ImagesMagUK_Digital_Edition_Feb18

www.images-magazine.com FEBRUARY 2018 images 25 BRAND PROFILE Another style is taken from the brand's third best-seller, the Unisex 3/4 Sleeve Baseball Tee (3200), offering a contrast- colour garment that manages to be simultaneously cute and street. Music merch Music merch is the top market for Bella + Canvas, and children's versions of the 3/4 Sleeve Baseball Tee look set to win over this sector as well. "We recently did baseball tees with black body and white arms for Metallica," explains San. "We're now offering that exact tee for babies and toddlers as well, but it wasn't available at the time – they were so gutted. They said, 'Imagine if we had the same print for the kids! I guarantee you there would be a huge amount of people there who would want to buy that for their children.'" The market is changing, she believes, with people wanting garments that feel great and which are a bit different. "If you go to a concert, they're sick and tired of the band print being on a horrible tee. They want it on something nice-looking. They don't want that cheap, low quality tee anymore. You might wear it once, you might clean the windows with it, but you won't want to wear it on a daily basis. People are realising the need for higher quality tees. There isn't a big price difference with our product, and you can charge a little bit more for it. People in the UK have really realised this in the past year – the UK is now our number one market in Europe." Other strong markets for Bella + Canvas are the independent retail brand and fitnesswear sectors. The Youth Flowy Racerback Tank is ideal for the dance market, where the older girls already wear the Women's Flowy Racerback Tank (8800). "The older girls have been wearing the tank, but there was nothing for the younger girls. Now we have this new tank just for them and The Women's Flowy Muscle Tee is a bestseller from the Fast Fashion line they're so excited that they can wear matching tops." The colour palette across the whole kidswear range is another standout selling point for the range. "Rather than focusing on baby blue, pink and yellow, we focused more on shades like heather stone and olive, because we're finding that in the kidswear retail market, a lot of parents buy items for their children that are similar in style and colour to adults' garments. They'd rather buy a denim colour or a peach than a baby blue," reports San. Those decorators who are not yet selling kidswear are missing a trick, believes San. "Why are you so restricted to adults?" she asks. "Wherever you're selling an adult tee, wherever it's going, some of them [end users] are likely to have kids and will love to be offered a kids' option in the same style, especially if it's a Bella + Canvas one where it's available in a great, retail colour, and where you can say, 'We don't want to offer your children something itchy and not very well-fitting. We want to offer children the same quality and the same fit that the adults get to wear’." www.bellacanvas.com Fast Fashion hits the UK Bella + Canvas launched its Fast Fashion line in the US two years ago, offering retail pieces that once they were gone, they were gone. A version of this US line has now hit the UK, although the styles will be supported for at least five years, giving decorators the consistency they and their clients need. The UK line is made up of the brand's five bestsellers from the Fast Fashion line. "The pieces are incredible," says San. "We've always led the market in terms of retail styles, but these new pieces take us beyond any competition." The new pieces are the Unisex Jogger Sweatpants (3727), Racerback Cropped Tank (6682), Women's Flowy Muscle Tee (8804), Flowy High Neck Tank (8809) and Jersey Raw Neck T-Shirt (3014). Cute styles in 100% combed, ringspun cotton The Bella + Canvas Kids collection Baby Jersey Short Sleeve One Piece (100B) Baby Triblend Short Sleeve One Piece (134B) Baby Jersey Short Sleeve Tee (3001B) Toddler Short Sleeve Tee (3001T) Toddler 3/4 Sleeve Baseball Tee (3200T) Baby Triblend Short Sleeve Tee (3413B) Toddler Triblend Short Sleeve Tee (3413T) Youth Jersey Short Sleeve Tee (3001Y) Youth Triblend Short Sleeve Tee (3413Y) Youth 3/4 Sleeve Baseball Tee (3200Y) Youth Flowy Racerback Tank (8800Y)