Frequently Asked Questions
Due to the variety of enquiries we receive daily for our range of corporate clothing and staff wear, we have assembled this FAQ guide, separated into various categories.
- GENERAL QUESTIONS
Q. Is Trademark Clothing a new company?
A. No. Trademark Clothing has been trading successfully since 1999, and our management team has more than one 100-years collective experience in all aspects of corporate and promotional clothing and the decoration processes that we utilise.
Q. Are you a Limited company or a PLC?
A. We are a UK registered Limited Liability company under English law. Our registered company name is TM Designs Limited. Trademark Clothing is one of the trading names we use for the various divisions within the company. Our registered company number is: 3577004. Our registered office is at: Trademark House, Ramshill, Petersfield Hampshire GU31 4AT.
Q. Does Trademark Clothing have a retail outlet?
A. No - we are a business-to-business oirganisation and do not have a retail outlet for what we do. However, we do have substantial showrooms at our head office in Petersfield and all our customers and other interested parties are welcome to visit us.
Call us today on 01730 711140 if you'd like to arrange a visit.
Q. Do you have local sales representatives?
A. We operate mainly from our Hampshire HQ, and attend various exhibitions around the country where we often meet new and existing clients. Although we are a leading UK corporate, promotional and sports wear supplier, we do not have a team of dedicated sales representatives as this would increase prices to our customers dramatically.
Naturally we are happy to attend meetings for major enquiries and contracts, but find that the majority of our business can be conducted without the need for personal representation.
Q. Do you have showrooms for your products and services?
A. Yes, we encourage all our customers to visit us at our head office where we have showrooms displaying a selection of our formal wear, leisure/sportswear, high-visibility workwear, etc.
We have so much to show that we cannot possibly put it all into a suitcase and bring it to you. A visit to our head office will pay far greater dividends as you will be able to see a wider range of garments, discuss your ideas in greater depth with the whole team and generally get a better understanding of our clothing production processes. It's also great to just put a face to a name on the end of a phone or email!
Don't forget, our offices are just under an hour by train from London's Waterloo station and 15 miles from Portsmouth, Southampton or the Isle of Wight ferry terminal. You could always combine a visit to us with a weekend break or other business meetings on the South Coast.
- GARMENT RANGE
Q. Do you offer more/other garments than are shown in your online clothing catalogue?
A. Yes, our online clothing catalogue features a selection of the most popular garments and accessories that we are asked for - from college/club sports kit and embroidered staff wear to promotional polo-shirts and fleeces.
But we can supply many other products, particularly specialist work wear garments - we can also manufacture bespoke items in our factories around the world. This ranges from sports and leisurewear to formal suits or something as simple as a large quantity of aprons and baseball caps - all embroidered or printed at source for a an excellent quality finish.
See our Samples Service page for more details.
Q. Can I see a hard copy of catalogue?
A. We can post you a free CD of our clothing catalogue for easier offline viewing, or we can send you a printed copy of our catalogue for 5.00. This is mainly to cover the cost of postage as the catalogues are quite heavy. This charge will be refunded against any order received within 3 months.
Q. Where do you source the garments and other products you sell?
A. We source the majority of our garments from UK distributors. We also manufacture in the UK, Europe, The Middle East and The Far East, depending on the type of items required, the lead-time available and the quantity involved.
Q. What brands do you sell?
A. We offer all the major corporate and promotional brands of clothing - from t-shirts and polo's, to fleeces, jackets, caps, hats and accessories - as well as our own TM brand and others, such as Greiff, which are exclusive to us in the UK. See our clothing brands document in our downloads section for more details.
Q. Do you supply plain garments without any embroidery or print?
A. Yes, we are equally happy to supply plain garments. However, if these are for issue as staff wear for employees, you should be aware of the Inland Revenue requirement for a permanent, visible logo to avoid taxation as a benefit in kind. See our Inland Revenue Guidelines document in the Downloads section.
Q. Do you offer organic cotton garments?
A. Yes, we can provide a limited range of high-quality garments made from organic cotton. See our Organic Cotton Clothing Range document in the Downloads section.
- SAMPLES
Q. Can I see samples of the items I am interested in?
A. Yes, we offer a returnable samples service to enable you to evaluate the different styles and qualities of our garments. These will be invoiced to you on despatch, but will be credited in full if returned within 21 days.
[This service may be subject to satisfactory credit account references or a refundable credit card deposit. Please ask your Corporate Consultant or one of our team of Administrators for further details.]
Q. Can I see samples of garments with my logo on?
A. Generally this is not practical unless you are happy to pay for the garments produced. This will also depend on the practicalities of the logo process involved and the bulk quantity you anticipate having produced.
- ARTWORK
Q. I need to send you my logo/design. What is the best way for me to do this?
A. We prefer to receive artwork in an electronic format if possible (EPS, TIFF, hi-res JPG or PSD files are preferable). However, we can also work from paper copies and rough sketches if this is all you have. Please see our Artwork Formats guide in our Downloads section. Please keep in mind that graphics taken from websites are not usually good enough for us to work from due to their low resolution.
Q. I don't have a logo for my business, can you design one for me?
A. Yes, we can design a logo for your business. Once we've taken some details from you to assist our graphic artists, we will give you an estimate of the cost for producing a final design. Our studio will then produce a few ideas in rough form for you to look at before we finalise a design and produce the finished artwork. In most cases this artwork can then be used for other purposes such as stationery, signage, carrier bags, or any other branding your business requires. See our Design & Artwork section for more details.
Q. Do you need to adjust logos/designs for embroidery and printing?
A. There is often a need to make some adjustment to a design for one or other of our logo processes. For example, designs with very fine detail or very small text are not usually suitable for embroidery without some amendments. Once we have sight of your clothing artwork we can advise accordingly.
- EMBROIDERY
Q. Do you have a minimum order quantity for embroidered clothing?
A. We like to work with our customers to achieve a fixed rate on all logo processes and this is generally achieved by specifying a minimum quantity embroidered garments to be produced at any one time. This can often be a combination of garments featuring the same design. If you require a lower quantity than the minimum agreed between us, please speak to your corporate consultant or one of our team of administrators who will advise whether we are able to do this and at what cost.
Please visit our TM Fixed Price Promise page.
Q. Why do I have to pay to have my design originated?
A. In order to embroider your logo onto your corporate staff wear hi-vis or promotional clothing, we need to create a small computer program that operates our embroidery machines. This process is called digitising as the programmer has to plot every point in the design and translate it into stitch information.
Q. What do you charge to originate a new embroidery design?
A. Many companies charge for this service by the number of stitches (in 1000's) that the final, digitised design contains. This is not always a fair way of charging a customer as large, simple designs may not take very long to originate, but would have many 1000's of stitches. We take a simpler approach and estimate the time we think it will take us to produce your embroidered design.
We then stand by this estimate, even if it takes us twice as long as we thought!
Q. How do you charge for the actual embroidery?
A. This is where the stitch count in the design does have some meaning, as it generally translates to the time required on our embroidery machines. We have a sliding scale of costs that are based on pence per thousand stitches and quantity produced.
However, rather than give you a different cost each time you come back to us, we generally fix a price with you at the outset for the production of your embroidered clothing, based on your estimated buying pattern and an agreed minimum quantity for each run of garments. Remember, these can often be an assortment of items with the same design.
Please see our Trademark Clothing Fixed Price Policy document in our Downloads section for more details on this.
Q. Can you embroider my own garments and is there a charge for this?
A. We do occasionally embroider customers own garments, provided they are suitable for the embroidery process. However, this is strictly on the basis that any spoilages are not replaceable by us.
We charge a 0.50 per garment handling charge for embroidering customers own goods. These should be provided un-bagged in bundles and will be returned without being individually folded or bagged, unless requested. We charge 0.30 per garment to individually fold and bag customer's own garments.
- PRINTING
Q. What process do you use for printing?
A. We use a number of different processes depending on the type of design, the garments being printed and the quantity involved. The various types of print processes are described in more detail under our Logo Processes page(s) found under the TM Services section of this site. This page also describes the various advantages and disadvantages of each process.
Q. What is the minimum quantity for printing?
A. We can print as few as one item using our in-house cad-cut process, which is suitable for simple designs in 1 or 2 colours. For more complex designs we may need to use another transfer or direct print process, which will generally require a higher minimum quantity to be economical.
Visit our Logo Processes page to read about the various direct and transfer print processes that we offer.
Q. How should I wash a printed garment?
A. Unless there are instructions in the garment to say otherwise, printed clothing should always be washed inside-out and at no higher than 40C. No bleach or strong washing detergents should be used.
Q. Can I iron a printed garment?
A. This will depend on the process used to print it. Many of our print processes can withstand direct contact with an iron, but it is not advisable to rub an iron over any printed area. The printed areas should be pressed on a cool-warm setting from the reverse side of the garment.
Q. Can you print my own garments and is there a charge for this?
A. We prefer not to print customers' own garments, as the variety of processes means that it is difficult to test for suitability and there are generally more spoilages with printing than with embroidery, especially during the initial set-up. If we do agree to print your own garments, these will be done at your own risk should any spoilages occur.
We charge a 0.50 per garment handling charge for printing customers own goods. These should be provided un-bagged, in bundles and will be returned without being individually folded or bagged, unless requested. We charge 0.30 per garment to individually fold and bag customer's own garments.
- PRICING
Q. Will I pay the same price for my garments and logo application each time I order?
A. Yes, we like to set-up each of our customers on fair 'fixed price' terms for a minimum period of 6 months from your first transaction with us. This may be subject to certain minimum quantities for embroidery, print or specialised garments, but this will all be agreed between us.
Please see our TM Fixed Price Policy document in our Downloads section for more details.
- DELIVERY
Q. How long will it take to receive my order?
A. We will quote you an estimated despatch date when we process your order. This will vary depending on the size of your order, our current workload and whether we need to originate a new embroidery or print design before we can start production.
Generally we work on a 10-15 working day turnaround for most orders. This can often be reduced for urgent requirements where a deadline is paramount, such as a trade/corporate event road show/exhibition or other event date. Please speak to your Corporate Consultant or one of our team of Administrators if you have an urgent requirement.
Q. Do you deliver nationwide and what do you charge?
A. Yes, we use a national carrier for all our deliveries and delivery is FREE for all orders over 100 in value (exc. VAT). Orders under 100 are subject to a 10 delivery charge. Free delivery is based on a normal weekday service and may take up to 72 hours from date of despatch.
Q. I'm local to your Hampshire offices - can I collect my goods from you?
A. Yes, we are happy for you to collect your finished goods from our Petersfield HQ to save time and carrier costs.
Q. Do you deliver on Saturdays?
A. Yes, this can usually be arranged, but please contact us for a cost, as this will not be covered by our free delivery offer.
- PAYMENTS
Q. Do I have to pay VAT on my purchases?
A. Yes, TM Clothing is VAT registered , therefore VAT will be charged, at the current rate, on all products and services, with the exception of children's clothing which is zero rated for VAT. The only other goods that are VAT exempt are orders sent to an overseas address. However, you should be aware that there may be import duties payable locally on goods received from the UK.
Further information on VAT issues can be found on the Inland Revenue website.
Our VAT registration number is GB 744 960 311
Q. Do you offer credit account facilities?
A. Yes, subject to satisfactory references. We will need to know your registered company title (as opposed to your trading name) if you are a Limited Liability company or a PLC. We will also need your company registration number and your registered company address.
We need to know your registered company title/name as well as your trading name to invoice correctly. Plus, the length of time your company has been trading can be helpful when obtaining credit lines.
If you are a Sole Trader or Partnership, we will also need the full name and home address of each partner.
Q. Do you accept payment by cheque or credit card and are there any surcharges?
A. We can accept all forms of payment even cash! We can take payment by all major credit cards with the exception of American Express (Amex) and Diners Card. We do not add any additional surcharge for credit card payments.
Personal cheque payments will need to be cleared through our bank before goods can be released for collection or delivery. Cheques should be made payable to: TM Designs Limited or Trademark Clothing.
Q. Do you accept PayPal as a form of payment?
A. Yes, we can accept PayPal payments. However, this will be subject to a 3.5% surcharge to cover the administration involved and the charges levied by PayPal.
If you would like to pay via PayPal, please ask us to send you a PayPal invoice first. We will require your PayPal registered email address.
Thanks for taking the time to read through our FAQ's. Browse our corporate, promotional and hi-visibility staff clothing range or call us today on 01730 711140 if you have any further queries.
Should your query not be answered below, please contact us on: 01730 711140