The winners will be announced at a glittering Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner at Birmingham’s National Motorcycle Museum on March 3 – to coincide with the Printwear & Promotion Exhibition. So, if you’re planning to attend the show; if you’re a finalist; or even if you work with one of the companies that is, there’s no excuse not to come along to the Gala Dinner to lend your support and enjoy an evening of networking and entertainment at what promises to be THE industry event of the year.
If you’re at the exhibition, the Gala Dinner is also the perfect opportunity to reward your team for its hard work, entertain your key clients and network with your industry colleagues. The dress code is black tie.

Tables
A table for 10 people is £950, and an individual place is £110. To book, call 01622 699173.

BPMA
British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA) - Sponsors of the Promotional Product of the Year Award

The BPMA is one of the leading trade associations in the promotional merchandise industry, and has been representing manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and service providers in this vibrant sector for over 40 years.
It represents the industry at all levels, whether it is lobbying the government on industry issues, working with the media, or promoting awareness of the services provided by its members.
The BPMA’s aim is to enable its members to do more and better business by promoting their professionalism and credibility to customers. Being able to use the BPMA logo is seen by them as a sign of quality and reassurance.
The BPMA upholds a strict code of conduct and provides a one-stop, on-line sourcing portal only featuring BPMA members.
 
www.bpma.co.uk

Continental Clothing
Sponsors of the Garment Decorator of the Year Award

“We get to do what ever we want.”
Continental is a privately owned company. That means, as our founders Philip Charles and Paul Hughes say, “We get to do what ever we want.” And what we want to do – the reason we are now in business – is to inspire and implement solutions to the global environmental crisis. That’s our mission.
“When we started learning about organic agriculture, environmental destruction and climate change, there was no going back. Now we understand that we have been given a unique opportunity to lead by example and show the entire promotional garment industry, how to protect the planet and grow their businesses in a sustainable manner. It’s a remarkable position to be in.”

www.continentalclothing.com

BTC activewear
Sponsors of the Environmental/Energy Saving Award

BTC activewear, one of the UK’s leading garment distributors, offers an extensive choice of products ranging from T-Shirts, polos and sweats to corporatewear, workwear, ladies’ and children’s wear, through to outerwear and accessories.
Its ever growing stable of 25 leading brands will be further enhanced in 2008 by the introduction of the Continental Clothing EarthPositive range of carbon neutral garments. The EarthPositive range demonstrates the highest possible environmental, social and ethical standards and is manufactured solely using sustainable energy generated from wind and solar power.
The Continental brand joins 25 other market leading labels at BTC. With larger stocks and exciting new styles, BTC is now better positioned than ever to enhance the market leading service its customers have come to expect.

www.btcactivewear.co.uk

Technical Innovation Award
Awarded to the company that has successfully introduced technically innovative garments, machines, or ancillary equipment onto the market within the last 12 months

DTG/YES
What the judges said: “The innovative developments made by this company could do for t-shirt printing what litho did for paper printing”

DTG’s entry relates to its technological developments in the direct to garment ink jet printing market, which it claims led to the ability to adorn standard 100% cotton garments with  colour and pattern at the push of a button.
Specifically, the entry relates to the development of several machines in the past year, including the HM1, which uses moving head technology and made a big improvement to production times with the use of an 8-colour head instead of the 7-colour head of the previous version, the Kiosk.
The other machine, the D1, uses two printing units set in line. The first of these handles the white ink (needed for dark garments) with the second one printing the CMYK. Each printer uses an 8-colour head, allowing the ink to be laid down faster and increasing print times by 200%, says DTG.
In less than three years DTG moved from a standard machine that could only print onto white garments to having what it claims is the largest range of printing machines in the market. It has developed both moving bed and moving head technology and, for the future, is working on models that will extend the machines’ use into other areas of print.
DTG and YES Ltd have also been responsible for developing two different types of RIP software  (RIP Pro was launched in 2007) and a variety of inks (redeveloped in 2007) that can print onto a wide range of surfaces and products.
The company says: “This is a true story of joint success between two companies that had the same outlook and the same goal. Together DTG and YES Ltd have moved the digital ink jet print market forward not by steps, but by massive leaps. Their ingenuity and drive has made it possible for a fledgling market to quickly become a mainstay on the garment decoration industry.”

RSK Tech
What the judges said: “Advances online technology for printers. Liked the digitising features”

This company was selected for its entry relating to RSK NetShirt – an innovative piece of software that allows garment decorators a new way of selling online. The garment decorator can make it part of an existing or new website and end customers can choose the garment and then add text and logos as they please.
The judges were particularly impressed with the Print Ready Material (PRM) and Melcro Stitch Engine features. The PRM automatically produces a vector file ready to print based on the customer’s design, while the Melcro Stitch Engine automatically produces an embroidery file ready to be embroidered.
In 2007, RSK NetShirt was delivered to over 20 UK garment decorators and a worldwide total of 50.
Details can be found at: www.rsktech.com/rsk_NetShirtDemos.aspx

TheMagicTouch
What the judges said: “Inexpensive, easy to set up and highly innovative”

After 18 months of development work, 2007 saw the launch of TheMagicTouch’s revolutionary WoW 7.1 Transfer Paper – the ‘Holy Grail’ of printing full colour images onto garments, regardless of composition or colour.
The process requires no cutting or weeding and transfers are produced from a normal colour laser printer – no special toners or developers required.
“The process is clean and green,” says the company. “In production, one operator with two presses can make up to 90 garments per hour. And typical breast logos in full colour cost less than 25p each.”
Within the last six months the product has been introduced to 54 countries. The judges felt the WoW 7.1 paper could open up new markets for decorators and liked its ability to enable decorators to produce one-offs for client samples, as well as its low set up costs.

Customer Service Award
Awarded to the company (manufacturer, distributor or supplier) that best demonstrates its commitment to customer care and satisfaction and in meeting its clients’ needs

Blue Max
What the judges said: Liked the family approach. Strong ethical values and good customer testimonials

Blue Max says its key aim is customer service. “We regularly ask ourselves what customers expect of us collectively and individually, and attempt to give them what they require to the best of our ability,” it says. “We are a friendly family company who really want to help.”
Blue Max operates a next day delivery service and aims to be 98% in stock at all times. “We normally achieve this but if for circumstances beyond our control we fall below our aspirations we move Heaven and Earth to rectify the situation and fly goods in to speed up the delivery process as far as humanly possible,” it says.
Blue Max prides itself on producing quality products at below average prices, but will not compromise on quality or service to achieve these prices. In fact, Blue Max says it will go the extra mile for its customers. “On one occasion a Director drove nearly one hundred miles to deliver the goods, and on another, despite the non arrival being no fault of Blue Max, another Director took the goods to an embroiderer at one end of the country, waited for them be embroidered, and drove another two hundred miles north to meet the deadline.”
The company also claims to have transparent policies. “We run a Discount Scheme which is both simple and fair,” it says. “Those who buy more get better discounts.  We do not give discounts to any customer just because they are big and powerful, which would disadvantage other customers who, whatever their size, spend more. Blue Max appreciates loyalty and rewards it fairly. 
“We tell our customers the truth,” it claims. “We do not promise things we cannot do and to the best of our ability we keep them informed when problems occur. We also refrain from knocking or lying about our competitors, which is contemptible in any industry.”
Blue Max helps customers with their catalogues/websites by providing literature/discs to enable them to lift pictures and text if they wish, and operates an “excellent bespoke service”.
It visits its factories regularly to ensure products are made with proper standards, and an ethical policy statement is available to all customers. “Above all we are a family business who really want to help our customers. We are grateful to them all,” it adds.

BTC activewear
What the judges said: Good lead times and order fulfilment service. Impressive stock availability and use of retail pricing in brochures

BTC Activewear has grown from strength to strength over the past 20 years to become one of the leading clothing distributors to the imprint industry.
The main trademark of this company is the four highly motivated regional sales teams, who regularly go “beyond the conventional” to help customers solve their garment requirements.
BTC activewear has won the prestigious PROMOTA Clothing Supplier of the Year Award two year’s running – in 2006 and 2007.
It has an impressive delivery service – customers have until 4.30pm to place an order for their goods to arrive before noon the next day, with carriage paid if the order is over £250.
As well as carrying massive stocks of all garments, BTC activewear also offers customers the entire collections from three key brands – Dickies, Continental and Stormtech – allowing them an even wider choice on a direct ship basis. There are a total of 27 brands to choose from in 2008.

Www.polo-shirts.co.uk
What the judges said: An innovative service. Particularly liked the customer feedback system

Launched in 2003, polo-shirts puts customer satisfaction at the heart of its business, as founder Michael Conway explains: “I believe that a fundamental factor for any success must be an efficient and above all, caring attitude towards customers, especially for an exclusively online company where service may otherwise seem impersonal.”
To this end, polo-shirts has implemented an innovation that allows the company to monitor customer satisfaction and tailor the business to customers’ needs accordingly.
The Satisfaction Monitoring System requests customers to complete a short feedback form, rating their experience of and satisfaction with product quality, speed of delivery and general experience satisfaction.
The panel was impressed with the system, which allows the company to gauge how the customer feels over a specified time period. For example, over the past six months 97.14% of the 1,434 customers who answered the form felt the service delivered a positive experience.
Judges also liked the fact that customers can also post comments and rate each individual product, which polo-shirts believes is a first for the industry.

Environmental/Energy Saving Award
Awarded to the company (manufacturer, distributor or supplier) that best demonstrates the benefits of good environmental management through energy saving and/or environmentally sound business practices and manufacturing techniques, including the development of sustainable or recycled products

Continental Clothing Company
What the judges said: This company is really leading the way on the environmental, sustainable and ethical front

Building on its environmental initiatives of 2006, Continental Clothing has developed the most sustainable garments in the promotional industry: Climate Neutral T-shirts.
Launched in September 2007, the climate neutral EarthPositive t-shirts are ethically made solely using sustainable electricity generated from wind and solar energy. No fossil fuels are burnt, and because the organic cotton is planted and harvested by hand, without mechanisation or fertiliser or pesticides, it is less reliant on fossil fuels.
This, says Continental, results in a dramatic reduction of CO2 and greenhouse gases, which are responsible in part for climate change.
“EarthPositive apparel is made to demonstrate the highest possible environmental and social standards, in one of the world’s most damaging industries, and to provide the promotional garment industry with an everyday medium to promote awareness of and take action on climate change,” says Continental.
The garments are made from 100% organic cotton, produced under the Global Organic Textile Standards from farm to warehouse.
All Continental/ EarthPositive dyeing processes are certified under Oeko-Tex 100 standard, which guarantees the safety of the textiles and dyestuffs to human health and the environment.
Furthermore all Continental/ EarthPositive facilities and suppliers are triple certified: by GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard); Fairtrade (FLO) and audited by the Fair Wear Foundation. All garments are labelled with the country of origin of the cotton, supporting the Environmental Justice Foundation’s campaign to raise awareness of child labour in Uzbekistan. Continental is also licensed by the Soil Association.

Epona
What the judges said: Good policies at home and in its manufacturing facilities. Strong in Fairtrade

Epona says its mission is to “improve the livelihood of disadvantaged cotton producers, ensure ethical working practices throughout the supply chain and minimise its imprint on the environment.”
The judges were impressed with Epona’s social commitments, such as those at the spinning mill where a nurse is on site, free lunches are offered to workers, plus safe dormitories are available for female staff.
Production is fully integrated, making it easier to monitor, and regular audits and inspections are carried out by SAVE, the Indian arm of the Clean Clothes campaign.
All Epona’s cotton is certified by the Fairtrade Foundation and it claims to have helped 1,500 farmers to convert to Fairtrade. Each farmer receives a guaranteed fair price, set by the Fairtrade Foundation, plus an additional premium of 15%, which is spent by the producer co-operative on social and environmental projects to benefit the community.
The judges also like Epona’s continuation of its ethical approach into its day-to-day office environment, and its approach to garment packaging – garments are in groups of 10, not individually wrapped.

Mantis World
What the judges said: A good company, commended for looking at its environmental footprint

Mantis World’s TLC range was one of the first organic cotton collections available to the promo and corporate wear industries and is made from 100% organic cotton grown in East Africa and certified by the accredited organisations EcoCert International and BioInspecta.
It claims that its product has always been ethically sourced from its family owned factory in Tanzania, and says all farmers, workers and associated communities are properly treated and fairly rewarded for playing their part in our future.
“We have a firm belief in Fair Trade rather than aid; we make a difference to thousands of East African textile workers and farmers, bringing in much needed foreign exchange, allowing people to lift themselves out of poverty with dignity,” says the company.
It increased the size of its organic range last year and uses carbon neutral non fossil fuel power wherever possible, including coffee husks and cotton seed cakes to turn into energy. It also claims to reclaim heat during the water recycling process, enabling a reduction in energy usage.
“Increased production capabilities enabling reduction of over 80% of our airfreight traffic from 2006 to 2007 massively reduced our carbon footprint,” says Mantis World.
It also works under the guidance of the following organisations and principals: The Ethical Trade Initiative Base Code; the Oeko Tex Association (it holds the Oeko-Tex 100 standard); Bio Inspecta; EcoCert International; and bioReCertified Organic.

Promotional Product of the Year Award
Awarded to the most innovative or successful promotional product or item introduced onto market within the last 12 months

The ecoutton by Bright Ideas Global
What the judges said: An innovative, useful concept with great environmental credentials. Well-presented entry

“The illuminating USB device that will put your PC into sleep mode at a touch of a button, saving £50 of electricity a year”
According to Bright Ideas Global, the company behind the ecobutton, one third or more of energy used on a PC and monitor is wasted energy, which can cost around £50 or more a year.
Computers and monitors can account for half of the electricity used in a typical office, says the company. A single monitor left switched on overnight can use the same energy as a laser printer producing 800 A4 printed copies – and don’t be fooled by a screensaver – the computer is still working at full power to run this, it claims.
The ecobutton is an illuminating USB device that acts as a reminder and a prompt for the user to press the ecobutton at every opportunity whenever the computer is going to be left idle.
“People generally do not like turning off their computers because of the time it often takes to restart,” says the company.
“But when the ecobutton is pressed it engages the computer into energy saving ‘ecomode’, which ensures that both the computer and monitor are set to operate in the most efficient, lowest power mode available. Then, when you need to use the computer again, simply press any key to instantly return to where you left off.”
The ecobutton can be co-branded and on-screen sponsoring or advertising is also possible to promote a brand or ethical policies.

Softshell Technology Range by Result Clothing
What the judges said: A quality entry, quality brand and quality design

Result’s entry relates to its five-strong Softshell collection, launched at the end of 2006, offering its customers the very latest technology.
The Softshell launch was the most successful in the company’s 12-year history and had a massive impact on the 2006/2007 sales promotion market in Europe, says Result.
The 2006/2007 range includes a patent-protected design feature (the R122F La Femme) and the 2007/2008 range includes the first ever EN471 Safety Certification award for softshell.
The five styles use the highest quality 345g three-layer bonded fabric, which is both wind and water resistant, says Result.
“Innovative styling uses inside storm facing and double facing on both chests for embroidery access, and massive stock availability has led directly to its popularity for both imprinters and wearers alike,” it says.
In terms of the range’s sales and marketing success, Result claims the Softshell launch was its most successful ever. “Prior to stock availability, distributors were sent quantities of pre-printed sample jacket packs, and a full four-language European advertising campaign was launched,” it explains.
“The success of this campaign can be measured by the fact that the first six containers of softshell across all styles were pre-sold.”
The judges were impressed with these figures and with the overall quality of this entry and range.

Big Poncho & GreenSeat by Tomato Source
What the judges said: Great ethos and branding opportunity. Very useful products

Sourcing company Tomato Source entered two products into this category, which were awarded equal marks by the judges, and so selected as finalists.The products are the GreenSeat and the BioPoncho.
The GreenSeat is the UK’s first disposable cardboard seat system, made from part recycled cardboard and 100% recyclable.
In terms of its promotional function, Tomato Source says: “It gives the audience, as well as the sponsor, a way of interacting without either of them feeling forced on the other. The space on the back of the chair ensures that any branding is highly visible to large numbers of people and it’s comfortable – a small collapsible-system seat with back support that has an integrated handle for carrying when collapsed.
The idea is that people take their GreenSeat home to use again, but event sponsors or organisers are offerred a ‘take back’ scheme where the collected cardboard is then sold on for recycling – going some way to neutralising the cost of producing the GreenSeat or potentially turning it into a profitable venture for the sponsor or organiser.”
The Bio Poncho is a biodegradable rain poncho made from 80% renewable, organic matter that will biodegrade, thus easing the task of waste reduction.
The BioPoncho provides excellent printability on the wide printable area; has a low production cost; and is relatively imperviousness to gas and water. It is available in two sizes (adult and child) and is in either a standard finish or a premium finish with thicker material, fitted arms, shaped hood and body.

Garment Decorator of the Year Award
Awarded to the individual or company that best demonstrates the most effective application of decorating techniques, excellent customer service and an ability to accurately interpret the customer's requirements

Slick Stitch Embroidery Co.
What the judges said: Strong customer service and technical expertise

Wolverhampton-based Slick Stitch Embroidery presented an impressive overall entry, which was commendable for its detail.
The company is currently embroidering 55,000 garments a week, which it expects to rise to 75,000 by the end of 2008, and has invested heavily in new machinery over the past three years.
It operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is able to offer its larger customers a new daily shuttle service, where goods are picked, embroidered overnight and returned the following day.
Slick Stitch says it has invested heavily in customer service, with new account managers and online systems allowing customers to access data instantly (e.g. Online quoting system and email tracking for all orders).
In terms of technical achievements, Slick Stitch says it developed new techniques to allow it to embroider onto some of the fabrics in the golf wear sector, such as double mercerised cotton and 100% waterproof jackets; while products such as wristbands, socks and golf bags are also embroidered.
Apart from heavy investment in machinery, 2007 saw the company expand its floor space to 30,000 sq ft. “This allows us to offer our customers total online visibility of their stock from point of entry,” says Slick Stitch.

The T-Shirt Printers
What the judges said: A knowledgeable, intelligent company. Liked the comprehensive handbook for customers and good presentation of entry

“We don’t think that technical ability is just the ability to turn out a clever design – it must demonstrate the capacity to operate on the edge of what’s possible in garment decoration, but delivered at the prices and in the quantities and timescales demanded by the market,” says Tony Moore of T-Shirt Printers.
He doesn’t believe the printwear and promotions marketplace is a craft arena. “To be competent, you have to operate on a commercial scale,” he says. “True technical ability is a business-wide capability to manage the huge peaks that the industry throws up, on top of the usual seasonality, without destroying the bread and butter business we handle throughout the year, every year.”
The judges particularly liked the company’s approach to customer service and the Guide for Buyers of Promotional Garments that it produces to help its customers understand “the eccentricities of textile printing”.
“As a company, we believe that the more our clients know of process and limitations, the better it is for us, as well as for them. Ignorance is never bliss,” says Moore.
The guide covers print, embroidery and transfers as well as detail on garment manufacture and textile technologies; artwork requirements and Pantone colour matching.
T-shirt Printers claims to have a print turn round time of five days (embroidery in 10) and an ability to produce over 120,000 prints a week.
It has invested over £425,000 in the last 54 months in plant and equipment, including the replacement of all five of its curing ovens (dryers) in 2007, in a bid to reduce its carbon footprint. “The new, high tech replacements are estimated to save their capital cost of £80,000 over their expected life of 10 years,” says Moore.
In terms of its technical ability, T-Shirt Printers says: “What always sorts the men from the boys is the requirement to match Point of Sale four colour process prints on coloured Ts. We are very good at it (even if we say so ourselves!)
“Why is that so difficult? This is not the place to bore you with technicalities, but take a sheet of black paper into any paper printer and ask him to stick a four-colour process print on it. He can’t do it.”

T Shirt and Sons
What the judges said: The organic standard is a considerable achievement

T Shirt and Sons is a UK-based t-shirt printer specialising in using a water-based ink system that is certified by the Soil Association and as such is the only 100% certified organic t-shirt printer in Europe.
It sources garments from the UK and overseas, offering well-known brand names and bespoke clothing. Fabrics include Fairtrade and organic cottons, hemp and bamboo.
As an example of its ability to work with customer requirements, T Shirt and Sons gave the case study of a custom made pantone dyed t-shirt to match a company’s exact specification and pattern, using fully certified organic cotton.
Having gone through all the complex stages to get to the finished product, including accurately weighing every input used in the printing process to ensure waste is monitored carefully, the company placed another order for 2,000 garments, “showing that T Shirt and Sons met and exceeded their expectations”.

Manufacturer of the Year Award
Awarded to the clothing, machinery and ancillary product manufacturer that has achieved recognition from distributors and customers alike for its service, technical expertise and ability to meet specific customer requirements

B&B Leisurewear
What the judges said: Good ethical standards and customer service

Founded in 1984 as a t-shirt, sweatshirt and underwear manufacturer, B&B Leisurewear has grown over the years and established itself as a fashionable brand with a focus on ethics.
Today B&B Leisurewear is Soil Association and Fair Trade certified and works to the Global Organic Textile Standard. It now offers new organic and Fairtrade ranges and says: “We have consistently improved the service given to our customers.”

Continental Clothing Company
What the judges said: Good support given to customers. An all round quality offering and quality entry

For over a decade Continental Clothing has offered a bespoke manufacturing service to its customers, delivering finished goods to retail quality at off the shelf prices, with a lead-time of 18 days from order to delivery.
In late 2006 it branded this service as the Private Label Service and produced the Private Label Resource Handbook (PLRH), “a powerful sourcing and manufacturing tool, a presentation sales tool and a working resource of fabrics”.
“This was a new and innovative idea,” says Continental. “It was designed as a quality ring binder folder, holding 34 superior stock fabrics, 120 colours and with instructions for bespoke garment manufacture.”
The PLRH can be customised to clients’ needs and updated as necessary. It has already been updated as an eco-textile and ethical manufacturing bespoke service. Since it was developed, Continental’s bespoke service has successfully delivered over 4,700 bespoke orders.

Mantis World
What the judges said: Good brochure and commendable environmental credentials

Mantis World consists of four brands: adults, children’s, babies and TLC – the organic collection made from 100% organic cotton grown in East Africa and certified by EcoCert International and BioInspecta. “As a small independent manufacturer we listen to our customers, are flexible to their needs and are quick to respond,” it says. The company believes in Fair Trade not aid and says it makes a difference to thousands of East African textile workers and farmers.
It uses carbon neutral non-fossil fuel power wherever possible, and reclaims heat during the water recycling process to reduce energy usage. Increased production capabilities have enabled the reduction of over 80% of its airfreight traffic from 2006 to 2007, reducing the company’s carbon footprint. A new pick and pack service has been implemented and customers are offered direct deliveries under plain cover with guaranteed overnight delivery and same day delivery where possible.

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