Printwear & Promotion The Total Promotional Package
With an aim to disrupt the traditional market with affordable, technical clothing one garment decorator is working hard to provide garments that its customers love to wear.
Captain Kid based in Solihull is the brain child of Andrew Thompson and Jane Sunderland – a father and daughter team with a passion for outdoor life. Formed in 2013 the name is a result of the family’s love of sailing. The inspiration behind the company comes from Jane’s three sons, George, 13, William, 12, and Freddie, 9. The boys have been brought up with all kinds of sports and at weekends they love nothing better than to beat their mum in sailing races. One summer, George sailed in an old boat and became known as the captain of the Black Pig. Jane explains: “We realised the association that children had with their boats and how they loved wearing tops with their names emblazoned on and as such Captain Kid was born.”
Captain Kid is a provider of club and team clothing. The decorator’s primary focus is sailing, but it does work with a range of other sports clubs. Clients range from the Royal Southern Yacht Club, to national sailing squads, to the local sailing clubs and individual sailors. Jane adds: “We are proud to have supplied the RS Tera and Feva European Championships in Bruinisse, Holland.”
Product testing
A variety of garment decoration techniques are used by Captain Kid to provide the desired outcome – however this does depend upon the garments being decorated. Jane explains: “We vinyl and transfer print and outsource items for embroidery and screen printing. We have a heat press and a LIYU SC631E vinyl cutter. We are looking to upgrade both of these within the next few weeks.”
One of the advantages to having three energetic young boys is that you can put them to good use product testing. Jane’s son William is the keenest tester as he loves to roll in mud and leap into water. Jane says that if the products survive all that, then they have confidence that they will work for their clients as well.
“We have spent time researching the products that suits our business. The Just Cool by AWDis Technical Ts are used widely from tennis T shirts to fitness training tops for our sailors.
“For hoodies, we use a mixture of Gildan and SG. They both give us consistent quality, a great range of colours and reliable stock. We have moved to using softshell jackets for the sailors off water range and the Result Core Jackets have been a runaway success, providing quality at a sensible price. They print beautifully too.
“Our latest product is a race vest. They sit on top of the buoyancy aid and hold it snug to the body. It is designed to prevent the buoyancy aid getting caught on any part of the boat and additionally prevents the tiller extension getting jammed in the shoulder straps. We are delighted that they are manufactured in Britain as it enables us to support the British economy,” says Jane.
Captain Kid appears to have found a niche in the market, as Jane adds that very few sailing companies offer a race vest as part of their product range. “This is a fantastic product and on speaking to sailors they are very keen to wear this product because of the safety aspect,” she says.
Company growth
After a few years of steady growth, Jane and Andrew decided that in order to grow and develop Captain Kid further, they would need a little help and so last year, they applied to become part of the Entrepreneurial Spark business accelerator scheme. The decorator was successful and has just completed its first six months of the scheme.
The scheme has been designed to develop entrepreneurs with a solid grasp of how to create value which makes them investable. With mentors, ambassadors and supporters, workshops, boot camps, pitch practice and a full time entrepreneurial enabler, the focus is on the individual business.
Jane explains: “You have to be ready to question and validate your business. We have completed our initial six months with Entrepreneurial Spark which has given us the focus and tools to drive our business to the next level and to £5m within the next five years.
“In five years I would like to see Captain Kid as a major player in the sailing market and the go to supplier for squad and team gear. I’d like to be the number one seller of race vests in the UK.”
At the moment the team behind Captain Kid is just Jane and Andrew. They work from their independent workshop and have an office in central Birmingham. “We don’t need to employ any additional staff at the moment as we can handle the volume of work. We have streamlined many processes and many of our clients buy directly from our website which reduces admin and means that we don’t have to chase for payments. It’s working well,” Jane explains.
The majority of Captain Kids’ sales are made online, although the decorator still does face to face sales, as Jane and Andrew enjoy interacting with customers. She adds: “We love working within this industry, everyone is always so excited to receive their items. It honestly is a great pleasure.”
Jane describes herself as a people person and loves to speak with clients and help them with their ranges and designs. She adds: “I can’t deny I love watching when a child receives their hoodie or squad gear and their little face lights up.”
Advice
Jane has plenty of advice for other garment decorators. “I would recommend engaging with people in the industry, everyone is very helpful. To create great relationships with your suppliers is key, always pay your bills on time and take the time to say thank you. Also, don’t forget the customer is always right, regardless of how frustrating you may find this.”
