Branding Options for Corporate Gifts & Clothing

We have a number of different branding options available for our corporate gifts and corporate clothing products. It is important that you choose the right branding method to ensure maximum exposure for your logo or message. The branding methods available will be dependent on the type of product you have chosen. We’ve listed the various branding options along with a brief explanation of each one below.

Laser Engraving

Laser Engraving is a permanent method of branding corporate gifts and novelty items. The tonal shades make it an upmarket, subtle choice for products like mugs, flasks, knives, keyrings, pens, torches, leather folders and boxes etc.

Screen Printing

Screen printing is ideal for bags and t-shirts but can also be used for umbrellas, cooler bags, and smaller items such as notebooks and folders.

Up to 6 colours can be printed with screen printing and colours are printed one at a time, which means colour registration needs to be accurate.

Detail in the print can be excellent, however very fine detail and text less than 3mm high should be avoided as the details can “close up” during printing due to the ink bleeding. The texture of the product can also affect the print quality with smooth fabric offering better results and more detail.

Pad Printing

This high-volume branding process is suitable for small plastic products such as pens, keyrings and novelty gifts etc.

Up to 4 colours can be printed with pad printing and colours are printed one at a time, which means colour registration needs to be accurate.

Detail in the print can be excellent, however very fine detail and text less than 1mm high should be avoided as these details can “close up” during the printing process due to the ink bleeding.

Embroidery

Embroidery is an ideal choice as a permanent and upmarket branding method for clothing, caps and towels as well as certain bags. Embroidery is the art of decorating fabric or other materials with designs stitched with strands of thread.

Embroidery allows for up to 9 colours. Very fine detail and text less than 5mm high should be avoided as it is difficult to achieve this with stitches.

Digital Printing

There are 4 different methods that fall under digital printing:

Vinyl Stickers

Vinyl Stickers are digitally printed in CMYK on an adhesive vinyl, then cut to shape and applied onto the products. Vinyl is available in White, Gold, Silver (Matte and Shiny) and clear.

Domed Stickers

This branding process is ideal for multi-colour logos that are difficult to replicate with other printing methods. It is especially popular with cooler bags, memory sticks and keyrings.

Vinyl Stickers (as explained above) are coated with a polyurethane resin to give them a three-dimensional appearance. Domed Stickers can be applied to smooth and rigid surfaces but work best with a purpose-made recessed plaque.

Heat Transfer

Heat Transfer is mainly used where the logo is too intricate for screen printing as a digital print allows for more colour and greater detail.

A digital image is printed onto a special vinyl surface which is placed onto the product in the required position. The product is then placed in a heat press, and the heat from the press melts the adhesive backing on the vinyl merging it with the fabric.

Heat transfer may affect the flexibility of the product because the logo is not cut out.

Sublimation

Sublimation printing uses heat to transfer dye onto materials such as a plastic, card, paper, or fabric.

The sublimation branding process works on man-made fabrics only, such as polyester and nylon, and is perfect for polyester shirts, nylon bags and umbrellas.

The logo can be as colourful and detailed as required because this is a digital print. Sublimation will not change the flexibility characteristics of the product in the same manner that a Heat Transfer might since only the ink is transferred onto the product.

We don’t recommend sublimating coloured items and suggest limiting this branding method to white or natural-colour items.

Digital Transfer Printing

Digital transfer printing is ideal for branding ceramic mugs, metal items and certain rigid plastic gifts.

The Digital Transfer Printer does not print the colour white so this process is best used on white and metal items. On metal products, the colours in the logo take on a metallic tinge but the ability to create a permanent, full colour branding on metal items is unique to this process and therefore an extremely attractive option.

Debossing

With debossing, a logo is pressed into the surface of a product using both heat and pressure to create a permanent stamped impression on the product.

Debossing is both subtle and classy and looks great on folders, diaries, binders and certain notebooks.

Hot Foil Stamping

Hot foil stamping is a branding process that works best on leather and PU folders as well as select rigid cardboard notebooks.

Hot stamping with foil is a similar process to debossing except that a thin foil is pressed into the product to create a colour.

Even though heat and pressure are applied, they are applied to a lesser extent than during debossing so the impression is not as deep. Foils are available in silver and gold.

If you have any further questions or concerns regarding the various branding options available for our corporate gifts or corporate clothing items, please do not hesitate to contact us for more information.