By the time you read this I will be gone - headed off to pastures new in search of pheasants and clay pigeons. What on earth am I talking about? Well, I'm joining a shooting magazine where my love of country pursuits (and dogs in particular!) will be put to good use.

To mark the 20th anniversary of the Printwear & Promotion Exhibition next year, organisers are planning a dazzling dinner dance event.

UK bespoke workwear manufacturer  EP Workwear has expanded into a new 15,000 sq ft building, which includes a modern factory and meeting room.

A shortlist of eight of the UK promotional marketing industry's most innovative entrepreneurs has been decided by a panel of judges searching for the 2008 The Entrepreneur of the Industry Award - an annual initiative by the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA).

Merlin has moved

Merlin Transfers, a distributor of high quality heat transfer papers, speciality papers and films for use in colour laser printers and copiers, inkjet printers and cutting machines, has moved to new premises, providing the company with a significant increase in storage and working space.

The peace and quiet of a tranquil corner of Derbyshire was shattered in mid-September with the raucous laughter generated during BTC activewear's Fun Day event, with teams competing for prizes and honours in Clay Shooting in the morning and hilarious ‘It's A Knockout' games in the afternoon.

TheMagicTouch has introduced some new and unique products for decoration using any of the traditional TTC transfer papers in conjunction with a colour laser printer or copier. The products are also compatible with the sublimation ink process.

In October 2008 the White Duck Screen Print website went live to be viewed by all those who appreciate the art of good print. It is an easy to navigate site with interesting information, a work portfolio and creative links, says the company.

After a recent wash care accident with his sports jacket, Dr Albert Hackett (on secondment to us from the University of Michigan), has turned his academic attention away from screen mesh tensioning to investigate garment shrinkage.

Following a successful 12 months, which has seen the team at promotional product sourcing specialist Tomato Source receiving several industry awards as well as gaining new business from national and international brands, the company has expanded its team by appointing Nicola Carling as account executive.

Continental chocolate and confectionery supplier House of Sarunds has added to its corporate range with personalised message bars.

Essential Embroidery Design (EED) has moved from its base in Luton to new, larger premises three miles away in Dunstable.

A new certification label to ensure textile products and processes conform to international standards for ecology and social responsibility is now available in the UK.

With more than seven months to go until FESPA Digital Printing Europe 2009 (12th - 14th May, Amsterdam RAI), exhibitor bookings for FESPA's third European Digital event already match the total for the 2008 Digital event in Geneva, with many exhibitors significantly increasing their stand space, claim organisers.

Promotional product supplier Oldeani has produced branded tins as an accessory for SEGA's Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood game, which has just been released on Nintendo DS.

Leading pen manufacturer Senator Pens has launched a new generation of eco pen - the Nature Plus.

Myrtle Beach has launched its latest spa collection, which is available to view in Daiber GmbH's Caps Compendium 2008.

Russell Europe will revise the logos of all brands (Jerzees Colours, Jerzees Schoolgear, Russell Collection, Russell Workwear and Russell Solutions) in 2009.

Grafityp UK is now offering a range of environmentally friendly inks for large format printing - BioMG inks, from EU manufacturer Megaink.

Market-leading software company Syscom PLC has released its latest web-based order management module, Web Wardrobe, designed to help corporate wear and personal protective equipment companies win business.

Workwear manufacturer Mascot has launched a range of children's workwear garments - trousers, a breathable, wind and waterproof Pilot Jacket and a Soft Shell Jacket with exactly the same appearance as its adult clothing.

Organisers of the Promotional Marketing Exhibition will be launching the first ever technology pavilion at the 2009 exhibition, set to take place between the 24 and 26 March at the Royal Horticultural Halls, Westminster, London.

Hanes has introduced a new range of women's T-shirts designed to offer a feminine but comfortable fit.

In 1977, Barudan developed the first computerised multi head embroidery machine. It was to be a machine that would revolutionise the embroidery industry. During its 50-year history, Barudan has continued to successfully set the standard, and this year added a new single head machine to the range - the Elite Pro II.

Everybody has business blind spots - those opportunities that you know exist but can't see your way to exploit. They're different to what you're used to. You don't know anything about their buying processes. You don't have any contacts. You're only aware of what sales opportunities exist in the most general terms. An example of this, for many printwear businesses, would be schools and colleges.

As 2008 draws to a close, a huge amount of environmentally friendly promotional products can be found in the marketplace from recycled frisbees to solar charged torches. Companies who are keen to promote their corporate social responsibility policies are sourcing an increasing number of products for giveaways, gifts and incentives that are less environmentally damaging.

Stunning knitted jackets from Balmoral Knitwear have taken off in the health and hospitality sectors.

Employing around 1.7m people, the British hospitality sector is thought to be worth between £55-£60 billion a year and now Kustom Kit has put all of its experience from its leading brand of corporate wear into developing a new range of clothing for this vast industry.   

To capitalise on the increasing demand for continental café culture in the UK, Blue Max Stag now offers a collection of smart and stylish unisex continental café wear. 

Working clothes in the health sector need to resist a lot: They have to withstand frequent washing, they have to offer maximum freedom of movement and they have to look good.

BTC activewear offer exclusively the comprehensive range of Denny's quality catering garments including a wide range of Chef's Jackets, Caps and Trousers together with a wide range of polycotton Aprons.

PenCarrie's sales of hospitality wear reflect this remarkably buoyant sector where gastro pubs, town centre coffee bars and in particular wine bar brasseries still appear to be doing good business. 

With more people eating out than ever before and the introduction of more open kitchens, the appearance of front of house staff and chefs is increasingly important. This has led to Premier's large collection of hospitalitywear. The hospitality range features the extremely popular "colours" range, a cornucopia of delights designed to tantalise the taste buds of customers in every establishment. 

For hospitality wear, Ralawise has a range of aprons, trousers, jackets and shirts that not only work well, but look great too.

The term workwear includes many varied items and styles these days. Far more than it used to. I suppose if we we're being very PC then we would split them down into various categories such as corporate wear and promotional wear but, at the end of the day, if you have to wear it for work then, in my book it is workwear.

The terms ‘credit crunch', ‘liquidity' and ‘administration' have become part of most people's day-to-day vocabulary of late, and with Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, suggesting that Britain is on the brink of an economic recession, companies are now really starting to tighten up their belts. With this in mind, PROMOTA has investigated the ways that members of the promotional merchandise industry can remain positive and stay afloat while others around them may be sinking in a sea of panic. If offers the following advice to help companies stay in business.

PROMOTA member Non-Stop Promotions is one of the UK's most established promotional merchandise distributors. We spoke to Philip McLaughlin from the company to get his thoughts on 2008 and the credit crunch.

Whilst sublimation technology exists to cater for those that easily want to produce promotional gifts to add to their product offer, how about larger format items like signage, POS, vehicle wraps and banners? Now there is a piece of technology that will produce all of these together with full colour, fine detail and durable garment transfers - the Versacamm VP300.

Many companies and organisations that buy promotional merchandise and use corporate clothing do so simply because they always have, without giving much attention to why. "We've always given gifts away at exhibitions, or calendars at Christmas, or branded clothing for our service engineers," you might hear. Promotional branding is one of the most effective ways of getting your message across and can deliver so many objectives for organisations - if only more understood the value of what they do. 

Number of pages: 40 + covers

Number of product lines: 105. The number of variations per garment gives Blue Max the business advantage. Take the Penthouse Polo, for example, which offers 13 sizes, each available in 17 colours; or the Champion Ts which, with two extra colours, are now available in 11 sizes and 15 colours. 

American Apparel's latest wholesale catalogue features over 200 styles for men, women, children, infants and dogs, with over 100 colours to choose from. From the basic T-shirt to fashion accessories, American Apparel offers a broad collection great for screen printing, embroidery and embellishment.

The new 2009 Brochure encompasses 19 new lines, as well as new colours and sizes on stock lines.

The 2009 Continental® Collection includes over 80 unique styles, made from over 34 different fabrics, including the finest combed cottons, organic and bamboo jerseys. All fabrics are reactive dyed to enable discharge printing and to ensure colourfastness, and all are knitted with a fine gauge and tight knit to provide the perfect surface for your brand, logo or design. Continental Clothing Company is licensed by the organic certification body, the Soil Association; all manufacturing facilities have been audited by the Fair Wear Foundation for compliance with international fair labour standards.

With its Winter All Stars Catalogue, Gustav Daiber GmbH shows brand new, fashionable winter products.

EarthPositive® Apparel is an Organic promotional textile brand with a 90% lower carbon footprint. Certified by the UK's leading organic certification body, the Soil Association, all products carry the Carbon Trust's "carbon reduction label", which communicates the ‘carbon footprint' for each item. EarthPositive® is made to demonstrate the highest possible environmental, social and ethical standards, and provide the industry with a familiar product with which to promote awareness and take action on climate change. EarthPositive® is the ultimate ethical and environmental brand.

Open the new Fruit of the Loom brochure and enter a sumptuous world of colour.

We know how important colour, fit and performance are to you. We know you want to be able to mix and match, and that co-ordination of product is key. We also understand that you want to be able to select from men's, women's and kids' wear.

Number of pages: 48

Number of product lines: 48

Number of new products: 3 new styles:

Number of pages: 32

Number of product lines: 3 (T-Shirts, Polos, Sweats)

Number of new products: 2 new styles: Premium Polo his and hers companion styles in combed ring spun cotton:

"Play - Mix - Move" says the cover of the 2009 Hanes catalogue. This title indicates hundreds of possibilities to play and mix products and colours. Play with 70 trendy Hanes colours. Mix them with 100 favourite Hanes styles. Inspiring pictures show intriguing colour/style combinations. With Hanes you can find your own style. No limits to your imagination. Hanes offers you the opportunity to be unique. Just wear it!

The Henbury 2009 catalogue represents quality, innovation and detailed design in the world of Corporate, Promotion and Workwear Clothing. Photographed in a contemporary setting showing the garments to the highest standard.

The latest James&Nicholson Workbook 2009 is packed with popular classics and brand new collections. The expert in promotional wear has developed an exclusive Safety and Workwear Range and the Sports Wear Segment has been expanded.

Kustom Kit has produced four individual A4 brochures for its 2009 collections - Corporate Wear, Classic Collection, Gamegear teamwear, and the new Bargear collection of hospitality wear.

The Larkwood Baby and Toddler Collection for 2009 offers the cutest collection of baby and toddler wear around.

Ours is a world full of colour and style, and the range of garments available from Jerzees Colours reflects the needs and desires of our colourful lives.

For 2009 the catalogue links in with our Ticks all the Boxes campaign theme and develops further our choice and quality credentials: more "Choice" in the form of our seven new or improved products not to mention the limitless options through our bespoke service, Russell Solutions, and "Quality" in our continued attention to design detail and garment performance.

Introducing the new Mantis World 2009 collection. This year's catalogue features 79 products across the entire Mantis, Humbugz, Babybugz and TLC range with styles from babies to adult sizes.

For 2009 Premier has produced four A5 brochures suitable for post, POS and sales meetings. Continuing with the success of the previous years we have kept three of the brochures market specific with Hospitalitywear (yellow), Businesswear (red) and Outerwear (green). The fourth is a selection of hospitality, busineswear and the traditional workwear offering you the complete range in an easy to use format.

Number of pages: 12

Number of product lines: 23

Number of new products (and details where possible): 3 new bears and 2 new items of clothing

Pandor Clothing's 2009 catalogue, features its Eco Friendly Produsts. This Catalogue has been designed as a guide to present an overview of the choice of styles it offers.

Number of pages: 16

Number of product lines: 10

The Result Clothing 2009, 248 page catalogue clearly illustrates every product in great detail by using both product only and lifestyle photography. A double page spread has been dedicated to each product within the range, with clearly defined user friendly information that includes full product specifications, sizes, colours, product usage suitability and decorators access points.

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.

When you have to be as sharp at the end of the evening as at the start of the day, Russell Collection delivers. Our superbly tailored shirts for men and women add an unmistakeable edge to every organisation.  This season our new Ultimate Non-Iron range brings a new sense of luxury to the workplace, with revolutionary fabrics and a choice of fit for men's collection. Meanwhile, our enhanced Casual range is inspired by the latest European retail trends, offering high quality with a more relaxed, contemporary twist.

We all know that workwear has to perform. Functionality, durability and manufacturing quality are all key to deciding which garments best fit the job. The 2009 Russell Workwear catalogue is a tool that allows creating the right work uniform for the job, a combination of consistent appearance with great product quality.  The 2009 catalogue is structured to easily combine garments along lines such as technical features, colours and sizes. Product features are clearly structured without sacrificing the level of detail required when choosing workwear garments.

Skinnifit, Skinnifitmen and Skinni Minni, are all about giving you what people want to wear and making sure that it's of good quality in addition to looking quite wonderful.

In 2009 Teamwear will be launching two new styles of team shirt - the Shelby and the Kinetic, the latter of which will also have a matching polo and fleece jacket. It is also venturing into new sports with the Marston shirt which will be pitched at the darts market, and will be increasing its "Made to Order" service by offering it over new garments.

Number of pages: 48

Number of product lines: 55

Number of pages: 28

Number of product lines: 24

Number of new products: no new styles added

Quality is definitely everything and we aim to please with our most contemporary range yet. You will truly be spoilt for choice with our collection, which is available in an array of beautiful colours from classic, subtle hues to rich and luxuriously vibrant shades. Forever dedicated to bringing you quality and style, all of our Bath and Sports Towels are now Oeko-Tex approved, so you can be confident that they really are as good as they feel.

The Absolute Apparel catalogue will be showcasing the four brands that we major in: Absolute Apparel, Fruit of The Loom, Gildan and Stedman. The aim of the catalogue is to be a concise and clear trade directory, with all products featuring large images and easy to follow text, with a maximum of three items per page.

Number of pages: About 80

Number of product lines: Over 300

Number of new products (and details where possible): I.S.Enterprises will introduce a number of new products to its2009 brochure, including organic cotton T-Shirts, a new hooded T-shirt from Fruit of the Loom, and a new Bar Gear range from Kustom Kit. Other new ranges include the softshell TECHPerformance jacket range from Result and a new childrenswear brand from a new brand in the brochure, Mantis.

The new BTC activewear catalogue contains nearly 25% more garments than 2008 and the tabbed, informative and easy-to-read layout has been further enhanced with larger garment pictures.

Easy to use, this top distributor's brochure is one of the most comprehensive in the industry. 14 separate sections feature over 1,500 items of clothing and accessories. More than 50 respected market-leading brands are represented, four of them new to PenCarrie's portfolio for 2009. Tabbed indexing down the side of the catalogue takes you instantly to the category of interest. Or use the main index to find, quickly and efficiently, individual products or brands of choice. An at-a-glance Guide to New Products 2009 pictures over 325 new products, grouped by brand, and is a valuable companion to the main brochure.

UKL's 2009 brochure returns in the favourite like for like product order with much improved navigation. There is a choice of five cover options in the un-priced format. There are easy to read tabs and a special section for organic and environmental products. UKL introduces seven new brands and over 330 new styles. Also new for 2009 is a bespoke price list with covers to match the chosen un-priced brochure.

The "Seasons of Elms & Elms" 2009 leisurewear catalogue contains 200 carefully selected products, all ideal for decoration with corporate, promotional and school logos from the industry's leading brands.

The new catalogue from Senator is available in January 2009 and is setting standards once again. With their fingers firmly on the pulse when it comes to delighting customers, Senator has added new lines and more colours to its extensive pen ranges.

New for 2009 - The most appealing and comprehensive catalogue in the market. Introducing "The 2 in 1 Main Catalogue" from P F Concept.

ETC has four sections to the company: Embroidery, Heatpress, Sublimation and Packaging Supplies, all of which are continually being updated and are displayed in our brochure.

M&R TEXTILE EQUIPMENT CATALOGUE

M&R's 56-page Textile Printing Equipment Catalogue for 2009 presents the complete line of textile screen-printing equipment. The catalogue contains over 75 products, from prepress products like NuArc exposure systems and M&R registration systems through presses, flash-cure units, dryers, and Amscomatic finishing systems.

TheMagicTouch introduces some new and exciting product developments for 2009.

Military style meets green appeal in Beechfield's new 2009 products. The expanded line up sees the introduction of nine new designs, plus a host of new colourways across established styles. Most notably, the B10 Original 5 Panel Cap is now available in 23 colours, with the addition of new on-trend options: chestnut, emerald, pebble, storm grey, and surf blue.

The latest Blue Max Stag brochure offers three caps as part of its 2009 headwear collection - the Lid, the Top Cap and the Safari.

Gustav Daiber GmbH has created two new collections, which are reflected in the headwear collection: a larger sportswear range and a safety and work wear range.

Based in Wolverhampton, International Insignia has over 35 years of design and manufacturing experience in producing quality souvenirs and promotional accessories.

Jill Granger, Director of I.S. Enterprises says: "Result Headwear has increased its new 2008 range by introducing 21 new urban models to reflect emerging fashion trends, adding many new styles, fabrics and colours to its headwear collection. I.S. Enterprises hold stock of over 50 different promotional headwear items with each one made to a specification that makes embroidery or print very straight forward."

PenCarrie highlights Beechfield as the brand of choice when it comes to headgear as the range is comprehensive and imaginative.  Tour Collection's cameo offering of national flag-inspired designs are also hugely popular for inter-country sporting events.

With over 25 years experience in the outdoor retail environment, Regatta understand that insulation and warmth are not only achieved by great waterproofs and legwear but by topping it off with adaptable accessories.

The headwear range offers perfect opportunities for embroidery and printing customisation. With styles to suit all seasons, Ralawise says it has all your needs covered.

New urban styles and earthy colours including camo make up the exciting new range of headwear products available for 2008/9 from the Result Headwear Company.

You find me, hideously ravaged by the most galloping and malevolent of all ailments....INFLUENZA MANITUS!