark Smalley, the company's marketing product manager.

Regardless of the tough market, "T-shirts are proving to be resilient for Hanes," says Matt Waterman, senior marketing manager for Hanesbrands Inc., Winston Salem, N.C. He attributes this to Hanes offering a T-shirt at every price point — or "The Good, Better, Beefy" approach.

A new study to be published early this year in the Journal of Consumer Research shows that exposure to brands in the course of everyday life — such as branded apparel on strangers — impacts the brands consumers choose, says Ellen Singer, executive vice president of Anvil Knitwear, New York. "That's great news for anyone in the business of providing advertising service products, and particularly for apparel marketers like Anvil," she says. "A corporate logo on an Anvil shirt continues to provide brand impressions over time; it's an efficient and effective tool that will remain in the consumer marketer's tool kit."

In With the New

This year's T-shirt manufacturers have spiced things up for 2009 by expanding lines to include new colors, styles, brands and fabrications. Broder Bros., Trevose, Pa., added Alternative Apparel to its arsenal last year, and has expanded styles in this line for 2009. The Debbie (style AA4523) and Cher (style AA4594) offer unique silhouettes for the supplier, which also introduced a high-visibility category with Dickies Workwear and the new VS200 ANSI-certified T-shirt that meets all high-visibility regulations. Gildan also added Safety green and orange shades to its Ultra Cotton offerings, which meet ANSI Shade standards for high-visibility apparel.

Alstyle is honing in on growing niches such as the tween market. The company is offering style 3362, a 30/1 crewneck. "We offer this same shirt in the juniors market and have sized down for the younger market," says Proffit.

Hanes is expanding its Tagless family of T-shirts. "In addition to a ton of new colors and improved distribution, we are offering a new Tagless long-sleeve tee (style 5596) that has a handy five-point, left-chest pocket," says Waterman.

Gildan filled a void with a ladies long-sleeve tee in its Ultra Cotton label, complementing the 2000L style introduced in 2007. "Also, 2009 will represent a sort of relaunch of our Ring Spun Soft Style tees, which hit the market late last year," Bell says. "Fully stocked and ready to roll, these styles deliver Euro-style silhouettes and ring-spun softness for him and her."

American Apparel has introduced a new style and fabric with its HJ401 Army Surplus Tee, which is made from thick, ultra-comfy heather cotton rayon mock jersey (90% cotton/10% rayon). In addition, the manufacturer is adding new pieces to its Tri-Blend collection. "Its unique fabrication creates an ultra-soft vintage feel and flattering fits," Smalley says, adding that the company is expanding its organic styles and colors too. "Our customers appreciate the option to buy sustainable garments."

Anvil is introducing 13 new styles for 2009, all of which are on trend as they are eco-friendly or value-positioned, says Singer. Its new AnvilSustainable fleece line includes three styles made from a blend of 55% organic cotton/45% post-consumer recycled polyester and six new styles have been added to the AnvilOrganic line.

New Colors

Hanes has made color choice simple, despite its abundant color offerings. "The EasyColor system makes it easy to pair your favorite colors and styles," says Waterman. The EasyColor swatchcard features a slide card that allows customers to determine all styles that are available in any given color or search for all of the colors that are available in a style. "The 10 most popular colors in the line are offered in practically every tee, fleece and sportshirt," he adds. "We also have designated 20 classic colors — available in 11 power tees — and 40 preferred colors, which are available in Beefy and Tagless tees."

While the most popular colors — white, black, heather gray, navy and red — remain standard across the industry, Anvil drives sales with fashion hues such as Oatmeal and favorites like Caribbean blue and Mandarin orange. "We also add depth and variety with our ChromaZone garment-dyed colors," says Singer. "AnvilRecycled brings a new type of color to the industry, because the nine shades offered are comprised of many different [color] clippings, which bring a subtle, yet interesting variation to the final fabric."

Gildan's Bell says brighter jewel tones and flower-inspired colors are coming on strong. A similar trend holds true at Broder Bros., says Andrea Engel, vice president of merchandising for Broder Bros. "Colors that are trending right now are the deep rich jewel tones: emerald, sapphire, amethyst, fuschia, teal, yellow topaz," she says. Sales of what Alstyle calls "pop" colors also are starting to pick up. "We've added yellow, lime, turquoise and royal to a lot of our styles for 2009," Proffit says.

"Other colors that continue to be strong are organic, earth-inspired colors — smoke gray, rich browns and chocolates, organic greens and olives, deep mustardy yellows, indigo blues," says Engel.

New Fabrications

Technology remains a growing niche in the T-shirt market. "We've added some great moisture-management tees this year," says Broder's Engel. "For customers looking to trade down from sportshirt price points but still have a great performing style, we've added performance tees at every price point."

Broder Bros. has tripled its offerings of eco-friendly styles for 2009. The supplier now offers organic cotton, as well as styles made from recycled and regenerated fabrics. Also, Alstyle will rely on its adult and youth organic T-shirts sales this year. "Consumers are more educated today as to the different weights and fabrics available in the marketplace," says Proffit.

Instead of a adding a single organic or recycled fiber, Gildan's environmental sustainability efforts focus on the complete manufacturing process. "This holistic approach has led to innovative processes to treat our wastewater, using only gravity and micro-organisms to virtually eliminate all the dyes and chemicals," Bell says. "The resulting water is recycled into the facilities and shared with local agri-businesses. We also are pioneering new technology in areas of natural resource efficiency, recycling and waste management."

The Future of Tees

While the economic downturn will impact all markets, manufacturers predict that the T-shirt market will continue to lead sales in the decorated apparel industry. "The overall macro-economy will certainly impact buying decisions in 2009," Hanes' Waterman says. "However, T-shirts are such an integral product in our society that I believe the demand for them will remain strong."

Gildan's Bell concurs that a contraction in the overall promotional apparel market is inevitable for 2009. "T-shirts will fare better than the overall apparel category and specifically will benefit from a trading down rationalization that will come from tightened budgets," he says. "As with all downturns, strong companies will look to take advantage of the situation and spend aggressively to elevate their brand/message while others pull back. Research shows that in times like these buyers at all levels will seek out value. The good news is that T-shirts offer the best value proposition to marketers than any other promotional item."

Alstyle's Proffit agrees that buyers will look to trade down. "The customer that was shopping for the button-down shirt is now buying a T-shirt to save a few dollars," he says.

In the end, T-shirts are basic and fundamental to most American wardrobes. "From a corporate standpoint, promotional apparel is still a great buy and an efficient and effective way to get a brand message in front of a large audience," says Anvil's Singer, adding that consumers are prepared to pay more for eco-friendly T-shirts despite the recession. "The recently released goodpurpose study found that more than two-thirds of consumers feel this way even given the current economic situation. That's great news for Anvil and our line of eco-friendly styles."

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