At Chadwick Teamwear, we believe business should be about more than just profit, it should be about purpose. That’s why we’re proud to launch “Our little guide to making a big impact”, a new communication piece that sets out our commitments to ethical trading, sustainability and social responsibility.

For schoolwear and teamwear retailers, as well as growing brands who want to build their reputation on trust, this guide is more than just a document. It’s transparent look at how we can operate and what we stand for.

A Philosophy That Puts People, Planet and Profit on Equal Footing

Our philosophy is simple: do the right thing. As an independent British business with over 60 years of experience, we’ve seen the industry change and we’re evolving with it. Our “Three Ps” approach – People, Planet, Profit – is the backbone of every decision we make.

Whether it’s our ethical sourcing practices, the durability of our products, or our approach to shipping and packaging, we are building a business that supports long term sustainability for everyone in the supply chain, including our retail partners.

What You’ll Find Inside the Guide

Here are just a few highlights from our guide:

• Sustainability in Action: From sourcing fabric and trims from OEKO-TEX® approved suppliers to packaging every garment in biodegradable bags, we’re reducing environmental impact without compromising product quality.
• Ethical Sourcing: All our factories, under the stewardship of our team in China, are audited to amfori BSCI standards and we also make use of amfori BEPI, ensuring safe working conditions, fair pay and environmental care throughout our supply chain.
• Carbon Footprint Reduction: From container optimisation in shipping to switching to electric vehicles in our UK fleet, we’re taking action to lower emissions across the board.
• Reforestation Initiatives: We’ve helped plant over 400,000 trees through long-term partnerships in the UK and Tanzania, offsetting some of our carbon footprint while making a tangible difference.
• Premium Products That Last: Our teamwear isn’t fast fashion. It’s designed for durability and longevity, with many of our bestselling products still going strong over a decade later.
• People First: From weekly fitness classes and employee coaching to mental health support, we champion our people just as passionately as we support our partners.

Why This Matters to You

As a retailer or brand partner, your reputation is tied to the products you sell. Working with a supplier that’s transparent, ethical and forward thinking isn’t just nice to have, it’s a competitive advantage.

Consumers, schools and sports organisations are becoming increasingly aware of sustainability and social responsibility. By partnering with Chadwick Teamwear, you’re aligning with a supplier whose values add long term value to your business.

Join Us on the Journey

We know we’re not perfect. But we are committed. And we’re proud to be open about where we are on our journey and where we’re going.

Download “Our little guide to making a big impact”

Let’s build a more ethical, sustainable future together. Chadwick Teamwear – An Ethical Business

The post Our Little Guide to Making a Big Impact first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post Our Little Guide to Making a Big Impact appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

Our team in China

Our China office team, established over 20 years ago, is fundamentally crucial to our business. It makes us truly unique and sets us apart from other importers and brands. Looking out for the best interests of Chadwick Teamwear and our customers, they are specifically hand-picked and recruited by us. Unlike our competitors who work through third parties, we are proud to have our own dedicated team.

“As our range of products continues to grow and our stock levels increase, we continue to grow our team of sportswear specialists in China and will continually invest in our infrastructure over there to complement our UK headquarters. The new office is a major testament to this ongoing commitment” explains Managing Director Joel Chadwick.

Our supply chain

As an established importer, ensuring a reliable high quality supply chain and manufacturing process has been key to our success, especially given often turbulent times globally. All products are designed and developed in-house at our 40,000 sq. ft UK warehouse, office and showroom in Altrincham. We listen carefully to our wide customer base and seek to develop highly functional multi-purpose teamwear products of premium quality. Our complete development and production process is fully managed by a dedicated and highly knowledgeable team in the UK and supported by the experienced team in China.

Joel explains further “ We combine our 50+ years knowledge as a fabric supplier with our considerable experience of manufacturing sportswear garments offshore with specialist partners. We’ve travelled extensively throughout the Far East and Asia over the years, we’ve done ‘the hard yards’ when it comes to sourcing the right suppliers. Both our UK and very own China team also have a wealth of experience in our industry. When combined with our proven testing and inspection procedures, quality is rigorously controlled at every stage. This enables us to deliver consistent market leading products to our customers. ‘Fit for purpose’ products time after time, season after season.”

Quality control and ethical training

Our China team provide the eyes and ears on the ground, it’s an invaluable part of our operation – communicating, managing our expectations as well as understanding the local cultures and working practices. But they offer much more than that. Having our own dedicated and specialised quality control team on the ground has many, many benefits. It enables quick decision-making during time-critical production while also ensuring that bulk production accurately replicates the original approved garment samples and specifications time after time. Importantly, our China team help us manage that all manufacturers and factories associated with the production of Chadwick Teamwear’s products subscribe to a range of recognised ethical trading initiatives and understand their social and corporate responsibilities to their employees, buyers, and end users.

We are delighted to have invested in the long-term success of Chadwick Teamwear with our new China office.

The post NEW CHINA OFFICE first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post NEW CHINA OFFICE appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

Fabric Selection – Ensuring it is Fit for Purpose

The foundation of any garment is its fabric. Selecting the right fabric is crucial, as it must meet the specific demands of the garment’s intended use. Here are some key properties we consider at Chadwick Teamwear:

• Durability – For items like pants that undergo significant wear and tear, fabrics need to be robust and resistant to damage, with snag ratings being a key factor in fabric selection.
• Comfort – Fabric selection for everyday wear needs to prioritize comfort and feel. Skin-friendly brushback and breathable fabrics are consistently delivered with Chadwick Teamwear garments.
• Functionality – Specialized garments, such as training wear, require moisture-wicking and quick-drying properties.
• Flexibility – Activewear fabrics should provide ample stretch and recovery to accommodate movement without losing shape.

By carefully evaluating these properties and leveraging our in-house fabric expertise with over 60 years in the industry, we ensure that the chosen fabric will enhance the garment’s performance, longevity, and look.

Colour Standards & Weight Selection: Consistency is Key

Colour is a critical aspect of a garment’s appeal and brand identity. Our colour standards and fabric weights are meticulously tested and require a number of approval processes before being signed off for production. This ensures colour and weight continuity throughout ranges, time and time again.

• Colour Matching – Fabrics are dyed to match exact colour standards on production runs, ensuring uniformity across different production batches.
• Long-Term Stability – We test for colour fastness to ensure that the garment maintains its vibrant hues despite washing, exposure to sunlight, and other environmental factors.

Comprehensive Fabrics Testing: Tailoring Tests to Garment Needs

Once the fabric’s weight and colour are approved, it undergoes rigorous testing to ensure it meets the necessary standards for its intended use. Testing is completed both in house and via 3^rd parties  – ITS Intertek – BS EN ISO methods. For example:

• Snag Testing – Garments are often subject to snagging tests to ensure the fabric can withstand overall wear and resist pulls and tears.

Further Testing: Beyond Basic Requirements

To guarantee the highest quality, we perform additional tests tailored to specific requirements. These tests include:

• Spirituality – Although this term typically pertains to human aspects, in fabric testing, it metaphorically relates to the intrinsic quality and integrity of the material.
• Print Durability – For garments with prints, we test the fabric to ensure that designs remain intact and do not fade or peel over time.
• Hydrostatic Testing for Waterproof Products – Waterproof fabrics undergo hydrostatic testing to measure their resistance to water penetration, ensuring they keep the wearer dry under various conditions.

Ready for Production: Ensuring Quality from Start to Finish

After the fabric has passed all relevant tests, production can commence. This stage involves cutting, sewing, and assembling the garment, all while maintaining stringent quality control measures to ensure that the final product meets our high specification standards.

By focusing on these critical steps – fabric selection, colour, weight, and comprehensive testing – we ensure that every garment we produce is of the highest quality. This meticulous approach not only enhances the garment’s performance and longevity but also guarantees customer satisfaction, encouraging them to return to Chadwick Teamwear time and time again.

The post Fabric Selection first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post Fabric Selection appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

The Strategic Importance of the Red Sea Route

The Red Sea is a crucial artery in global shipping, providing a direct link between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal. For UK imports from China, this route is particularly important, offering a shorter and more cost-effective path compared to alternative routes around the Cape of Good Hope. Given the UK’s heavy reliance on Chinese goods, any disruption along this route can have immediate and far-reaching consequences which Chadwick Teamwear are working hard behind the scenes to mitigate any of these impacting factors.

Current Challenges and Disruptions

Several factors have converged to create significant bottlenecks along the Red Sea route:

• Geopolitical Tensions: The Red Sea region is fraught with geopolitical instability, including conflicts in Yemen and tensions between regional powers. These issues have heightened the risk of piracy and attacks on commercial vessels, leading to increased security measures and higher insurance premiums. These costs are often passed down the supply chain, impacting UK businesses and consumers.
• Port Congestion: Major ports along the Red Sea, such as Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, have been experiencing severe congestion. This congestion is partly due to increased global trade volumes as economies recover from the pandemic and partly due to inefficiencies and limited capacity at these ports. Delays in unloading and loading cargo have created significant backlogs, disrupting the timely flow of goods to the UK.
• COVID-19 Impact: The pandemic continues to affect port operations and crew availability. Outbreaks of COVID-19 among port workers and ship crews have led to quarantines and reduced operational capacity. This has slowed down the movement of ships through key ports along the Red Sea route, exacerbating delays.
• Container Shortages: The global shortage of shipping containers remains a critical issue. With containers stranded in ports worldwide due to the pandemic’s initial disruptions, there is an acute mismatch in container availability. This shortage is particularly pronounced along the Red Sea route, where high demand for Chinese imports to the UK has outstripped supply, driving up shipping costs.

Impact on UK Trade

The disruptions along the Red Sea route have had several adverse effects on UK trade:

• Increased Shipping Costs: Higher insurance premiums, security costs, and surcharges due to port congestion and delays have significantly increased the cost of shipping goods from China to the UK. These are often passed onto consumers.
• Delays and Stock Shortages: Delays in shipping schedules have disrupted supply chains, leading to stock shortages and delayed deliveries for UK businesses. This is particularly challenging for industries with just-in-time inventory systems and made to order.
• Impact on Small Businesses: Smaller UK businesses, which may not have the resources to absorb increased shipping costs or manage delays, are particularly vulnerable. They face the risk of losing customers due to stockouts and delayed deliveries, which can harm their competitiveness and financial stability.

Chadwick Teamwear’s Resilience

Despite these challenges, Chadwick Teamwear has managed to maintain its supply chain stability. Thanks to longstanding relationships with factories in China and forward planning of stock replenishment, Chadwick Teamwear has mitigated the impact of these disruptions. Additionally, the company holds a large amount of stock in its UK warehouse tracking at nearly 100% on all SKU’s, in many key selling’s lines Chadwick Teamwear have over compensated in stock allowing for bumps in the road and unforeseen circumstances,  with the option to also fly products into the country if there are shortages in certain styles or sizes. This proactive approach ensures that Chadwick Teamwear continues to meet customer demands effectively. All Chadwick Teamwears live stock can be checked via the portal here.

The current shipping and container issues along the Red Sea route present significant challenges for UK trade. While the industry is actively seeking solutions, the complexity and scale of these disruptions mean that the road to normalisation will be long and multifaceted. By understanding these dynamics and adopting proactive mitigation strategies. Chadwick Teamwear’s effective management of these challenges exemplifies how strategic planning and strong supplier relationships can help mitigate the impact of global shipping disruptions allowing us to not pass on increased cost to our loyal customer base.

The post Navigating Current Shipping and Container Issues from China first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post Navigating Current Shipping and Container Issues from China appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

Post Covid we have been able to “turbo charge” our investment in innovative new products & investment in people and the business. Our entire ethos is built around creating an infrastructure, which brings desirable co-ordinated teamwear ranges to market, maintain a high level of quality, offer great stocks, longevity of range and of course creating a great place to work! Our China office has recently increased in size to 8 employees. The China office primary function being to maintain a very high level of quality by inspecting every order at the factory before goods are shipped to UK.

Our turnover has doubled over the last 3-4 years putting even more emphasis on upgrading all aspects of our business to cope with the next phase of growth. We have rolled our new warehouse management software linked to handheld bar code scanners, which have improved the picking team’s efficiency and accuracy to improve speed of picking, meaning our customers receive orders quicker!  Also, more sales means the need for more warehousing space. On our current site we have recently built a 3^rd warehouse and by reconfiguring our other 2 warehouse with alternative racking enabled us to create 200 new pallet spaces and installing a floor to ceiling pallet racking systems increasing storage in our “picking warehouse” by over 500%. Continuing to improve working conditions and efficiency in the warehouse, we purchased four new high level cherry picking machines, two forklifts, and four powered pump trucks that increased unloading speeds and improved manual handling safety.

Such improvements to our systems/procedures have facilitated us being able to manage a literal doubling in the value of stock we are now holding compared to only a few years ago.

Continuous updates to our online portal give our customers much more functionality than just enabling them to place an order 24 hrs a day. Our online customer portal now enables you to make payments on account, view statements, check and track outstanding orders, product descriptions/size charts as well as being able to check live stock and next delivery. Now over 60% of all orders placed are on our online portal!

After 3 years in design, this September we are very pleased to announce the launch of our new KINETIC Range. A contemporary 8 piece range with up to 11 stock colour combinations using a combination of cationic melange effect shoulder panels with colour insert and signature “Kinetic” rubber print:

• Midlayer
• Crew neck sweatshirt
• Hoodie
• T-shirt
• Full zip top / jacket
• Tapered jog pant
• Premium rain jacket (Launch Jan 24)
• Polo (launch Jan 24)

In addition to our exciting Kinetic range we are also adding the following new styles to our stock Core range:

• Rain jacket – Plain black and navy
• Premium stretch midlayer – plain black and navy
• Premium polo – plain white, black and navy
• Backpack – plain black and navy
• Carbon premium short – plain black and navy
• iGen 2-in-1 short – plain black and navy

Looking to the future, we will continue to expand our product lines, explore new markets, and strive to lead the way in providing brand quality teamwear to resellers and suppliers of team sportswear

The post What’s new at Chadwick Teamwear? first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post What’s new at Chadwick Teamwear? appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

Why do we travel to China?

The team headed back west from Shanghai, inland by high-speed train for the first of more than a dozen meetings during the 12-day trip. This followed by a short plane ride back to the coast in the industrial southeast of China where the weather is generally warm or simply just hot year-round interspersed with the annual monsoon season. The number one priority of the 2023 trip was putting the final touches and signing off our eagerly awaited new range ‘Kinetic’. Kinetic has taken more than 2 ½ years to develop, which is twice as long as other ranges historically. Kinetic is collectively the most premium and technical range we have developed to date, the combination of new performance fabrics, prints and specialised trims utilised in this range has really taken Kinetic to a new level.

This trip has highlighted you really can’t replace being in front of suppliers, building knowledge and ensuring you have your finger on the pulse. The partnerships we have built with our trusted suppliers prior to the covid period has been invaluable – for Chadwick’s as a business the importance of always working directly with specialised factories is vital to our success.

Quality assured 

At Chadwick, we pride ourselves on the quality and consistency of our products. Our proven quality procedures is integral to delivering garments with the correct fit and function according to their intended use to give our customers confidence when offering Chadwick Teamwear over more famous name brands.

Quality is rigorously controlled at every stage of manufacturing with the help of our own full time ‘Chadwick’ QCs (not third parties) employees based in our China office. 1 or more of our 8 strong team will visit the factories on an almost weekly basis reporting back to the UK regularly. This enables us to make informed decisions quickly or solve an issue much faster than just waiting for samples to arrive at our UK office to make a decision. Travelling to China and spending time with our staff allows us to offer them invaluable training, product updates, problem solving sessions and continue to build their awareness of our expectations and business operations. It’s hard for us to imagine that many Chinese have never travelled outside China, their perception of ‘The Western world’ is a little different from the reality and helping them to understand why we insist on high quality is an education. That said, Chinese people are without doubt some of the most hardworking, honest, and clever people you will find in the world, their naturally respectful and gentle culture means they are happy to listen and learn.

Environmental impact and sustainability

Environmental impact and sustainability factors are now becoming just as important to china as it is in Europe and the rest of the world and in some respects, China has overtaken us in terms of implementation. A key part of our development here at Chadwick’s is to ensure we and our suppliers follow a sustainable code of practice, this was a key discussion point whilst in China with all suppliers. OEKOTEX is an independent testing certification for fabrics and trims is specified by Chadwick’s wherever possible and we have recently carried out full independent factory assessments in conjunction with ITS Intertek. In addition, all our vendors adhere to the Amfori / BSCI (business social compliance initiative) and we encourage all suppliers to follow a positive working culture for all workers and seek to continuously improve.

The addition of recycled packaging has recently been achieved and we are seeking to convert fabrics to recycled polyester step by step as long as the science is telling us this is the right thing to do. There is still much to do, but, we have already planned the next trip later this year by which time many of our new exciting new products will have arrived into UK stock. We are already looking at what next as well as looking forward to sampling yet more of that famous Chinese cuisine.

The post China is open for business, post covid restrictions! first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post China is open for business, post covid restrictions! appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

Delays have been blamed on Covid disruptions in Asia, a shortage of container ships and disruptions at ports. This issue has affected the whole sector and not even the ‘Big Boys’ have been exempt from the supply chain issues we have all faced over the past couple of years.

At Chadwick’s we have also faced these challenges and have put measures in place to ensure we can continue to offer our customers a high level of service. Since the outbreak of Covid we have invested in increasing stock levels, around 40% higher in many cases. We believe this investment will allow us to fulfil most of our ‘just in time’ orders straight away.

We also encourage our customers to make use of our online customer portal. This lets customers access information on our current stock levels and upcoming delivery dates, allowing them to help manage their own stock and upcoming orders.

By working closely with our customers and suppliers we hope to maintain minimal disruption to our supply chain.

To find out how we can help your business call us on 0161 9272565

The full BBC article can be found at https://zcu.io/SX1c

The post Sports Clothing Manufacturers Struggling With Supply Chains first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post Sports Clothing Manufacturers Struggling With Supply Chains appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.

As an established importer, ensuring a reliable high quality supply chain and manufacturing process has been key to our success, especially given these turbulent times globally. All products are designed and developed in-house at our 40,000 sq. ft UK warehouse, office and showroom site based in Altrincham. We listen carefully to our wide customer base and seek to develop highly functional multi-purpose teamwear products of premium quality. Our complete development and production process is fully managed by a dedicated and highly knowledgeable team in the UK and supported by our experienced and very own Chadwick team in China.

Chadwick’s China Team

Established in 2005, our China office directly employs a dedicated team based locally to our main supply base. Overseeing, checking, and helping to manage the production process from start to finish – We do not work through third parties which helps to guarantee a consistent level of quality time after time and means we can react quickly to our customers’ needs. Having our own dedicated and specialised quality control team on the ground has many benefits. It enables quick decision-making during time-critical production while also ensuring that bulk production accurately replicates the original approved garment samples and specifications time after time.

Manufacturers associated with the production of Chadwick’s products subscribe to a range of recognised ethical trading initiatives and understand their social and corporate responsibilities to their employees, buyers, and end-users.

All manufacturers are also visited regularly by our UK team. We have recently introduced the first stage of our sustainable development programme with the help of an international and independent accreditation provider which will help to ensure that all employers within the factories continue to meet our key principles relating to employees’ working hours and rights combined with a suitable working environment overall.

Quality Management – What We Do

All Chadwick products are quality checked at every key production stage. Pre-production, inline and final inspections are undertaken by one of our QC managers following the international AQL level 2.5. Our regular inspections are performed in addition to any in house factory inspection process making sure we maintain a premium quality. Before any bulk production commences all fabrics, trims and packaging are signed off in the UK. Once approved all main bulk fabrics are independently tested with ITS INTERTEK to ensure all the fabrics’ physical properties meet international standards.    Garments are continuously checked for size conformity, stitch quality, overall trim application, and general appearance.

Continued Growth

As our range of products continues to grow and our stock levels increase, we also continue to build our team of sportswear specialists in China. With their help, we seek to forge stronger relationships and understanding with our established and trusted supply chain; benefiting enormously from their local knowledge and experience to both problems solve and develop communication overall. This keystone in our organisation has allowed us to confidently go head-to-head with other more famed sportswear brands in the UK and grow our business and our reputation as a market leader in premium ‘unbranded’ team and training wear.

The post Working globally to place quality first-CWB Magazine first appeared on Chadwick Teamwear.

The post Working globally to place quality first-CWB Magazine appeared first on Chadwick Teamwear.