Perhaps one of the most prominent factors which underpins the whole exercise of acquiring the correct business wear in any workplace, is the projected lifespan of the garments themselves and logos or company icons that they display. It goes without saying that corporate clothing suppliers will not want to be left with a useless stock of clothing because one of their clients has shut down or been taken over by another business. For this reason, most corporate clothing suppliers agree the terms of the contract before producing the garments themselves. In some cases it is possible that a full outright purchase is agreed upon. No matter the scenario, the supplier will seek to minimise the possibility of losing out financially, should the circumstances change. This means that many business dealings are highly flexible, and that infrastructure exists that facilitate the smooth running of the acquisition and maintenance of staff clothing.
Corporate Clothing UK Contracts.
Given the overall nature of the business the number of contracts that can be drawn up between suppliers and contracts is effectively limitless. It is also highly likely that larger companies that engage in different activities will have different contracts with the same provider. There are several core reasons for such a scenario:
- Various groups of employees will need different staff uniforms.
- There are likely to be different numbers of employees in different sectors of the business.
- Different cohorts of staff are likely to be on different employment contracts, which means that there are likely to be different responsibilities for the cleaning or maintenance of staff uniforms.
- It may be decided that rental terms are more favourable and garner less risk than a full purchase of a given quantity of work wear.
There are many other factors involved that many larger organisations employer the services of a third party agency.
The Role of The Managing Agent
One consequence of the decline of the UK textile industry is that over 90% of all the corporate clothing worn in the UK is imported. To avoid the risk of any supply failure or other contractual issues, the services of a managing agent are integrated into the overall procurement process. These agents can be corporate clothing suppliers, manufacturers or individuals, either way, they function as a point of contact with the business requesting the clothing. As agencies, these organisations are not limited to acquisition and getting the best possible deal for their clients. They can offer advice on everything from getting the best possible benefits of any economies of scale and how to aggregate demand from several manufacturers. This is important because it is likely that several manufacturers will need to be involved in the production of different types of work wear. In addition, a managing agent can advise on coordinating the design and marketing aspects of any logos and / or colour schemes of the different staff uniforms. They also tend to work for several clients and so can apply their experience across different scenarios thus saving costs.
Overall, the business itself must ascertain who is going to wear the staff uniform and what this actually means for different individuals across the business. Due to the complexities involved a larger organisation will often seek external advice.
