Making Promotional Fit Lifestyle

Comfort is important in today’s casual world; three-piece suits are no longer a requirement in the office and employees take full advantage of the fact that business dress code has become more lax. Corporate to casual attire requires a professional refinement, while still meeting the active lifestyle of employees outside of the office. Business casual attire should be able to float between the office, the golf course, the restaurant, or a weekend getaway without the individual feeling like they are wearing “business” clothes. Here are some ways to bring casual to business through apparel.

Lifestyle Brands

Maintaining the business casual environment is easy when corporate promotional apparel is made from lifestyle brands, such as Nike; allowing the apparel to easily transfer from in office to out-of-office. Providing brands that people want to wear will increase the likelihood that promotional apparel will be worn elsewhere.

Material

No one likes the feeling of wearing a uniform to work so scratch the itchy fabrics, and opt for soft fleece, or dri-fit material. Dri-fit technology is designed to be cool and breathable, while absorbing the moisture from the body. Dri-fit is great for a company promoting a business casual workplace as well as a healthy, active lifestyle in extracurricular activities.

Color

Don’t limit color options. A plethora of colors diminishes monotony of business casual attire, allowing for ease of flow from the workplace.

Business apparel does not have to be stuffy, however it should be polished. That is where American Promotional Apparel comes in. With top brands, comfortable materials and a wide range of color options, it is easy to take corporate promotional attire from corporate to casual. Whether on the green, in the office, or on the sales floor, American Promotional Apparel has everything your company needs for useable corporate promotional apparel.

Office Holiday Party Planning Tips

With the holiday season right around the corner, businesses are hosting parties to relax, celebrate, and show gratitude. Office holiday parties can be fun, but with a list of questions ranging from location to food and entertainment, planning it can be stressful. Here are some helpful office party planning tips to inspire you this year!

Eat it Up

If you are hosting a party in the office, consider a potluck dinner, or catered food from the office’s favorite restaurant. Take it a step further by bringing in food trucks. Food trucks are very popular right now and not limited to taste. With food trucks ranging from tacos to gourmet-style meals, it is a great way to support local businesses.

Did Somebody say Ugly Holiday Sweater Party?

Do you remember that sweater your aunt gave you years ago for Christmas. You know, the one that is so heinous the thrift store did not even want it? Pull it out of the box, dust it off, and throw it on! Ugly, or tacky, holiday sweater parties not only provide a great laugh to all of the attendees, but are a great way to remind everyone that, while it is an office party, it can still be fun!

Take it a step further by having attendees make their own ugly sweaters, or host a contest with prizes for tackiest sweater, most holiday spirit, strangest saying on the sweater, etc. This will incentivize everyone to participate! By providing the sweaters for the partygoers, it is less expense on them, and more fun for all.

Party for a Reason Other than the Season

The holiday season is also coined the season of giving. By including a charity fundraiser or raffle, participants have the opportunity to donate to a cause.

Take it a step further: Survey partygoers to determine the charity. This will make them feel more involved in the decision making process and more likely to purchase additional raffle tickets.

Attire

If you are hosting a party outside of the confines of the office, but are not hosting a costume party, make the attire something comfortable. Casual attire will help the team relax and to truly enjoy the evening.

Pump the Jams

Don’t rely on Christmas music as background noise. Have a cover band come in to play some great 80’s and 90’s pop music, or hire a DJ to liven up the mood of the party. Remember, just because it is an office holiday party, does not mean it should be boring.

White Elephant Gift Exchange

A White Elephant Gift Exchange is a simple concept: Everyone brings a present, draws a number, and then picks a gift from the pile. This takes the pressure off of buying gifts for everyone, and ensures that everyone gets a gift. Putting a gift price cap on the gift exchange takes away the stress or obligation to get something over-the-top. Here are some great, inexpensive office holiday party gift ideas.

Take it a step further: Each person has the opportunity to pick from the pile, or “steal” a gift that has already been opened. A present can only be “stolen” once.

For raffles, white elephant and other party activities, you are going to need supplies, so stock up on promotional pens and necessities!

Office holiday parties should be fun, and planning one should not be the holiday nightmare. What office holiday party tips would you add to the list?

Black Friday Shopping Discounts

Thanksgiving is this week, which means the largest shopping day of the season is fast approaching! According to Buzzfeed one in three of us will go shopping on Black Friday. With that in mind, you’ll want to do your research ahead of time in order to score the best loot before the masses arrive.

To help you find the best discounts we’ve gathered a list of the prime places to go for Black Friday deals November 29^th.

1.      Loyalty programs are an often-overlooked means to accumulating discounts during the holidays. Use your benefits to save on travel, restaurant deals and retail discounts.

2.      Take advantage of Black Friday promo codes while shopping online at American Promotional Products. Enjoy 15% off any custom product or apparel purchase when you enter promo BlackFriday1 at checkout on www.app-co.com.

3.      Visit Blackfriday.com to find the latest retail offers and big box store deals. You can also sign up via email to be alerted to new discount advertisements from your favorite stores.

4.      Pay attention to the media to find out what local discounts are in your area. Morning news programs like The Today Show will often offer exclusive discounts on a segment called Jill’s Steals and Deals. Choose from a variety of deeply discounted products - but act fast because products sell out quickly!

5.      Be prepared to wake up early. Beat the masses to the finish line and get exclusive deals before they sell out!  

Which Black Friday deals are you taking advantage of this year?

American Promotional Products Facebook

American Promotional Products Twitter

American Promotional Products Google+

Thanksgiving Office Party - Budget Friendly Supplies

Planning for the holidays is expensive especially when you’re responsible for organizing the annual Thanksgiving office party on top of hosting family events. Purchasing holiday decorations, food, drinks and entertainment can set you back quit a bit. In honor of a budget friendly Turkey day, we’ve come up with three frugal tips to help you spend less and enjoy more this holiday season.

1. Encourage the whole office to play a part in decorating the hallways, common areas and cubicles. This not only gets them involved but also helps you save time. Bring in a basket full of affordable décor including confetti, door covers, spinners, glitter leaves and garlands to inspire your interior decorating team.
2. Stick to your budget by hosting a potluck. Let each person be responsible for a side while you provide the star of the meal, the turkey! Add a bowl of fruit punch for an easy beverage that everyone can enjoy.
3. Get in the Turkey day spirit by helping employees dress the part. Leave temporary tattoos and festive feather hats at everyone’s desk in the morning to spice up the office for the afternoon festivities. If you have a large team create a competition by giving prizes to whoever wears the most creative Thanksgiving outfit. At the end of the day have everyone cast his or her vote on who should be crowned the winner.

Spending less is a nice stress reliever coming out of the holidays. We hope you enjoy a fun filled Thanksgiving office celebration with your team. Nothing feels better than showing your employees they’re appreciated, especially when costs are minimal.

American Promotional Products Facebook

American Promotional Products Twitter

American Promotional Products Google+

What is Screen Printed Apparel?

If you’re in the market for custom apparel you’ve come to the right place. First, did you know there are multiple ways to order custom apparel? Some of those options include contract embroidery, direct to garment, digitizing and screen printing. With all of these choices it can be confusing when you’re trying to decide which way to go. So, today we’re going to discuss what screen printing is and how the process works.

What is screen printing? During the screen printing process, ink is forced through a one-of-a-kind custom

screen pattern designed for you. It is then placed over the fabric and ink is pressed through the screen design to create the desired image.

What are the benefits of screen printing? Screen printing is a permanent, smooth to the touch design that won’t crack or crumble. Your shirt will surely stay intact wash after wash without fading.

At APP we have the expertise and manpower to accommodate virtually any size order you have, no matter how large. Whether you’re looking for custom tees for a softball team or custom shirts for a corporate event, we've got you covered.

Since 1983 we’ve been churning out quality custom apparel for corporations like The Boeing Company and for organizations like the Girl Scouts and Boys Scouts of America. APP is the most reputable source for custom apparel you can find and we pride ourselves in giving our customers only the highest quality screen printing available.

Do you love your screen printed apparel? Tell us about it in the comment box below! 

Inexpensive Halloween Costume Ideas

The holidays can be scary expensive if you don’t plan ahead and get creative. With Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Hanukkah on the horizon it can be easy to splurge on impulse buys. However you can still deck the halls with spooky décor and be the life of the party in a one of a kind Halloween costume. Here are a few of our favorite family costume ideas to help get your creative juices bubbling, like a pot of witches brew.

For a quick, affordable and easy men’s Halloween costume, be Charlie Brown. It’s simple, transform in this Men's CB DryTec Elliott Bay Polo in pale yellow, add the black zig zag design, throw on a pair of black shorts, and poof you’re Charlie Brown!

For a quick, easy and office friendly women’s Halloween costume be batgirl. Start by embroidering a gold bat across the top center of the shirt. Add a gold bat belt around the bottom for extra detail on our fitted Bella USA made tee. To complete the outfit throw on black leather pants and combat boots for an edgy look.

Dressing your little one up as a smurf or smurfette for Halloween is easier than you may think. Simply find a long sleeve blue tee like this Sport-Tek youth long sleeve crew tee in color true royal. Pair it with white pants, white sneakers and a white hat. Go all the way by adding a little blue face paint to any exposed skin to mirror the true smurf complexion. 

Have you designed your own Halloween costume before? Share with us in the comments below!

How To Sell Custom Apparel Online – APP Webstore

Selling custom apparel online can in increase your brand awareness and sales. Branded apparel has become a staple in many work settings. It boosts team morale and helps build corporate identity among employees. However, housing inventory in your office can prove to be a challenge. Employees want access to custom apparel online so they can show their support for the company and its mission.

According to a Bizreport 89% of consumers preferred shopping online over in-store shopping. Webstores are the future, because that is where your customer is spending their time. The good news is, with an APP webstore setup is completely FREE. The only purchase you will make will be product to stock your webstore.

If your company has multiple locations it makes sense to sell custom apparel online with a unified webstore for your company. Once the webstore is created you won’t have to worry about stocking inventory, purchasing a store front or hiring sales people. Our team at APP will take care of all the orders and heavy lifting for you!  

Selling custom apparel online with APP is a quick and easy process that can be up and running within a few business days. Once you’ve decided on which custom products and apparel you’d like to add to your webstore we will digitally overlay your logo or preferred design to the products for authentic online viewing. The custom branded store will consist of all your product images, descriptions and employee pricing.

Employees can choose from a variety of colors and sizes in the items you offer. Through the custom-created employee webstore, individual employees can place their order and self-manage their accounts. A custom webstore is the easiest and most cost-effective way to outfit your whole team.

How are you selling your company products and apparel?