Best Announces New Designer Hospitality Apparel Collection
‘Best’ to succeed ‘H.W. Baker’ as the Hospitality Division Master Brand
Jersey City, NJ – Best Manufacturing Group LLC announced the final phase of its Master Branding declaration and a brand new high style designer hospitality apparel collection today. These announcements come in final preparation for the November 2005 International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show.
Best Unveils New High Fashion Hospitality Apparel Collection
Designer uniforms represent a new trend that is about to erupt on a mainstream level. This is the first time that a major North American uniform company, Best Manufacturing Group, will offer a designer label apparel collection at a mass level. No U.S. hotel, or uniform provider, has ever expanded into this un-chartered fashion-forward territory.
Companies like McDonald’s are exploring the possibility of hiring Tommy Hilfiger or a hip hop designer like Diddy to create new uniforms for their employees. Pilots flying for United Airlines and JetBlue Airways are already wearing uniforms created by New York designer Stan Herman.
“The challenge is to create a clean, polished, tailored look that will match the design, management style, vision, and guest appeal of the hospitality client,” says Senior VP of sales Don Anderson. “We’re very excited to be the frontrunner in the industry and will unveil our new apparel collection at IHMRS. While Best will continue to be a leader in all aspects of the hospitality apparel marketplace, our new product offering will give the hospitality industry an alternative – a high fashion style retail designer collection.”
The cornerstone of Best’s new collection is being presented in partnership with Hartmarx who has exclusive rights to market selected products under a number of premier brands such as H&W, XMI, Claiborne, Palm Beach and Austin Reed. This high-profile collection defines the modern workplace and has been specifically designed to bring name-brand tailored apparel to hotel employees and guests.
The new apparel collection extends well beyond the standard colors, fabrics and styles the industry has come to expect. Best will be offering luxurious stretch fabrics and tailored apparel in new shades like red and chocolate brown for solids as well as textures like mini-check and herringbone. Separate soft components in knit tops, men’s shirtings and ladies blouses will be available in 5 styles and over a dozen colors like cornflower, pumpkin, and cobalt. Pinstripes will be offered in color combos like mint, lemon, and coral.
Ladies apparel will be available in Petite, Misses, Womens’ and Womens’ Petite sizes resulting in a better fitting garment and less alterations. Best’s full line of hospitality apparel will include front of the house, food & beverage, housekeeping and culinary garments. “Our breadth and depth of in-stock apparel will allow the hospitality industry to create the custom look they desire at prices they can afford,” comments Anderson. “The new apparel line complements the complete offering of bed, bath and table linen we have been known for throughout the hospitality industry.”
Best’s new apparel catalog is currently in production and is scheduled for release this winter. The new apparel collection can be seen at Best’s booth (#2938) at IHMRS to be held at the Javits Center in New York City on November 13th-15th.
‘Best’ chosen as the Hospitality Division Master Brand
The ‘Best’ name will now represent Best’s hospitality division and is intended to symbolize the successful union of Best with H.W. Baker Linen Co. LLC. Best relocated the hospitality division headquarters from Mahwah, NJ to corporate headquarters in Jersey City, NJ this past August. This decision comes one month after the Best name was also chosen as the Master Brand for the company’s institutional/textile rental division.
Best remains committed as the industry’s leader in customer service, while also retaining the most expansive geographic coverage and the deepest distribution capabilities in the marketplace - serving the hospitality, textile rental, healthcare, and image apparel markets. The successful union of Best with both H. W. Baker Linen and Artex International creates a complimentary business that leverages global sourcing and manufacturing, an international sales force and the distribution strengths of all three companies so customers can enjoy a broader line of product choices, expanded services, a larger field sales force and a combined experience base in the industry that is unrivalled by Best’s competitors.
About Best Manufacturing Group LLC
Best, founded in 1914, services the hospitality, textile rental, healthcare and image apparel markets with a wide range of products, including, bed linen, bath linen, napery, uniforms and other textile products. The company is headquartered in New Jersey and has operations based in Massachusetts, Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi, Illinois, Texas, Nevada, Canada, Mexico and Asia. For more information please visit www.bestmfg.com.
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Chef2Chef News Desk