Images Magazine December 2016

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34 IMAGES DECEMBER 2016
GYM, FITNESS & PERFORMANCEWEAR IS
emission, and can be used during air travel to
improve blood flow, which opens up yet more
markets to target, especially as they can easily
be worn under normal clothes.
The Quad and Arm Sleeves come in black,
and the Calf Sleeve comes in black/grey, or-
ange/grey and pink/grey. A red colourway will
be added to the Arm Sleeve and Calf Sleeve in
early Spring.
Decoration advice
Gary Layzell, Spiro’s print specialist, suggests
that as the garments are relatively small, cylin-
drical and extremely flexible, decorators avoid
direct screen print and embroidery and instead
opt for transfer printing.
“All the compression sleeves
come in a variety of sizes and
styles to fit different body parts:
calf, quad and arm,” explains
Gary. “Therefore each product
will have a slightly different
maximum print area. However,
as a rule of thumb most people
will decorate the contrast cuffs
or run a design along the mid-
dle of the sleeve. Prints of this
type will usually be no more
than about 70 x 20 mm on the
cuff and maybe 150 x 50 mm
Putting the pressure on
Spiro introduces a new cross-selling opportunity for decorators
I n October, Spiro launched its new Com-
pression range, which consists of the
Calf Sleeve (S290X), Arm Sleeve
(S291X) and Quad
Sleeve (S292X).
“Spiro China is
a fast growing
brand for fitness
and, in particular,
running. Having
been co-sponsors of
both the gruelling Gobi Desert marathon and
the city-based Shanghai marathon, we were
aware products such as compression sleeves
for quad, calf and arm support are essential
kit components for endurance competitions
such as these,” says David Sanders-Smith,
Result Clothing and Spiro’s managing director.
The CEO of Spiro China, Echo Lui, a mara-
thon runner, made a study of the market and
what was needed, and then sourced the best
available materials for the range. “This in-
spired us to develop a compression range that
would help athletes taking part in all types of
fitness activity, not only in the endurance field.
Made from super soft, quick-dry fabric, these
breathable garments offer graduated com-
pression with their high density construction
preventing stiffness, cramp, muscle fatigue
and micro muscle injuries. Offering 360°
compression around the calf, arm and quads,
these new styles absorb shockwave effects on
muscles, veins and joints for a more comfort-
able workout experience,” David advises.
The Quad Sleeve includes a silicon leg grip,
while all three products feature a seamless
knit along with a shaped-to-fit design that
supports the body’s natural angles. They are
easy to pull on and off, are made from a thin,
lightweight material that maximises heat
along the sleeve. An all-over print could prove
difficult as this tends to be done to garments
before manufacture while the fabrics are still
in panel or roll form. It could, however, be
‘simulated’ to some degree with clever place-
ment of transfers.
“The choice of inks and vinyls is important.
The sleeves will be stretched quite consider-
ably when worn and there is a danger of the
transfer cracking if it’s not flexible enough.
With screen printed transfers I would recom-
mend that a flexibility additive is added to
inks, and powder adhesives based on polyes-
ter or, even better, polyurethane be used to
maximise the stretch. Printers may even need
to consider adjusting artworks during the
origination stage to allow for any distortion
caused by the sleeve stretching. This will allow
for a much better reproduction of images
once the sleeve is being worn.
“There is a plethora of different vinyls and
digital print media now and I would recom-
mend that printers discuss the flexibility of
products with their supplier whilst explaining
what the requirements are.”
w
Decoration applied
to the contrast cuff
The Arm Sleeve and Quad Sleeve
[left] The Calf Sleeve; [above, l to r] The three new
products in close-up - Calf Sleeve, Arm Sleeve and
Quad Sleeve
i