In this article, guest blogger Whitney Floyd covers top promotional apparel trends for the beginning of fall 2019. Whitney is the regional vice president of sales for alphabroder‘s southern region. She took time to share her expertise between meetings with customers. Here’s what she had to say:
As a regional vice president of sales for alphabroder, the top three questions I get asked the most are 1) What is trending in the industry? 2) What should I be selling? 3) What is hot and new?
My answers differ every day because trends are constantly changing. And while I love current vibes, colors, and styles – I tend to only highlight the trend origin – versus the trend itself. While neon pink and orange might have been killing it this summer, the more important underlying statements were bright colors and safety. It’s much easier to invest in the “trend why” as opposed to the “trend what.” This fall, I highly recommend you look into the following two fads I’ve seen popping up all over the retail and promotional products industry:
Chambray
That’s right, folks – call your friends who love denim! Chambray is back in a big way. This quintessential staple goes with everything. While chambray and denim get mixed up all the time, they are actually quite different. Chambray is woven with colored and white yarn whereas denim is made with colored yarn and twill construction. The chambray look breaks the monotony of the everyday woven dress shirt. Dress it up or play it down. Men’s and ladies styles are perfect for both business and pleasure.
Style hack: Chambray can be styled with a formal blazer, a distressed leather jacket, or rock it solo. Personally, I intend to rock my chambray shirt with a pair of dark denim pants, a fun puffy vest, and some sparkly chandelier earrings this fall!
Here are some samples I recommend you check out:
Rich neutrals
It’s officially autumn! Pretty soon many of us will be ordering pumpkin space lattes, applying our dark nail polish and facing those frigid temps. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Before jumping into our mid-fall routines, let’s enjoy the current transition period. Today’s apparel trends feature rich neutral colors like camel, tan, graphite, charcoal, midnight navy, and pops of burgundy or maroon. We are seeing woven shirts, tees, jackets, puffers, quarter zips, and even hats in calming neutral colors that coordinate with everything. It’s perfect for corporate and professional fashion as well as restaurant uniforms. This trend makes navigating color hues and packing to travel a breeze.
Style hack: The fashionista inside me gets super excited when product launches stay in neutral colors. It gives me the chance to add layering items, accessories, or statement items that stand out in a crowd.
Some great styles that come in rich neutrals:
Thanks for reading! I will be back on the blog soon for more top apparel trends from the road, airport, and desks of our customers!
Laurie is part of the marketing team for the leading supplier in the industry, alphabroder. During her free time, Laurie likes to ride horses, sail and spend time with her husband and her two children. Reach her at Lprestine@alphabroder.com