Stadium remodel. Weather considerations. Variable workforce size.
Minor design adjustments made a major difference.
Challenge
While at a national trade show one spring, we were approached by the management team for a professional sports stadium, home to Major League Baseball and National Football League teams, as well as international soccer and dozens of big concerts. They were working with another uniform company to outfit concession stand employees, but wanted a more eye-catching look that employees would actually enjoy wearing. A particular short sleeve chef coat in royal blue drew them to us. Rather than simply quoting a volume price for thousands of units, we dug deeper into the details and discovered several interesting insights:
- Employees were uncomfortable in their current coats. The 100% polyester felt suffocating in the open-air tropical climate stadium.
- Management was experiencing major challenges in maintaining a professional, polished look. The workforce could suddenly escalate from several hundred to several thousand people, depending upon the size of the event. Team members had diverse preferences, appearances and personalities. The current uniforms seemed to highlight the tattoos and jewelry that some employees chose as their personal means of expression.
- Event day uniform distribution was time-consuming and difficult. There was no way to distinguish uniform sizes, other than a small tag affixed to the collar, which was usually rolled up from repeated washing.
The timeline for any new look was quite aggressive: it must be delivered in its entirety before the first NFL game of the season, a mere 12 weeks away.
Solution
Uniform Advantage Corporate Solutions immediately mobilized our design and production teams, and addressed the client’s challenges by:
- Customizing the coat design to incorporate lightweight blended fabrics, liberal use of mesh panels for ventilation, high collars, and slightly longer sleeves to conceal tattoos and jewelry.
- Deploying our in-house design team to rapidly mock-up working versions of the top contenders.
- Designing in color-coded size tags to streamline uniform distribution on event day.
Our teams were able to meet the aggressive delivery deadline, by leveraging our private-label manufacturing capabilities. Production began immediately upon final design approval from the client.
The new uniforms arrived at our warehouse three weeks ahead of schedule, giving us the opportunity to perform a thorough quality check. The order was then packaged and labeled for easy identification upon receipt. The Uniform Advantage Corporate Solutions team met the delivery at the stadium to address any questions or concerns.
Results
The new uniforms were deemed a huge success by the client. Employees report that they love the new look, feel and fit, especially the mesh ventilation panels which make for a much cooler work day. The colorful, stylish look coordinates well with the new stadium decor. Now, concession stand employees stand out in a consistent, professional way, yet blend in perfectly with their environment. Management was thrilled to have the product in-hand well before the season started and are even happier that years later, the uniforms still look as fresh and dynamic as the day they were delivered.