Looking back at the best retail selling trends of 2013, it was a killer year for the sweater.  EDITD, a company that produces real-time data and analysis for the retail industry,  shows that sweaters held 38% of the market for new products arriving online in 2013.  From high end brand names to the basics, this category sells!  And since those same consumers are also employees and corporate customers, HR and Marketing teams should be paying attention to these types of trends.

When asked “what’s new?” when working with customers on their image wear options, I always point out that clothing purchases should reflect the same styles that the recipient would buy for themselves.  If we are seeing a certain style or fabric choice being marketed in ads and moving well at the mall, then it’s likely that is a safe choice for team wear at the office or trade show uniforms on the road.   Employees will be proud to wear their company logo on a style that reflects good taste – and customers will recognize that brand as current, relevant and sensitive to the changing world in more ways than just their newest widget.

Fashion clothing doesn’t have to mean leopard print crop tops – it’s more about the fabric choice, trending colors and a flattering cut.  Corporate men and women want that in their personal lives, so why not at the office too?  The next time you ask your promotional products supplier “what’s new?”, be sure to move beyond the same old polo styles you bought last year and include a request for samples of the clothing that’s trending in the retail world today.