Adrian Burton of South East Workwear runs the popular AskAdy site, which hosts independent reviews of workwear garments. This month, he’s discussing the ideal workwear for gardeners and groundspeople
This month I want to talk about kitting out landscape gardeners and groundspeople. These poor guys have it tough and my sales team are asked all the time what would make a great uniform for a landscaper. Of course, these products, in most cases, will all need to carry the customer’s logo, so they will need to be able to be either printed or embroidered.
Our hardened outdoor workers love the traditional green colour and this year I have introduced some new products into our store that have been flying off the shelves. First off is a relatively new product for us: the new Galaxy Work Trouser (2810-254) from Engel Workwear. This comes in a stylish forest green shade and has a polyester/cotton canvas fabric. This type of finish is always great as it gives it a very durable and slightly showerproof outer shell. The trousers also have a standard cargo finish, and the knees and bottom hem are reinforced with Cordura.
The jacket I match it with is the Result Extreme Climate Stopper Fleece (R109X) with its waterproof, breathable and windproof membrane. This stylish jacket has comfortable cuffs and a storm flap to stop the rain driving through the zip area. Of course, you cannot really print a fleece jacket and get a professional finish, so I would recommend embroidery and only really on the left breast area to minimise the disruption to the waterproofing. The jacket has a great size range from XS to 3XL and comes in a moss, black and navy.
Finally, it is always great to offer a hoodie, and of course everyone working outdoors always asks for a heavyweight hoodie. We have struggled in the past to find a cost-effective option with a heavy weight finish. It’s been no problem if your customer wants a big workwear name, but this doesn’t give you the margin to make a decent profit. Also, as garment decorators, we just want a good quality, blank product. Happily, the new Graduate Heavyweight Hoodie (JH101) from Just Hoods by AWDis has hit the street. It sold out pretty much as soon as it landed, but now stocks are coming back up as the manufacturer can see that this new product is working. This heavyweight hoodie is comfortable, has an over-the-head style and is a wardrobe essential for all hoodie lovers. Designed with a relaxed fit and constructed from 330gsm, soft-touch fabric to keep the wearer warm and snug, and features flat, chunky drawcords. This beast is made from 70% cotton/30% polyester mix, making it perfect for direct-to-garment printing. The base price is fantastic, giving you some room to make a few quid too.
Although the green version of this hoodie is in a bottle green, we like to mix it with a neutral colour such as black to break it up a bit. Trust me, give these a try, it might give you an edge this year when putting together some new products for your customers.
The new Graduate Heavyweight Hoodie from Just Hoods by AWDis
The Galaxy Work Trouser from Engel
Result’s R109X Climate Stopper Fleece in the moss colourway
Adrian Burton of South East Workwear runs the extremely popular AskAdy site, which hosts independent reviews of workwear garments. He’s one of the first people to be sent new products launching both in the UK and across Europe.
