Most businesses overpay for uniforms because they negotiate the wrong things. They push hard on the shirt price and then accept a stack of fees that add more than the discount they won.
Here is what actually determines your cost.
1. Fabric tier, not brand
A polo is a polo. What separates a $4.25 piece from an $11.25 piece is the knit weight, the yarn, and whether the fabric is treated for stain release. Nobody in your dining room can read a brand label from across the floor, but everybody can see a collar that has gone limp after twenty washes.
Pick the tier by wash frequency, not by prestige:
- Economy — back of house, seasonal crews, giveaway pieces
- Standard — daily front-of-house wear, the right default for most teams
- Premium — customer-facing roles where the garment is part of the brand
2. Quantity brackets, and where they break
Per-piece pricing steps down at bracket boundaries. Our knitwear prices are quoted at 20 pieces; tailoring at 10. If you need 17 polos, ask what 20 costs. Very often the larger order is cheaper in total, and you have three spares for new hires.
Ordering to the bracket instead of to the headcount is the single easiest saving on this list.
3. Decoration — should be included, often isn’t
This is where the money quietly leaves. Ask any vendor for their setup fee, digitization fee, and per-location charge before you compare prices at all.
| Fee | Typical industry charge | Ours |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | $40 to $75 per order | none |
| Logo digitization | $25 to $100, one time | none |
| Embroidery, per piece | $3 to $6 | included |
| Monogram | $5 to $12 | included |
Standard printing, machine embroidery, and monogram are inside our published price. Specialty work — hand embroidery, unusual placements, custom design — is quoted separately, and we tell you before you order.
4. Lead time
Rush costs money everywhere, including here. Standard production runs about two weeks for knitwear and about three for tailoring, door to door. If you plan a uniform refresh around a season change, put the order in a month ahead and pay the normal price.
The three things not to pay extra for
- A minimum order. Ours is one piece. If a vendor demands 24 to talk to you, they are a middleman decorating someone else’s blanks.
- A quote you have to ask for. Our full price list is published. You should be able to budget before you speak to a salesperson.
- Samples you cannot touch. Come to the Buckhead fitting room, handle the fabric, and put a garment on a real employee before you commit.
What to send us
To get an itemized quote back within two working days, send:
- Products and quantities per size
- Your logo file, any format
- Where the logo goes, and how many locations
- The date you need them in hand
That is enough. If you are not sure about fabric tier, say so and we will send options at each level.