Versatile Wovens

A longtime favorite in the corporate world and service industry alike, low-maintenance woven shirts present a polished look that can pump up your profits.
October 25, 2006

In addition, easy-care features help woven shirts stay fresh looking, from the morning coffee and bagel to the drive home from work. In an ever-changing world of companies being bought and sold, where a Woven shirts can be seen in almost any workplace — from the hottest of kitchens to the coldest of cubicles. There's a reason this category has become a staple in this wide range of markets: Because wovens can look sharp without being overly formal, they are as much at home in a casual environment as they are in a corporate office. brand can be an empire one day and forgotten the next, one thing is certain: No matter how hectic the outside world becomes, you can always count on the woven shirt to be a constant and stable part of the workplace.

Back to Basics
In recent years, every hue from hot pink and lime green to pumpkin orange and turquoise blue has been spotted in the decorated apparel market. However, after running the gamut of the color spectrum, woven shirt manufacturers are settling in neutral territory, reflecting the shift toward earth tones last seen in the 1990s.

Bright colors are starting to fade away from the woven shirt category, notes Mark Goldwater, national sales manager for Sierra Pacific Apparel, Houston. "They're not off the map, but they have faded," he says. "Brights such as yellows have gone to a high point and have started to subside."

Nonetheless, the ladies' end of the market is still open to bright colors like mango and celery green, adds Daniel Brockley, marketing and communications representative, SanMar Corp., Preston, Wash.

Of course colors aren't just for the ladies — universities, sports teams and corporations require an unchanging supply of color-specific shirts to don their logos. "University and team colors have a tremendous impression on what we make," says Philip J. Rubin, CEO of Blue Generation, N.Y. According to Rubin, Blue Generation is broadening its color spectrum to 42 offerings for 2007, and saw positive results when it added burnt orange for University of Texas fans celebrating the Longhorns' 2005 football national championship. "We had an immediate explosion in sales," he adds. "Texas' burnt orange is one of the major top-selling colors."

Superior Style and Performance
In the corporate market, attention to detail — from embellishment to performance — is everything. "We include a lot of intricate craftsman details in our line," says Matthew Waterman, marketing manager, Outer Banks, Winston-Salem, N.C. "People are looking to take an extra step to dress up over the knit polo."

Manufacturers are offering a modern approach to the traditional button-down structured shirt with a slightly narrower width. "The younger executive can still get a proper look, but with more contour and fitting," Goldwater says. "For women, we took the buttons off of the collar and added princess darts."

Style is yet another area where the women's end of the market allows more options. Feminine detailing like ¾ sleeve, French cuffs and blouse-like structure go a long way, says Tom Flippo, vice president of sales, Dunbrooke, Independence, Mo. "Shirts with ¾ sleeves are big sellers because women can wear them with slacks or a skirt; they can be dressy or casual," he adds. "An open V-neck is also more fashionable than a traditional [button-down] collar."

Another important detail that matters — whether in the corporate world or the service industry — is performance. "Customers expect performance from their shirts these days. Any product has to have some added benefit," says Waterman. Outer Banks is introducing easy care in its Ultimate Outer Banks line in 2007 with wrinkle-resistant shirts that are ready to wear right out of the dryer, he says.

Features like stain and wrinkle resistance make this category a hit with end users who are constantly on the go. "Easy-care shirts are definitely an outstanding choice [for industries] from restaurants to trade shows," Brockley says.

Befitting Fabrication
Unlike T-shirts, where quality is gauged by the weight, the quality of woven shirts is determined by the cotton content, stitch detail and the fit, feel and color offering, Outer Banks' Waterman says. "All of the shirts in the Reserve line are 100% cotton," he adds. "We also offer a silky cotton dobby weave, which has an incredibly soft hand."

However, demand for cotton content in a woven shirt varies depending on the market — 60% cotton/40% polyester blend and stain resistance for the service industry, 100% cotton with a wrinkle-free finish for the corporate world. "Not everyone has time to go to the dry cleaner when they need clean shirts. Especially when you travel a lot, you just need to launder, touch up and go," says Flippo.

With the help of cotton, silk — a delicate fabric that was expensive to buy and maintain — is beginning to establish a presence in the higher end of the market. Silk/cotton blends combine the elegance of silk with the washability of cotton. "We're finding that people like silk and higher-end fabrications," Brockley says. "People are eager to buy [apparel on the] high end."


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