You might not have realised it, but summer is here, which means a slight break from the normal format for our August issue. Instead of the usual focus features, this month we bring you two sections of supplier profiles: one for garment suppliers and one for equipment and service suppliers. These are intended as a mid-year update and are a chance for the suppliers to let readers know what has changed since the start of the year and also what is planned for the remainder.

Printers could face ink supply problems once new legislation governing the use of chemicals takes full effect, and are being urged to take notice of the new REACH guidelines.

Mantis World, the London based promotional clothing company, has won the European Chic Awards 2008 prize for Best Collection for Childrenswear, awarded to its Humbugz range.

UKL has added to its range of sports and leisurewear with the the premium sporting brand Kappa, for adults and children.

Sale now on!

To make space for new stock B&B Leisurewear is holding a summer clearance sale, with many items greatly reduced.

Full details can be found on the website: www.bbleisurewear.com under the ‘sale' section. Offer ends August 31. Phone 01332 381603 for availability.

Your Embroidery Services (YES) has some good news for embroiderers using older style machines that only take floppy disks - it is now stocking the USB Linker, a device which adds the ability to use a memory stick just like the newer machine models.

TheMagicTouch has joined forces with Unibind Systems to introduce a new  way of printing binders and covers in full colour.

Lewis Print has re-launched with a complete garment decoration service, which includes embroidery, screen printing and transfer printing.

UKL has added an extra day to its in-house trade show, following the success of this year's inaugural event, which attracted over 600 visitors over two days.

All the latest easiMARK products from Victory Design can now be viewed in a new digitised version of the catalogue. 

Business promotions specialist Fluid Branding has offset its carbon emissions to become an official  ‘Carbon Zero' company.

Prestige Leisure UK would like to thank all their friends, colleagues, customers and suppliers who sponsored their team and helped them smash their targets to raise over £4,000 for Cancer Research UK.

M&R has added to its line of automatic textile presses with the new Alpha 8 Oval - it's new take on the oval shaped press.

Ralawise has introduced two new marketing tools to help decorators better communicate with their customers - the Best Collection Brochure and two mini brochures for schoolwear and hoodies.

European promotional clothing brand B&C has won four prizes at the European Chic Awards 2008, including the prestigious Best Global Collection, given for the best collection and promotional campaign of the year.

Nature and technology have been combined in the new premium Tizio range from pen manufacturer Senator Pens, where grained nutwood barrels blend with chromium-plated metal fittings and sprung solid metal clips.

GS UK Ltd has launched a new online web shop www.gs-ukdirect.com, which it claims makes it the first major thread supplier to offer 24/7 online ordering and purchasing facilities.

Edun Live has launched its first ever consumer based site in an effort to reach a younger audience for its ethical, 100% Made In Africa blank T-shirts. 

James & Nicholson has added new products for autumn in its Workbook 2008, a collection which includes the latest long-sleeved polo shirts, jackets and fleece wear.

The Toppoint range of promotional goods, which includes bags, mugs, glasses, pens and key fobs is now being sold through Toppoint's sister company in the New Wave Group, United Brands of Scandinavia Ltd.

Ideas to promote your business; the web and its impact on marketers; and ethical sourcing are some of the topics being covered in seminars at the National Incentive Show, 16 - 18 September 2008.

Giving your product away free might sound like the fastest way to go bust. However, if you do it through the press, it will have precisely the opposite effect. The technique is called media promotions - you see them in every newspaper. Here's how they work.

"The best kept secret in the UK". That's how one customer described Leicestershire-based screen printer NJ Screenprints - and as a highly successful company that has built its reputation over the past 25 years with no marketing, website or PR, it's easy to see why.

Primark is the latest in line to admit it has discovered a lapse in production standards, this time having had to axe trading with three longstanding suppliers in southern India for using child labour.

BPMA board director Stephen Barker is due to undertake a three-day, 250 mile charity bike ride from Newbury to Paris in aid of the Breakthrough Tribute Fund for breast cancer - a charity set up to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer, a particularly aggressive form of the disease that currently doesn't respond to usual current cancer treatments.

Absolute Apparel was founded in October 2005 as a major importer and wholesaler to the imprint and corporate markets. Drawing on years of previous experience in the industry, the company has grown rapidly and is proud to be one of the most efficient in the business. Operating from modern premises in Wolverhampton UK, Absolute Apparel delivers next day nationwide, by noon as standard.

Ultimately, it is the system that allows us to stay competitive while paying the highest wages in the garment industry. Because we don't outsource to local or developing-nation sweatshops (or to ad agencies, for that matter) the entire process is time efficient, and we can respond faster to market demand.

Politicians might want to hug hoodies, shopping centres may choose to ban them but the hoody loving population have taken them to their hearts and are buying them in their thousands from garment printers and decorators across the land.

Blue Max Stag is now approaching its 22nd year in the business and offers one of the largest ranges of garments available in the UK, with massive stock holdings to support it. 

Following a meteoric rise over the last few years BTC activewear has evolved into one of the industry's leading distributors, without losing any of the character and individuality on which it was created over 20 years ago by Glenn Hyams: with fellow directors Charles Grose and Steve Pope they've seen the company grow nearly 40% over the last few years, outgrowing their current premises and all set to move into a new facility by the end of the year.

Fruit of the Loom enjoys an unrivalled heritage as a textile manufacturer and supplier, having been in business for more than a century and a half. The company was founded in New York, in 1851, adopting the ‘Fruit of the Loom' name in 1856.

Gustav Daiber GmbH started in 1860 as a hat manufacturer in Albstadt. Today, the company is European market leader in the textile promotional items industry. By establishing new trends, targeted investments and a continuous branding, the Swabian traditional company gained a top position in Europe. Directed by Rolf Daiber, Gustav Daiber GmbH then advanced to the position of full-range supplier in the textile industry.

As well as offering the more traditional range of garments such as polo shirts, T-shirts and fleece Kustom Kit was amongst the first to anticipate the shift in demand towards smarter clothing in the workplace, which was the inspiration behind its superior collection of woven shirts and blouses, spearheaded by a market leading range of Oxford shirts.  Kustom Kit was also the first in its sector to recognise the need for women's corporate wear as a more flattering alternative to unisex garments, and today no other brand offers a wider choice for the corporate woman, or a greater range of his and her co-ordinating garments.  

We have the advantage of not being dependent on anyone else when it comes to our products, as from knitting to final packing Pandor Clothing owns everything. We offer a wide range of products to cover all sorts of requirements for recreational, promotional, sports or use in the workplace. Our products are developed under three well known brands Sports Club, Bodyfitees & Urbanity all produced to the highest quality standards but very competitively priced.

Over the years Prestige Leisure has become renowned for an unparalled level of personalised customer service which has been the single biggest factor in the dramatic level of growth the company has enjoyed in recent times.

The Quayside group is going from strength to strength. During the last two years the number of brands stocked has grown steadily and Quayside now stocks a comprehensive range including Fruit of the Loom, Stedman, Fanshirt, JHK, Mantis and Saf.

Regatta Corporate and Promotional wear is now seen as the number one outerwear brand among companies. With a focus on product development and design Regatta have extended their range for 2009. The range encompasses a diverse choice of new styles with a number of contemporary colourways with technical fabric stories, which include Regatta's Softshell XPT. Isotex 5000 and lightweight Isolite 5000 technology.

Skinnifit have been in the business for nearly a decade now and have been instrumental in the development of womenswear within the corporate and promotional marketplace: bringing it from being very much an afterthought to the buoyant and in-demand sector it is today.

As companies of every size have moved towards equipping their staff with logoed clothing the variety, availability and consistency of quality of RTY products has made it the label of choice for many and very much a one stop shop for all their workwear requirements.

Result clothing ltd. was founded in 1994 with the sole aim of providing a range of jackets and accessory clothing suitable for embellishment. Stocks would be held in the UK and sold throughout Europe using a network of distributors.

Team Colours is a well-established custom-made sports kit, teamwear, leisurewear, and bags manufacturing company that offers exciting and innovative bag and garment options for the printwear and promotions industry.

With an overall business strategy to provide the best levels of customer service within the industry, UKL gives you Xtra.  In 1990 UKL had a total of two brands and only 20 product lines.  Now, there are over 40 brands (with more being added all the time), offering more than 1,200 different product lines, and UKL operates in 4 countries across Europe.  At their Swindon headquarters UKL has warehouse capacity of over 200,000 sq ft and extensive showroom facilities which all customers are welcome to visit.

The CBI is forecasting slow growth, price rises and job cuts. The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply is suggesting that the manufacturing sector has failed to grow and firms are continuing to pass on higher costs in the form of higher prices.  Soaring fuel and transportation costs and rising food prices are fuelling inflationary triggers. With the biggest downturn in the economy predicted since 1992, alarm bells will understandably be ringing at companies across the printwear and promotional industry.

Regular readers will know that, as an association, PROMOTA readily encourages the importance of a reputable supply chain.

Established in 1961 J & B Sewing Machine Company are one of the UK's leading suppliers of Brother Embroidery machines and Brother and Anajet digital garment printers.

RSK Tech was founded in 2003 by Anders Rask and is a multinational company in the true sense of the word, with much of the management and software development teams coming from places as far afield as China and India, as well as closer to home, namely Malta, Greece, France and Denmark - with the odd Scot or two thrown in for good measure! 

Slick Stitch started business in 1985 with a single 12 head Tajima embroidery machine.  The company quickly gained a reputation for rapid turnaround, confidentiality and service, and grew in size throughout the nineties, back in the days when on-shore production in the UK still existed.  As large production began to move outside the UK Slick Stitch developed as an embroidery sub-contractor with a customer base largely consisting of other embroiderers. 

Wilcom is globally recognised for producing the number one embroidery design software Wilcom EmbroideryStudio - or ES. Launched in 1980 this was the world's first CAD/CAM Embroidery design software. Since then, Wilcom has continued develop a range of software applications specifically for this industry - based on quality, innovation and a true understanding of what makes a decorations business - better by design.

An Xpres digital transfer system represents a superb business opportunity with a combination of low set up and consumable costs to meet the high level of demand for smaller runs of personalised clothing, promotional products and business gifts.

"Pick a window you're leaving."
"Do you like hospital food?"
"Are you calling my pint a puff?"

Fortunately we've not all had a proper kicking in our time, but this year a damn good thrashing is available to all, as day to day living in the UK becomes a rather large boot in the financials.