April/May 2007 - Cover Story

Novelty Shirts Go Mainstream

By Tonia Cook Kimbrough

Novelty shirts aren’t just about luaus – today they’re about promoting a relaxed, upscale image that’s easily identifiable. Here are some hot applications for the classic camp shirt.

The always-fun Hawaiian and camp shirt are hot items, whether printed in a flashy pattern or understated in soothing greens and beiges. They’re made of cotton, rayon, silk and blended fabrics, and feature a relaxed silhouette, larger armholes and a square bottom so they can be worn untucked. A safari style might have added features such as two chest pockets and jungle foliage colors or patterns, or come in plain khaki. Sometimes novelty shirts are wildly patterned with tropical prints. Others are more subtle in their statements.

So why are these frequently flamboyant garments gaining popularity? Give thanks, in part, to Tommy Bahama – the resort wear phenomenon that put tropical prints in many executives’ closets.

Plus, even at work, people like to be distinguished from the pack. “The masses settle for a traditional polo or oxford. Occasionally a company wants to differentiate itself, and novelty shirts are certainly a way to do it,” says Juan Davis, vice president of Tampa, FL-based Fast Lane Clothing Co.

Understanding the power of individuality, Bruce Jolesch, president of Dallas-based distributor Schroepfer Wessels Jolesch, often uses novelty shirts for themed incentive programs that culminate in a trip to a beach destination. “We recently took 130 people to Hawaii and did a Hawaiian shirt with our client’s logo,” he says.

The shirt they selected was an upscale Tommy Bahama silk camp shirt called the Hemingway, and tastefully patterned with exotic golden flowers and lush green leaves on a vibrant blue background. Each shirt was embroidered on the sleeve in a tone-on-tone thread with the CompUSA logo. “We gave the shirts out the night before the luau, and most people wore the shirts to the event. They were very well received by our clients,” Jolesch says.

Using novelty shirts for incentives is by far their most popular application. “With so many of these meetings taking place in a tropical destination, a camp shirt is a natural. And, a custom camp shirt gives the client the ability to have a fun shirt designed specifically for that particular event,” says Patrick Walsh, president of New York City-based KTP Design Co.

One custom example that Walsh recalls involved a real estate company planning a sales incentive trip to Hawaii for its top producers. “Our client wanted something new and exciting to give to attendees, and wanted this item to commemorate the event, the location and the industry,” he says. “To do this, we designed a shirt with a Hawaiian theme and included the company’s logo. And, to make the shirt even more specific to the real estate industry, we added a fun image – a grass hut with a ‘For Sale’ sign.”

For the distributor, that means repeat business. Themed novelty shirts – for sales incentives or any other type of annual event – can become an annuity sale. Each custom “edition” becomes a commemorative item, not just a piece of apparel. In that vein, Walsh has fulfilled numerous camp shirt sales for annual trade shows. “These shirts are given to exhibitors, worn by staff and sold to attendees,” he says. The shirts can become a “watched for” symbol of a particular exhibitor, piquing the interest of attendees each year to see what the exact theme of the shirt will be.
Companies such as Fast Lane also stock numerous designs that can be industry specific. Fast Lane stocks Hawaiian print shirts, tropical print shirts and specialty-theme print shirts that are available for immediate delivery. “We also offer a program where a customer can call and ask for any theme. We source the fabric and manufacture shirts to suit the customer’s theme,” Davis says. “We’ve made shirts with computer monitors, penguins, hot peppers, martini glasses, coffee mugs, candy, sunglasses, cars and musical instruments.”

Often, it’s not the client’s industry but its tagline or promotional theme that’s the inspiration for a camp shirt. “We had a distributor call us looking for loud and colorful shirts for a major security software company, which had a tropical theme of ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy,’” Davis says. “The client was preparing for a trade show and really wanted to get noticed. They ordered one of our more colorful tropical-
foliage shirts, and had everyone working their booth wearing our shirts. We got called the following week letting us know what a huge hit it was.”

Uniform applications
Because novelty shirts are easily noticed in a crowd, they’re often a good choice for employee uniforms – particularly for companies that have staffers on a retail floor or in a restaurant where customers need to quickly identify the individuals who can help them.

“If a camp shirt will be used as a uniform, a distributor should consider easy-care fabrications. More and more end-users are demanding this, as their employees don’t want to have to wash and iron their shirts every day,” Walsh says. KTP Design Co. offers its hydropose stain- and wrinkle-resistant fabrics for custom camp shirts.

A shirt has to be durable, and “to do that you must be able to machine wash it over and over,” says Tom Flippo, vice president of sales at Independence, MO-based Dunbrooke Apparel Corp. “It must be easy care, and ready to wear. To achieve this, stay away from satins and dry-clean-only labels, and go with a soft, satin-feeling fabric such as a polynosic, poly/rayon blend that can be machine washed and dried, yet still look great.”

Corporate apparel programs for office employees are yet another sales opportunity. Though not uniforms in the traditional must-wear sense, camp shirts can become a casual-wear staple for dress-down days. “If a company wants to be a little more cutting-edge or hip, it should put a camp shirt into the rotation of apparel worn to the office. It’s fun, different and can still look professional in a casual manner – we all know how much more comfortable these shirts are,” Flippo says.

Hot trends
Current style trends go one of two ways. “There are those who want a wild, loud and colorful shirt that’ll get them noticed,” Davis says. “And there are those who want their novelty shirts to be toned down, muted and conservative enough for any CEO. These trends exist mainly because of the different ways that end-users intend to use the shirts.”

Walsh has seen a turn toward the more conservative. “Lately we’ve been creating subtle, tonal designs as well as bold, colorful prints,” he says.

Hollywood has been an influence as well. “The vertical panels on the front of the camp shirt is the current trend, thanks to the sitcom “Two and a Half Men” and Charlie Sheen,” Flippo says. “Fruity, soft, island colors are the safest way to go. Patterns are popular but have to be subtle, such as palm trees; otherwise a pattern can camouflage the company logo.”

The Cabana is one of two new styles that Dunbrooke introduced this year. “It’s somewhat masculine, but very popular,” Flippo says. The other new style, Baja, is a knit camp shirt, rather than a woven.

Just about any market can be a hot opportunity for the camp shirt, including resorts, golf courses, restaurants, cruise ships and corporate casual Fridays. “Obviously, a camp shirt makes a great program or gift idea because most everyone has a closet full of polos or wovens, but not that many camp shirts,” Flippo says.

Imprinting details
Frequently, you’ll find it makes the most sense for the originating supplier to customize the novelty shirt’s imprint – particularly if the design is unique to the end-buyer. For that reason, establish a close working relationship with your camp shirt vendor, and ask about required lead times and the process of imprinting
a camp shirt all over.

“Our printing process uses spot colors, just like camp shirts found in retail stores,” Walsh says. “We’re able to print up to eight spot colors on a camp shirt. This method doesn’t allow for printing with four-color-process images.

If a distributor requests a very colorful camp shirt, Fast Lane usually imprints it with white puff ink. “Embroidery works quite well, and contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t get lost,” Davis says.

The key to imprinting camp shirts is restraint. “I think the shirt itself is the novelty, along with subtle details, such as palm trees woven into the fabric,” Flippo says. Dunbrooke typically embroiders on the left chest or left sleeve, depending on whether the particular shirt has a pocket or not.

“Keep in mind the fabrics that most camp shirts are made of have a draping characteristic, unlike most other shirts, and when you add a pocket, it makes it that much more difficult to decorate and make the logo look good,” Flippo says. “If you follow the pocket, the embroidery looks like it’s going at a downward angle. If you don’t follow the pocket to keep the embroidery straight, it makes the pocket look crooked. So my suggestion is left front on camp shirts with no pocket, and left sleeve on camp shirts with front pockets.”