What is a better solution: renting apparel from a uniform company or purchasing customized logo’d apparel?
At ENOSIS Graphic Solutions, we specialize in customized logo apparel for our clients across several industries. We often are asked to compare the benefits of buying logo’d apparel vs. using a rental or uniform company.
We decided to ask our customers what benefits they realized when they switched from renting to buying customized apparel for their staff, workers, and for gifting to clients.
The Interview
We sat down and discussed this topic with Ryan Jackson, CEO of D.F. Richard Energy in Dover NH.
D.F. Richard Energy is an 88-year-old family business focusing on exceptional customer relationships, and specializing in heating oil, propane, and HVAC systems and services. The company began in 1932 and has over 15,000 customers and 72 employees.
For many years, D.F. Richard used a rental company for its customized company uniforms.
The Benefits of Renting
Ryan was remarkably candid about his and D.F. Richard’s experience with rental companies. He said, “At first the benefits were apparent – the employees didn’t have to bother to launder their uniforms. They were labeled to ensure we would get them back to the appropriate employee. The rental company picked them up and returned them laundered. The uniforms were customized with our company logo.”
The Problems with Renting
“We paid top dollar for the apparel itself and for the custom logo embroidery. Sometimes a garment was not returned to us, despite the labeling of our company and employee name. Eventually, our employees found it easier to launder their uniforms themselves … but our rental company still charged us for laundry services. D.F. Richard utilized the services of three different rental companies before we decided to take a different route. Another problem was the wait time for apparel for new employees. And … the time it took administrative staff to manage this was extraordinary, tedious, and non-productive.”
Benefits of Buying Customized Apparel
Ryan explained, “We’ve been working with ENOSIS Graphic Solutions for some time now. With them, we can buy a variety of apparel, suited to the employee’s job. There are many styles to choose from, including high visibility safety apparel, seasonal apparel, and accessories.”
Your Company Store
He continued, “This innovation from ENOSIS Graphic Solutions has been a game-changer. Noel Choquette and his team designed a custom internet website for our employees so that they can order “approved” apparel that is customized to our high standards. We can select the merchandise we want and determine exactly how it is to be customized. This approved apparel is offered to our employees. We give each employee an annual budget, so they can manage their uniforms themselves. The apparel is labeled, and the employees are responsible for laundering.
“D.F. Richard orders replenishment apparel in bulk; however, our employees can order small quantities – no need to order by the dozen. The bulk orders are entered into an inventory system, individually packaged, and stored in our “uniform” room. When an employee orders merchandise, the orders are filled in-house the same or the next day! This is a seamless, self-sufficient system.
“Our employees love the Employee Company Store as it is easy to use and they can order what they want when they need it of the approved merchandise, control their spending, and get delivery almost on-demand!”
Selection of Apparel
Ryan was excited to learn that there are a wide range of apparel and accessories, by name brands, that they could put on their “approved” list. Short-sleeve, long-sleeve, crew T-shirts, hooded Carhart jackets or sweatshirts … winter caps, baseball caps, polo shirts … and more. The uniform is classified according to job – technicians, drivers, office staff, sales force. There is a consistency that ensures top-of-mind awareness and brand recognition, no matter where the employee is working.
Saving Money
The bottom line is always important in business. Ryan reflected, “Did we save money switching? The cost is very comparable in price if you are simply paying a weekly fee. However, we had the same uniforms for three years. With rips and stains that didn’t get washed out – they were not replaced … and we were still paying the same price.”
“With our Employee Company Store, our employees get instant gratification, the exact items they ordered, and control over their budget. Uniform rental companies only carry certain brands and styles. Now we stock what we and our employees want (We asked them!)”
Marketing Benefit
Our employees often wear their company apparel outside of work hours and locations. This is no-cost marketing for our company. At D.F. Richard, we have given logo’d items to clients and vendors with minimal effort.
In Summary
Ryan Jackson emphasized, “It all comes down to the relationship we have with ENOSIS Graphic Solutions and Noel Choquette. Noel is very responsive to our needs. When a new employee comes on board, they get an email invitation to our Employee Company Store, and they get their apparel right away. If we want to make a change or we have an issue, we call Noel, and it is taken care of. ENOSIS is a family-owned business, as is D.F. Richard. It is impossible to get the attention we need from a large corporation.”
Thank you, Ryan, for taking time out of your busy day to talk with us about your experience and your straightforward advice.
If you are thinking about making a switch from renting company apparel to owning customized apparel and setting up your own Employee Company Store … or if you do not currently get the benefit of custom logo’d company apparel, give Noel Choquette a call at 978-505-2783 or email him. He’ll be glad to sit down with you to answer all your questions.