High visibility clothing such as high visibility jackets, reflective shirts, safety vests, and coats are made with fluorescent fabric that makes it easier to spot anyone wearing them. Even more-so in low light conditions with limited visibility.
High visibility clothing is an essential safety requirement for anyone who works on construction sites, emergency operations, crowd control, sporting adventures, traffic work, road work, DOT, logistics, and more. Still, while such safety gear is essential, is it a business worth venturing into? What should you consider before getting started? Where should you begin?
Let’s delve right into all this and more:
The High-Visibility Clothing (Jackets, Shirts, Safety Vests) Industry at a Glance
The high-visibility clothing industry is highly profitable. It is currently worth over $1.5 billion and is forecasted to grow even more in the next decade.
Further, high-visibility clothing has a fairly consistent demand as most workers and companies require new reflector jackets, uniforms, or other items from time to time. It is thus not a fickle business niche that is bound to become irrelevant in a year or two.
Retail vs Wholesale Jackets and Clothing
You can sell high-visibility clothing items in retail or wholesale. It all depends on your start-up capabilities and market dynamics.
Selling retail may be a good option if you would like a safe affordable investment as it requires less capital, labor, and operational infrastructure. It is also more viable if your target market mostly comprises small-scale customers such as firemen, traffic coordinators, construction workers, and others.
Wholesale, on the other hand, entails buying and selling high-visibility gear in bulk. It may thus be a better business approach if you can access B2B customers such as emergency departments, security companies, construction firms, and similar entities. It often offers better profit margins than retail but requires a larger capital investment.
Tips on Starting a Reflective Jackets and Hi Vis Clothing Business
Now that you know what to expect in the industry, let’s switch gears and explore some tips on how to start a thriving reflective clothing business.
As you set up, pay attention to:
Creating an Effective High Visibility Business Setup
When setting up your business, begin by considering the following vital decisions:
- A suitable selling approach – will you start a retail or wholesale reflective clothing business? Will you sell online or have a physical store?
- Logistics – how will you source high-visibility clothing? How will you store it and deliver it to customers?
- Staffing – will you run the business single-handedly or will you require staff? What kind of staff do you need?
- Legal requirements – what kind of licenses do you require? Are there any legal stipulations that you should fulfill when selling reflective clothing?
Answering these questions will help you figure out how to create an efficient business system that you can perfect with time. Try to also create a setup that prioritizes a great customer experience and smooth operations that help boost profitability.
High Visibility Consumer Needs
Reflective clothing comprises a variety of items from jackets, overalls, and vests among others. Consumers choose them depending on their needs or line of work. Therefore, it is advisable to study your target market and understand what type of high-visibility clothing items they need so that you can stock up accordingly.
Building Customer Relationships for Additional Product Sales
Building customer relationships entails introducing your business and the products you sell to customers. It is an essential step regardless of whether you are starting a retail or wholesale reflective apparel business.
In retail, your customers are mostly individual buyers. You can thus take on marketing approaches like online ads, social media campaigns, a business launch event, or even handing out flyers if you own a physical store.
These marketing solutions can help you also attract the attention of wholesale customers. However, you may need to complement them with other more direct approaches.
For example, you can make in-person visits to companies, pitch to become their supplier, and offer samples of the reflective gear that you can supply. This makes it more likely for such businesses to consider you the next time they need to buy high-visibility clothing items.
It is equally important to mention that increasing the visibility of your business through marketing or direct pitches is only half the battle. Strive to also:
- Engage potential customers and seek their feedback.
- Respond to inquiries or pre-orders fast and with helpful information.
- Share clear details about your business such as when you plan to launch, the products you will have in stock, how customers can buy from you, and how they can reach you.
Product Quality of Jackets, Shirts, and Vests
high-visibility clothing can be the fine line between safety and catastrophe. It is thus crucial for you to only source such gear from manufacturers that adhere to high-visibility clothing quality and safety standards.
Additionally, ensure that all high-visibility clothing that you source:
- Is duly inspected and certified.
- Comes from a qualified manufacturer.
- Has clearly indicated usage and safety instructions.
- Is durable.
In some industries, like sports, consumers may prefer reflective running shirts that are not only safe but also stylish. It may thus be wise to aim for quality designs that meet such needs.
Safety Clothing Sales
The sales you make directly impact your bottom line. So, it is important to strategize on how to increase your sales over time. Explore options such as:
- Holding discounted sales to attract buyers.
- Offering value-adding services like branding reflective clothing with custom company names or logos.
- Online and offline ads to drive traffic to your store.
- Marketing campaigns sharing safety information to help people understand why they need high-visibility clothing.
- Stocking a variety of high-visibility clothing to broaden your customer base.
The Competition in Hi Vis Jackets, Shirts, and Apparel
The high-visibility clothing niche is not as competitive as other niches such as fashion or beauty. Still, you are likely to face some level of competition when you venture into it.
As with any business, it is wise to strive and do better than your competitors. So, begin by evaluating their strengths and weaknesses then learn how to gain an edge over them.
For example, if your competitors do not offer custom branding or fitting for high-visibility clothes, you can win over customers by providing such services. You can also try to offer:
- More competitive pricing.
- Shorter lead times between customer orders and deliveries.
- More efficient customer support during and after sales.
- Easier access I.e allowing customers to order online or through other convenient avenues.
Which Hi-Viz Products Are Best Sellers?
Hi Vis Coats and Hi Visibility Jackets
You’ve heard it before, jackets and safety coats are an opportunity in this market. If you are looking for quick win sales, these coat safety products and workwear work well in this market.
High Vis Safety Shirts
A classic main-stay of high visibility clothing. The humble safety shirt is a great product to scale your business.
High Visibility Parka Coat
Parkas are great high visibility coats to sell too. These are niche enough to be less competitive in the market.
High Visibility Safety Vests
The most popular of all of these options are safety vests. They are used in so many industries from roadwork / traffic control to logistics and warehouses.
In Conclusion
High-visibility clothing is hardly the first product one may think of when considering business ideas. Yet, therein lies its genius; it is not commonplace but it has a high demand in a variety of industries ranging from emergency care to motorsports, and more. So, why not reap the profits while you still can?
Need a reflective clothing supplier? Look no further, reach out to us for a wide variety of options.
