ASI Contract Decoration and Apparel Supplier

A promotional products distributor does not need another company competing for the end customer. The distributor needs a production and sourcing resource that can take a defined client requirement and help move it toward completion.

Inkdnylon Custom Apparel works with ASI distributors, promotional product distributors, resellers, brokers, agencies, and organizational buyers that need contract embroidery, screen printing, apparel sourcing, promotional products, branded merchandise, and fulfillment support.

Inkdnylon is an ASI industry participant based in Chicago and serves buyers nationwide.

What Does an ASI Distributor Need From an Apparel Supplier?

The distributor owns the client relationship. The production requirement starts after the client decides what needs to be purchased.

That requirement may include a specific polo, cap, jacket, T-shirt, bag, promotional product, decoration method, quantity, delivery date, or combination of products.

The distributor then needs to determine whether those requirements can be sourced, decorated, produced, and delivered within the parameters of the project.

A useful supplier relationship helps the distributor answer those questions without making the purchasing process more complicated.

Contract Embroidery for Distributors and Resellers

Contract embroidery allows distributors to submit qualifying apparel for professional embroidery production.

Projects may include:

• Polos
• Caps and headwear
• Quarter-zips
• Jackets
• Uniform apparel
• Workwear
• Bags
• Employee apparel
• Branded merchandise

Embroidery requirements are evaluated according to the actual project. Logo complexity, stitch count, size, placement, garment construction, thread requirements, quantity, and other production factors can affect how the design should be produced.

Distributors with qualifying projects can submit products, quantities, artwork, and requirements through the Contract Embroidery Submission page.

When Does Screen Printing Make More Sense?

Not every client project should be embroidered.

Screen printing may be a better production method for larger quantities of T-shirts, sweatshirts, promotional apparel, workforce shirts, and artwork designed to be reproduced with ink.

A single client order may also require more than one decoration method.

For example, a distributor could be sourcing printed T-shirts for employees, embroidered polos for management, embroidered caps for field personnel, and branded merchandise for a company event.

Looking at the complete client requirement helps determine how each product should be handled.

Customer-Supplied Products or Product Sourcing?

Distributors do not all purchase apparel the same way.

Some already have products sourced and only need contract decoration. Others need apparel, decoration, promotional products, and fulfillment coordinated through one purchasing request.

Inkdnylon supports both qualifying customer-supplied decoration projects and Inkdnylon-sourced product orders.

If the distributor already knows the exact product, provide the manufacturer, style number, color, quantity, and sizes when available.

If the product has not been selected, provide the client requirements so appropriate sourcing options can be evaluated.

Specified Products and Approved Alternatives

Some client projects require an exact product. Others allow an approved equivalent when the original item is unavailable, discontinued, outside budget, or unable to meet the required production schedule.

That distinction should be communicated when the project is submitted.

A distributor can identify products as:

• Exact product required
• Preferred product
• Approved alternatives allowed
• Equivalent product requested
• Open sourcing based on specifications

This gives the purchasing process room to respond to availability without changing a client specification that must remain fixed.

What Should an ASI Distributor Submit for a Quote?

A vague request for "100 embroidered polos" leaves important purchasing questions unanswered.

A production-ready request should provide as much of the following as possible:

• Manufacturer and style number
• Product color
• Quantity
• Size breakdown
• Artwork
• Decoration method
• Decoration location
• Approximate decoration size
• Existing embroidery file, when applicable
• Required delivery date
• Shipping destination or destinations
• Packaging requirements
• Fulfillment requirements
• Whether approved product alternatives are permitted

Distributors with established purchasing documents can also submit spreadsheets, purchase specifications, product lists, RFQs, and supporting files.

Protecting Margin Starts With a Complete Requirement

Distributor margin is affected by more than the unit cost of decoration.

Product cost, decoration requirements, setup, artwork preparation, freight, packaging, fulfillment, production timing, and changes to the original specification can all affect the economics of an order.

That makes complete project information valuable before a distributor commits to a client price.

The more accurately the requirement is defined, the easier it becomes to understand what is actually being purchased and what must happen before the completed products reach the client.

One Client Can Require Multiple Products

Consider a distributor working with a company that needs a new employee apparel program.

The requirement could include:

• Embroidered polos for office employees
• Embroidered caps for field personnel
• Printed shirts for warehouse employees
• Jackets for supervisors
• Branded bags for new hires
• Promotional products for customer events

Those are not necessarily six unrelated jobs. They can be parts of one client purchasing requirement.

Submitting the complete program gives Inkdnylon the opportunity to review product sourcing, decoration, quantities, shipping, and fulfillment together.

Repeat Orders Matter to Distributors

A successful first order can become a recurring account.

The client hires new employees. Another location opens. Uniforms need replacement. A new department needs apparel. Another event requires merchandise.

For the distributor, that means the value of the project may extend far beyond the first purchase order.

Maintaining approved product information, artwork, and decoration requirements can make subsequent purchasing more structured.

For organizational programs requiring approved products and ongoing employee ordering, Inkdnylon Private Company Stores can also be incorporated into the purchasing structure.

From Contract Decoration to Larger Procurement

Some distributor requests begin with embroidery and expand into a larger branded merchandise program.

The client may eventually need apparel, uniforms, promotional products, branded merchandise, specified products, approved alternatives, multiple shipping destinations, repeat ordering, and fulfillment.

Those requirements can be submitted together rather than dividing the program among disconnected inquiries.

Inkdnylon accepts standard quote requests, spreadsheets, product lists, RFQs, specifications, and other purchasing documents for larger projects.

How to Submit an ASI Distributor Project

Start with the client requirement. Identify the products, quantities, artwork, decoration, required date, and delivery requirements.

Identify what has already been sourced. Tell Inkdnylon whether the products are being supplied for contract decoration or need to be sourced.

Define product flexibility. State whether an exact style is required or whether approved alternatives can be considered.

Include supporting files. Artwork, spreadsheets, specifications, RFQs, product lists, and other purchasing documents can help define the project.

Submit the complete requirement. This allows the project to be evaluated as a purchasing and production requirement rather than a collection of disconnected questions.

Contract Decoration From Chicago With Nationwide Service

Inkdnylon Custom Apparel is based in Chicago and serves ASI distributors, resellers, businesses, agencies, and organizations nationwide.

Projects can be coordinated electronically using artwork, product specifications, quantities, spreadsheets, RFQs, and other purchasing documents. Qualifying apparel and product orders can then be shipped to the required destination.

Distributors evaluating Inkdnylon can review our Trust & Compliance information and Chamber of Commerce profile.

Submit Your Next Distributor Project

If you already have apparel and need qualifying contract embroidery, submit the products, quantities, artwork, and requirements through the Contract Embroidery Submission page.

If the client needs apparel sourcing, screen printing, uniforms, promotional products, branded merchandise, approved alternatives, multiple products, or a larger procurement program, submit the complete requirement through Request a Quote.

Inkdnylon Custom Apparel serves distributors and organizational buyers nationwide with contract decoration, apparel sourcing, and branded merchandise support.