Team Insight

that some teams don't choose three colors and all kinds of placements. But all things being equal, they choose the higher quality garment." Tapered women's cuts and styles are offered by virtually every vendor and are generally preferred. "We sell a lot of tapered women's cuts, but it's not a given," says Crane. "A lot of the college teams buy the uni-sex products, which are basically the men's cuts, because the women athletes don't necessarily want the tapered cuts." Graphics Go For It A recent magazine headline – "Logo For It?" – captured the universal appeal of logos in street fashion and athletics to score instant recognition and exclusivity. "There's definitely a more pronounced trend around here for logos, lettering and color to be more coherent and recognizable," says McLagan. "Our select teams seem to have decided that consistency in look, logo and uniform is key to being recognized as such." Dealers keep graphics fresh and distinctive by offering a range of decorating options and varying their size and placement. "Oversize graphics are popular right now and some of our teams want a big 12-13-inch graphic. Others want what we call a center chest, which is an eight- to nine-inch graphic in the middle of the garment. We do very few left chest placements right now," says Holwerda. "We use some Stahls' products that flex very well with the stretchy fabrics." Teams certainly get creative when they buy a variety of items. "They may want to do something a little different on each by varying the decorating tech- niques, designs or placements," says Crane, whose company offers a full range of decorating options ranging from screenprinting and embroidery to heat applied vinyl, vinyl transfers, heat applied twill and direct-to-garment printing. "The look they're going for is often influenced by what the Big Three show for major contracts. It may be a logo in a different location or an oversized logo." "Teams are getting away from dull, boring graph- ics," says Larry Levine, president of ArtBrands, a manufacturer of stock and custom heat transfers for garment decorating. "As teams seek more individuality, we see a lot of color pops and special effects, such as glitter, neon and glow-in-the-dark. The attitude is, 'Why buy a new team T-shirt every year if it looks the same?' Women's softball teams use foil to get a unique look in the field. Our solar tees reveal the graphics in sunlight." Fresh sublimation designs are also pivotal. "In our sublimation line, we continue to see a trend towards GIRLS' & WOMEN'S SPORTS / DECORATING Left: Stahls' silicone Dye-Block heat transfer vinyl provides the dye-blocking power of silicone without messy ink or the need to burn screens. Right:: Champro Splash Sublimation offers a simple, fast and affordable custom T-shirt option. 10 STYLES / 5 WEEKS TEN OF OUR MOST POPULAR STYLES, NOW WITH A FIVE WEEK TURNAROUND* Custom Builder Online • USA Made • TCK Performance • Custom or Stock Logos *certain rules and restrictions apply four E FIVE 4 March 2018 / Team Insight 41 teaminsightmag.com

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