7 Steps to Launch a Uniform Program

What is a Uniform Program?

A uniform program allows a company to supply their employees with company-branded apparel in order to be recognized while on the job and help increase the safety of its employees.

Employee uniform programs are also used to help increase employee morale and keep employees safe by supplying them with specific apparel that is geared toward the type of job they do. 

A few other benefits launching a uniform program is the ease of ordering anytime, anywhere, managing the standards of your brand, reporting, a streamlined process and more.

Depending on the needs of the company, uniform programs can vary and be used in numerous ways. 

7 Steps to Launch Your Uniform Program

Here are the 7 key steps to successfully launch a uniform program

• Decision Phase
• A Must-Have List
• Color and Style of Uniform
• Choosing Uniform Program Management
• Choosing a Solution to Manage
• Setting up a eCommerce System
• Training Program for Employees

Decision Phase

If you’re unsure of what type of apparel would be best for your employee uniform program, the best place to start is by taking a look at the environment your employees work in on a daily basis.

If your employees work outdoors or interact with the general public, you will want their employee apparel to be durable and have a well-kept color. You don’t want your employees to have to replace their uniform too often and look unprofessional. 

If your employees work in a business casual environment such as an office setting, durability isn’t as important as it would be for someone who delivers packages throughout the day. Polos, button-down shirts, etc work well in an office setting and provide comfort for employees. 

Also, keep in mind that depending on the environment your employees work in, their safety should be your top priority. Working in a hazardous environment will require proper safety apparel.

Identify a Must-Have List For Your Program 

Before you decide on a Uniform Program Management, think about what you want your uniform program to do. What is the purpose of your company wanting the program in the first place?

Do you need one individual to be in charge of setting requests and dealing with the everyday tasks of the company? 

When you focus on what you need and want out of the program, create a “must-have” list of features and services for yourself. Once you’ve done that, you should be able to answer the following:

• What type of order and payment methods should we offer?
• How many employees do I have?
• To which locations am I serving?
• Will we have a web-based uniform portal?
• What are the personalization needs for my logo? 

If you take the time to set aside and distinguish your needs, you will likely be much more satisfied with your uniform program. 

Decide on The Colors and Style of Your Uniforms 

The most successful uniform programs have specific guidelines geared towards the colors and styles of its uniforms. 

Some companies pick one shading for all representatives while some select a particular shading for every office, some don't direct a shading or style but the manner in which outfits are requested.

There is no correct answer, so utilize these tips to help get through this stage: 

• Choose a vendor with many color and style options
• Decide which color combinations work best for your business. Some businesses color coordinate while others have different colors for each department.
• Have samples of different sizes available for ordering

Your business is one of a kind to you, so adaptability to structure the correct program for your employees and overall branding of your business is a key piece of the process. 

Choosing a Uniform Program Management

Choosing a Uniform Program Management is a tough task for any kind of business. With many companies offering Uniform Programs deciding which one is best can be difficult. 

With our industry experience in Uniforms we have put together 5 factors you need to consider before choosing a Uniform Program Management:

A lot of uniform program managers specialize in a particular industry within Uniforms. Prepare a list of companies that provide uniform program management in your industry.

2. Which Locations Do They support?

Check if they provide services to your location. For example, your employees might be working in different locations and the uniform service you choose should be serviceable to them.

3. How Many Employees Do They Serve?

Although there is no restriction on the number of employees, few services cater better to companies with a certain amount of employees. So choose wisely if they serve better to the companies in your range.

4. Do They Provide an Embroidery Option? 

If embroidery is an important part of your uniform program, check if your Uniform Program Management provides the option to design your logos, upload artworks, etc for your employees.

Choosing a Uniform eCommerce Provider

The next important step in launching a uniform program is choosing a uniform eCommerce provider which can integrate with your uniform provider.

Choosing a uniform eCommerce provider that supports you and has the ability to work with your supplier in order to process orders seamlessly is key. Certain features are also essential in an eCommerce platform in order to manage uniform programs. 

When it comes to choosing a uniform eCommerce provider, consider the following:

• Multiple Payment Methods: Not all eCommerce platforms work well with 3rd party payment processors like PayPal (the most popular payment processor), so look into multiple payment methods for your program. 
• Self-Hosted or Hosted: On the off chance that you plan on regularly changing the appearance of your online store, it’s best to look for eCommerce platforms which allow you to have a self-hosted version of the store. 
• Payment Plan: Remember to choose the platform that best suits your budget and opportunities to make monthly installments.

Once you’ve gone through and decide which features are essential for managing your uniform program, all that’s left to do is to choose an eCommerce platform that can support it. 

Setting Up an eCommerce System

• Upload Employee List: An eCommerce program with an intuitive design will allow you to upload an employee list and input complete uniform and equipment information, from style numbers, descriptions, sizes, prices, images and much more. 

• Create Employee Groups: Group employees and their programs into unlimited customized categories and subcategories (gender, location, etc).

• Setup Allowance: Employers set aside a certain amount of money for their employees via employee allowance programs (individual, group or hybrid) to spend on their products.

• Configure The Approval Process: Implementing an approval process allows for the approval of anything from documents, purchase orders, invoices, budgets and more.

• Create and Assign Shipping Groups: Shipping groups will allow you to group together a set of products or SKUs that need the same shipping rules.

• Setting up The Order Management: Order management cuts down on manual order processing, freeing your team to focus on customers, business growth and other tasks.

Setting up a Training Program

• Train Employees on How to Use: Train your employees on how to order products through the platform so they can order new uniforms whenever they need to.
• Train The Admin Staff on How to Manage: Train your management staff with the eCommerce provider to better understand and manage the uniform program.

To get the most out of your uniform program, know exactly what it is you want. 

Start by evaluating corporate solutions providers and using your list of must-haves. And before you know it, your program will start taking shape.

You may also want to check our other blog articles on Employee Uniform Program.

Our experience helping launch thousands of online stores to manage uniform programs makes us experts in crafting solutions for everyone in the uniform industry. To know more about how we can help you run your uniform program, ask for a demo!