Saturday, April 25, 2015

Ordering Your Team Uniforms


Uniform orders can very quickly become a coach's worst nightmare. This blog is going to be dedicated to helping you  understand what to look for when ordering uniforms. Coach Mike took time to create a  check list of what to look for in your uniforms...

The things to consider are:
  1. Brand
  2. Quality
  3. Ability to size the team from top to bottom
  4. Initial availability
  5. Player add on availability
  6. Price
  7. Overall uniqueness of design

1. Brand
First is brand. Gone are the days of only having a few basic brands like Russell, Champion, and Nike to pick from. With options like Teamwork, Alleson Athletic, Augusta, A4 and High Five, There are many brands and options to compete with.
2. Quality
This can result in a drive for companies to have superior quality while not sacrificing a great price. When you take the U A logo or the Swoosh off of the uniform and get down to what really matters, the are endless options.

3. Ability to Size 
What size do you wear?  This is a great question. With Uniform specific companies such as Augusta Sportswear, Badger Sportswear, or Teamwork Athletic, it can be very easy to order a sizing kit to make sure you get it right the first time. Most all of these companies ship same day as order. With larger companies such as Adidas, Nike, or Under Armour, they may take up to 3 to 4 days to ship an order costing you valuable time in the ordering process.

4. Initial Availability
Another thing to consider is Initial availability. Many of the larger companies will intentionally sell out of product in a relatively quick manner. They have no desire to have any inventory left on the shelves after the start of a season.

5. Add on Players
The Add on player....With larger brand names such as Nike, Under Armour and Adidas, their primary focus is to sell a jersey that will in turn help sell there larger brand concept. it is not uncommon for these guys to discontinue a jersey line after one season. This leaves a coach or athletic director with the challenge of trying to find a similar product when it comes to adding a jersey. When you utilize uniform specific companies such as Augusta Sportswear, Badger Sportswear, or Teamwork Athletic, they have lines that will be available for 2 to 3 years at minimum. All they do is sell uniforms!

6. Price
One of the most important aspects of the uniform experience is PRICE. Quite simply, when you loose the swoosh or the UA then for some strange reason the price mysteriously lowers by 15% to 25%.


 
7. Uniqueness of Design
One of the last aspects to consider is uniqueness of the design. All to often I see teams that utilize uniforms from the BIG 3 Nike, Under Armour, and Adidas.. Often times other than a slight color variation it quickly becomes obvious that they are wearing the exact same designs. With smaller uniform specific companies, they are constantly competing for your business so a unique stock design is the best way to make that happen.


Bottom line is this, if you are interested in getting the most out of your uniform dollars then consider moving away from the shoe companies styles to the direction of the guys that make uniforms exclusively for a living. This will give you increased value and quality, as well as fewer headaches.
- Coach Mike

For catalogs featuring all of these brands, check out our Coaches Corner Page!


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