Ellen Santa Maria talks with Adele Landauer, an international expert on success, achievement and self-leadership, on how to present confidently in meetings and make a strong impression. Click here to listen.

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From button-down shirts to slacks and blazers, corporate wear is not the most comfortable way to dress for summer weather. In the season’s humidity and heat, corporate wear can be stifling or uncomfortable, especially if your clients don’t know what to wear.

Fortunately, there are ways to dress the part while remaining comfortable during the summer months. For men, short-sleeve button-down shirts (with unbuttoned collars) are in. “Whether it’s a casual shirt or an oxford, the short-sleeve business-casual shirt is a must-have,” says Taraynn Lloyd, spokesperson for Edwards Garment (asi/51752). When the summer weather winds down, it’s not a difficult transition from short-sleeve to long-sleeve, Lloyd says.

Women can enjoy the warmer weather too; soft-collared shirts and shirts without a breast pocket are popular. According to Lloyd, women want to look “similar to men, but they want to look different, as well. In short, we want to have our own individual style.” Specifically, women want to achieve a professional look while maintaining a certain level of femininity. For older women, short sleeves are not always their favorite option. Instead, consider three-quarter length sleeves, which are making a comeback. Also look for contouring and shaping features, as well as bright colors that usher out the “doom and gloom” of winter.

Lloyd advises approaching your clients with styles that are specifically suited for summer. These might be somewhat casual, but that won’t matter as much during the summer’s relaxed atmosphere. “Take some styles with you so that the purchaser can actually feel and touch the fabric and see the bright colors for his or herself,” Lloyd says. She adds that having the product embroidered with the company logo will increase the chances of a sale. “Have them try it on,” she says, “and the product will begin to sell itself.”

Today, most successful businesses have an online presence, and depending on the industry, the website will draw in certain types of visitors. A few key details can help your site attract more clients. 

1. Create an engaging and unique design.
Your website is often the first impression a prospective client gets, so you need to make the most of it. There are plenty of templates available for website design, but if you cater to a creativity-based industry, consider adding some flair and unique touches to show that creativity right away. Black Duck Inc. (asi/140730) sports a comic book superhero theme on its website. “If you’re in a creative business and you’re trying to sell yourself on the Internet,” says Doug Bird, president of Black Duck, “it doesn’t make sense to have a template-based cookie-cutter website.”

2. Choose a memorable and appropriate domain name.
Darin Andersen, president of Embroidery.com, pushed hard to acquire the company’s domain name in the late 1990s because he saw the exploding popularity of the Internet. “We just kept offering money for it till we bought it,” he says. A memorable name is a good way to draw and keep customers, because they always know how to easily find you. Whether it’s catchy or just easy to remember, a good domain name can do wonders for your business.

3. Embrace the Internet community.
At its base, the Internet is simply a means of communication and information flow. Social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook may seem trivial or foreign at first, but if your customers are using them to communicate, you should consider it, too. Ed Levy, head of Digitize4U, created EmbForum.com as a means to help embroiderers and digitizers help each other. In the process, he increased his company’s visibility and credibility. “It’s all about visibility,” he says. “That has really helped us over the years.”

Our Favorite Wearables

Flannel Pant

Some simple pleasures are ephemeral, but the comfort of a good old pair of flannel pants is everlasting. These 4-oz. 100% cotton flannel pants – with a front accent pocket and stylish cuffs – are the go-to comfort clothing this year. Pair them with a cotton T-shirt for a nice pajama set for the fall. Available from Boxercraft (asi/41325).

Selling Tip: This product is perfect for travel sports teams. Young athletes will love lounging in these cozy pants after a long day of playing and travel. Have the team name imprinted down the pant leg, and embroider the athlete’s last name and jersey number on the pocket to personalize.  

Ask An Expert

Q: I have a client who is a self-admitted string bean with a very slender build. Standard medium polos fall shorter than he is comfortable with. I have searched many companies with no success. Can you help me out?
A: A string bean, huh? Well I think we might be able to find old beanpole a polo or two to wear. Try Par One Inc. (asi/75912); (800) 752-7618; www.par-one.com; product 32828. This wrinkle-resistant polo has an extra-long shirttail he can comfortably tuck in his pants, or leave out, if he likes. It also wicks away moisture and protects against the sun’s harmful UV rays.

Or, you can try Branded Apparel Designs (asi/41560); (847) 564-3450; www.brandedappareldesigns.com; product 32958. This one’s pique striped and also features wrinkle-resistant technology and an extra-long tail.

Q: Is there an industry supplier that sells wraps such as pashminas? I have not located anyone yet, but I have a client who is interested. Thanks so much!
A: You’ve thought correctly: I do know where to find some pashmina wraps. Check out Eternity Design (asi/52778); (630) 579-5884; www.allscarf.com; product R312. This pashmina wrap comes in 45 colors, is made in England, and measures 30” x 40” with a 4” hand-twisted fringe.

Or you could look at Symphony Designs (asi/90452); (800) 561-6530; http://90452.asisupplier.com; product 721 20-15. This is a red wrap, but you can choose between all the supplier’s viscose pashminas.

If you’d like a more environmentally-friendly pashmina, check out Wolfmark (asi/98085); (800) 621-3435; www.wolfmarkties.com; product 025-614-270. This pashmina is ivory and is made from bamboo pulp.

Anvil Knitwear (asi/36350) has selected the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 as its product certification of choice.

Ash City USA (asi/37127) has hired Cathy Hicks as an independent sales representative for its Florida and Puerto Rico territory.

BITO is offering a handful of new products, including The LaserBridge, The BridgeBoard, The BridgePlotter and The BridgeRoller. For more information, go to www.bitousa.com.

Bodek and Rhodes (asi/40788) has announced it will become the exclusive national wholesaler of Next Level Apparel (asi/73867).

NanoHorizons Inc. has announced a new partnership with J2LFA Co. Ltd. of Seoul, Korea, under which J2LFA will be the sole distributor of the SmartSilver antimicrobial performance brand.

The North American Association of Uniform Manufacturers & Distributors (NAUMD) has announced creation of the “NAUMD Emerging Leadership Group.” Criteria for membership is that a nominated member must be in a policy-making/decision-making position in a member company in good standing and be under 50 years old.

OOBE Inc. has designed a co-branded tie and scarf as a gift from Coca-Cola to Chick-fil-A for introducing Coke Zero to its stores.

SanMar (asi/84863) will debut its 2011 Apparel, Bags & Caps catalog in early August.

Stahls ID Direct has expanded the Team Perfect line to include field hockey, swimming and golf graphics.

Standard Coating Corporation has introduced T-Print ink. For more information, go to www.T-PrintProducts.com.

T-Seps has announced the release of its 2.0 version, compatible with all operating systems and Photoshop CS5.

Knowing these terms will make distributors who just started sound like they’ve been in the business for years.

Acid Washed: A process that alters the color of indigo denim fabrics by treating them with chemicals.

Organic Linen: An extremely durable sustainable fiber made from the flax plant and grown without herbicides or pesticides.

Tatami Stitch: A series of run stitches, commonly used to cover large areas. Different fill patterns can be created by varying the stitch length, angle or sequence.

July 13-15, Chicago
The ASI Show Chicago
(800) 546-3300; www.asishow.com

July 13-15, Boston
TS2
(703) 683-8500; www.ts2show.com

July 16-19, Los Angeles
California Gift Show
(213) 430-2300; www.californiagiftshow.com

July 23-24, Pittsburgh
The Embroidery & Direct to Garment Extravaganza
(877) 793-3278; www.embroideryextravaganza.com

July 23-26, New York
New York Antique Jewelry & Watch Show
(239) 732-6642; www.nyantiquejewelry.com

July 24-27, Orlando
Orlando Gift Show 
(678) 285-3976; www.orlandogiftshow.com

July 31-August 3, San Francisco
San Francisco International Gift Fair
(914) 421-3200; www.sfigf.com

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