Does your shop have a training program? Even if you are a one-person shop, there will likely come a day when you will need to train a helper, salesperson or machine operator. Start keeping notes now about what your employees need to know and how you want to teach them.
September 14, 2009
A common frustration for contract digitizers is when the sew-out of their file tests perfectly but turns out horrible on the customer's machine. The file is sent back and the digitizers are then trying to fix an already perfectly digitized file and can only guess where the problem may lie.
September 14, 2009
In our industry we decorate a massive assortment of items by a broad variety of technologies. Then we distribute what we produce to virtually every economic sector in every nook and cranny of society.
September 14, 2009
Learn to evaluate and adjust your mix of clientele for optimum profitability and stability.
While the economic lows that many American markets have been experiencing for the past year are certainly painful, they’re also nothing new. Historically, the tide of business success continually ebbs and flows, with one market experiencing a rush of good fortune while another watches its revenue all but dry up. This cyclical nature of business is precisely why decorators must have a diverse customer base that allows them to weather slowdowns — or even meltdowns — in parts of the economy.
September 02, 2009
Styles and price points may change, but thankfully, jacket sales won’t cool off anytime soon.
When the going gets tough, the tough keep going — and they keep wearing jackets. That’s the positive message from numerous industry suppliers, who say that even as the economy continues to sag, sales for jackets remain robust — albeit often at lower price points and in different styles.
September 01, 2009
An Ohio contract embroiderer completed an order for 90 golf shirts — cotton lisle beauties, $38 at wholesale (you probably know the brand) — for a promotional products distributor. They are magnificent garments, but a bear to embroider. The design was digitized to run a thin underlay beneath a reduced stitch count (typical for this type work). You submitted a pre-production sew-out, on fabric, for the distributor’s approval —which was given. The customer did not provide the actual garment for the sew-out, and that proved to be the fatal flaw in the process of completing this order.
August 31, 2009
An Impressions reader recently submitted a suggestion for easing the process when making your own patches.
August 31, 2009
It seems like nearly all new products introduced today are made of some type of moisture-wicking performance knits. The most common shirts are being replaced with these new fabrics. While they may be nice for the wearer, many embroiderers have found moisture-wicking fabrics to be downright wicked to deal with.
August 31, 2009
In tough times like these, people look for savings in every way they can. They move cautiously and take fewer risks. Interestingly enough, it also is during economic downturns that many people become self-employed by launching a new business.
August 03, 2009
Music — bands and celebrity performers — is influencing the graphics, styling and colors that teens and pre-teens want to wear.
If you’re ever wondering how to tap in to the teen and tween (pre-teen) market, the evidence is all around you. The apparel worn on TV, in magazines and on the Internet by rock stars, actors, models and other celebrities is going to give you the greatest clues about what teens want in decorated apparel.
July 31, 2009
Even in a down economy, fleece buyers will find lighter weights among basics and a healthy dose of fashion and color.
As consumers tighten their belts, fleece remains popular and decorators should look to vendor lines with lighter weight fabrics making value-added changes to basics, as well as and some fashion-forward styles and sizzling colors.
July 31, 2009
“Never put off until tomorrow what you could do today.” That pearl of wisdom is one of Thomas Jefferson’s most famous quotes. The great American writer and humorist Mark Twain gave Jefferson a little twist: “Never put off until tomorrow what you can put off until the day after tomorrow.” I would like to add yet another variation: “Never put off until tomorrow what you can avoid entirely.”
July 20, 2009
My first job in the embroidery industry was as a machine technician. More specifically, I was a phone support (or Help Desk) technician. Some of the toughest calls I would get were from people dealing with thread break issues with their machines.
July 06, 2009
Decorators on Impressions’ annual list of top-volume shops prove that an economic downturn doesn’t necessarily mean a slump in production, sales volume or mindset.
As America’s collective business community continues to struggle with the longest recession since the Great Depression (though not near the same magnitude), stories of resilient companies — such as Impressions’ 2009 Top-Volume Shops — offer a beacon of light during this overcast time. Though the largest companies can be the hardest to fall in weakening economies, this hasn’t been the case with our industry’s top shops. That these big players remain securely at the top of their game may have a little to do with luck, but probably a lot more to do with resourcefulness and well-earned reputations.
July 01, 2009
Kidswear is trending more than ever toward adult and juniors styles, even as the majority of the market remains tried-and-true basics.
Oooh, baby! Today’s kids are sporting some decidedly progressive, adult-driven apparel, including sun dresses with Affliction-style heraldry designs, diapers decorated with abstract sublimated designs, vintage-wash fabrics and organic cotton one-piece body suits. These fashion-forward offerings are part of a bumper crop of products from industry suppliers, who continue to unveil new twists for tots, even as classic kidswear items retain their perennial popularity.
July 01, 2009
In the final part of this series, our expert guides you through fast and efficient techniques to use when digitizing and sewing on woven fabrics such as tackle twill and stretchy materials like Lycra spandex.
Part 1 of Digitizing for Specialty Fabrics (Impressions, May 2009) was about using an abundance of underlay to control the loops and piles of napped fabrics like terrycloth. If you read that article, I’m sure you would never have thought I would talk about specialty fabrics that require no underlay. But that’s the case with one specialty fabric.
July 01, 2009
Puffy foam embroidery continues to be a popular option for those customers looking for something different to give dimension to their designs. One of the biggest challenges with this process, however, is preventing the foam from sticking out between the stitches in 3-D designs. Some simple solutions in both the digitizing and embroidery stages can help correct this problem.
July 01, 2009
Thread tensioning is such a big part of the embroidery process. If it is set correctly, the machine will purr and the design will look beautiful. If the tension is off, it can make you pull your hair out and say things you shouldn’t.
June 22, 2009
Embroidery legend Walt Floriani once said that embroidering with just one type of thread is like a chef trying to prepare a gourmet meal with salt and pepper as the only seasonings. Don’t limit yourself; take advantage of the many thread choices out there that can spice up your embroidery.
June 05, 2009
Beginner's luck has its place in the apparel graphics industry. Veterans can tell great stories about beginners who happened on our shores and made a big pile of money — fast. But for every such tale, there are scores of others where entrepreneurs' dreams of success were dashed upon the rocks of conventional wisdom, wrong assumptions, poorly researched solutions, shopworn strategies and poor execution.
May 22, 2009
Many shops just hire a new worker and let them learn on the job. This “on-the-job osmosis” method usually results in uneven job skills and does not give your employee the best opportunity to excel.
May 22, 2009
I once was working with a fellow who told me he would like embroidery if it weren’t for the thread. Obviously that person didn’t last long in the embroidery industry. After all, what is embroidery all about? Decorating a piece of fabric with thread. Sometimes we get so focused on stabilizers, digitizing and other things that the thread gets taken for granted.
May 11, 2009
Learn how the right software can pump up profit potential for your apparel decoration business.
If knowledge truly is power, then no other tool gives you absolute power over your business like information management software.
May 01, 2009
Despite tough economic conditions, the ladieswear category continues to perform surprisingly well, thanks in part to new fabrics, details and colors.
While the ongoing recession may have prompted suppliers to narrow their product offerings a bit, that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of stylish, new options this year in ladieswear. See-through sheers, eco-friendly cottons, red-hot layered looks, deep V-necks, bright colors like apricot orange and lime green, and standby styles like baby ribs are giving decorators plenty of alluring choices. Eye-catching looks inspired by retail are in abundance.
May 01, 2009
In Part 1 of a two-part series, our expert guides you through fast and efficient techniques to use when digitizing and sewing on various substrates.
In a perfect embroidery world, all designs would work on all types of fabrics. Of course, that perfect world just doesn't exist. In the real world, we take on jobs that call for digitized designs to be sewn on a variety of fabrics. And the smart embroiderer knows how to alter a digitized file or adapt sewing techniques to ensure letters and logos show properly on any fabric.
May 01, 2009
|
Maximize the Potential of Your Embroidered Apparel Business
Impressions is a valued resource for those in the embroidered apparel business. From learning new machine embroidery designs to finding the perfect source for commercial embroidery equipment and supplies, no embroidery business should be without Impressions.
|
