Printwear & Promotion The Total Promotional Package
Found in the market town of Bromyard in Herefordshire is clothing label that specialises in providing top quality T shirts and garments featuring motor-themed designs. P&P editor Melanie Attlesey speaks to the man behind the brand about his business and his plans for the future.
Meet Adam Allen. He is the owner, printer and designer of RetroClassic Clothing. Born out of a love for the classic motoring trade, Adam launched his own clothing range in 2012. The move into garment decoration came easily for Adam as he has a degree in graphic design and has previously worked at a printing and embroidery firm, where he learnt about the techniques of the trade and clothing industry.
He explains: “For more than 20 years I have been in the classic motoring trade and a motor enthusiast. I worked for a mail order classic car company, working on their marketing and promotional materials. In 2012, I decided that I wanted to start my own clothing range, so along with the knowledge and experience I have gained from my previous roles and degree, RetroClassic Clothing was born.”
All of Adam’s designs are unique and capture his love of the classic motor industry perfectly. Adam says his designs feature iconic motoring images that send wearers back to that bygone era.
For one man Adam has achieved quite a lot in three short years of operation. His designs can be bought online from his website, but also through Amazon and mail order stockists in America, Germany and the UK. A small number of independent stores also stock his T shirts and a few companies promote the brand on a commission basis. Adam will also be out on the road during the summer months selling his T shirts and hoodies at a number of car and van shows.
It is difficult to say how many T shirts Adam prints on a daily basis as he prints to order. He also deals with worldwide stockists that order in bulk, which increases the numbers printed when an order is received.
Tools of the trade
Any garment decorator will tell you that their work is only as good as the tools he uses.
To achieve his desired outcome Adam uses the Resolute DTG R-Jet4 CMYK printer to print the designs and outsources the embroidery of any logos and the RetroClassic garment label.
Adam is a big advocate of DTG printing. He says: “DTG printing gives you the flexibility of offering one-off designs; as you are not required to print a run of T shirts, thus also keeping the costs lower for customers, having more detailed and intricate designs, the chance to print to order rather than having to carry huge amounts of stock and also the chance to easily test your designs without huge wastage. It allows me to have much better control over the quality of the printing. Personally I just like the finish and look that DTG printing gives.”
Adam only has the one printer, so when a large order comes in Adam often has to pull a late night in order to complete the batch. “Everyone thinks I’m a big company and have a factory, but we all have to start somewhere!” he laughs.
It’s not just the decoration method which is important, but also the quality of the garments used. Adam has chosen to use Uneek’s UC301 Classic T shirt in beige and white for the men’s styles and for the women’s styles he uses B&C Collection’s B190F in white. Hoodies are Gildan Heavy Blend Vintage Classic Full Zip Hooded Sweatshirt GD059 in a choice of midnight, blackberry, moss and russet.
After trialling multiple brands, Adam found the quality of the T shirts factored highly in his choice, as he needed to be sure of a high quality print finish. He added: “These particular T shirts, in my opinion, offer the best quality for the print finish and also the durability of the garment. The colour choice available also appealed, as the shade of beige most suitable for my designs was limited in availability with other brands. The sizes available also factored in my decision to choose these particular brands so that the brand could appeal to a wide range of customers. The hoodies chosen are due to their quality, softness and colour choices, which reflect RetroClassic Clothing.”
The passion and love that Adam has for his job is evident. He explains: “The freedom and flexibility to create my own designs makes for a really great job. The fact that I am able to produce something from scratch and then receive good feedback from around the world gives job satisfaction. It is an amazing feeling to know that what I am producing is being well received.”
Adam also enjoys the fact that in his line of work the opportunity for on the job learning is available in barrel loads. “Learning about new designs and technologies, meeting new people in the industry, working with other creative minds such as the photographers and models and the feedback I can get from talking to people at the shows we attend just adds to the job satisfaction.”
Quality products
The brand has captured the hearts of those in the classic motor trade, and Adam states that one of his more popular garments appeals to camper van enthusiasts.
“It is difficult for me to say if I have a typical customer, however I try to appeal to those aged 25 to 50+. I offer a large range of sizes (XS to 4XL), a vast array of designs and the different fits for both men and women. While men wear the majority of my products, many of my customers are women,” says Adam.
The feedback that Adam has received from customers is very encouraging. “Customers often comment on the quality of the product, the unique designs and the fun element of the retro pinups used alongside the classic vehicles,” he explains. “I think the best feedback I receive though is when customers submit their vehicle for inclusion in new designs added to the collection.”
Despite already selling worldwide, Adam has big plans for the future. “Within the next five years I would wish to have expanded the number of stockists working with the brand, opened my own store, increased the range of products on offer and ultimately sold T shirts in the vast majority of countries we are yet to do so. My real aim would be to become a more mainstream brand, appealing to all, and not just a niche market.”
But what advice does Adam have to give the industry. “Selling T shirts online is not as easy as you would first think, you need to do your research and decide who your target audience is. It’s a huge market and you need to make your target specific,” he explains.
“Keep the quality to a high standard and keep your customer service at a high standard too. If the customer service is good, people will remember that and will be more likely to re-order or recommend you to others.”
