2010spring STAY

SHARP

ARROW PRODUCTS LIMITED

66 Pharazyn Street, Lower Hutt.

PO Box 38-385, Wellington Mail Centre.

Ph: 04 589 5888, Fax on 04 569 6307

or Email: sales@arrowuniforms.co.nz

Visit www.arrowuniforms.co.nz for

more information, or to request a free

product catalogue. Call us free on

050 UNIFORM (0508 643 676).

seasonal newsletter

LOOK LIKE A STAR IN STRIPES

• DETERGENTS & WASHING MACHINES

• AS COOL AS A CUCUMBER

• STAY FRESH

• SNOOD CAPS

Every year we wait for spring expectantly and you can actually feel it in the air. It’s a sign that better times are coming again and we all get the feel good factor when we see fresh flowers blooming, the first few lambs and bright green shoots everywhere.

SPRING IS HERE!

It brings me back to when I was in Paris in April

earlier this year when spring was definitely in

the air. Spring time in Paris is beautiful!

And the prevailing colour of the Paris City

Council is green. It’s quite a strong way to

brand the city and its services and as well it

gives a sense of identity and security. Take a

look at the photos and see what I mean – the

workers are dressed in green, their trucks are

green, the recycling stations are green, the

rubbish receptacles are green – with clear plastic

bags in them so people don’t put bombs in

them! It’s quite obvious if their brooms get

nicked as these are bright green too!

You too can create a strong identity with a

good uniform well thought out and integrated

into your brand. If a city council can do it so

can you! So talk to us about your uniforms and

how we can help you and your team stand out

from the crowd.

And that brings up the city council elections

shortly to take place in New Zealand. Some

people will vote, some wont, some won’t

even realize an election is on...the choice is

yours. I’ve got some advice for you – vote for

the people with the best uniforms! It will be

the same for the World Cup when the rugby

hits us next year. Certainly the best dressed

restaurants with the smartest uniforms on

will get the most tips. The team with the best

uniforms will win. Mark my words!!!

Have a great month.

DES FORD MANAGING DIRECTOR

Mens LONG SLEEVE: $37.00 Size XS – 5XL inclusive GST EXCLUSIVE

LADIES ¾ Sleeve: $37.90 Sizes 6 – 30 inclusive GST EXCLUSIVE

The new PALERMO Stripe at Arrow Uniforms are proving to be exceptionally popular and we are extending the colour range accordingly.

Matching Gents Shirts and Ladies Blouses ensure that these

items have sold well from the day we introduced them.

Stripes can look flattering on most shapes and sizes and can add

pizazz to the garments that elevate a plain looking item into a

classy shirt. In addition the range has a high cotton component

that is blended with some lycra to ensure a very comfortable fit

– that moves when you do.

But wait theres more! TEFLON finished to remove embarrassing

wine stains and greasy stains like yoghurt and gravy this finish

also helps to “seal in the colour” so that the colour doesn’t lose

its lustre and fade off. Here’s an authentic customer comment...

“These new shirts are wonderful – so easy to iron!” – Gillian G

(that’s the TEFLON responding to the warmth of the iron).

You can also tell the shirts are the latest cut too as the mitred

cuff indicates. This is a good indicator of the year the shirt was

manufactured as anything with rounded corner cuffs are so

“last year”. First check your own – then check your mates!

LOOK LIKE A STAR IN STRIPES

Call us free on 050 UNIFORM (0508 643 676)

Colours available: White/Black, Beige/Black, Black/White, Berry/White

When you wash garments you should never use anything else but recognized and branded washing powders from your supermarket – never cheap or unbranded washing formulae from budget stores.

Think of detergents that remove dirt as a “pick and shovel” team that

combine to remove soiling. The pick chips away at the dirt and shifts

the tough bits and the shovel scoops it all up and removes it. Budget

potions often do one or the other only, and can leave your clothes gray

or discoloured and worse. Sometimes they pick the dirt away well but

there is no shovel to remove it so it spreads the dirt across the garment.

Sometimes these potions are too strong for some fabrics or contain too

many bleaching agents and they wreck the colours, make them run or

spot or cause them to rot prematurely.

Never fill the machine too full of clothes as the garments need to move

around freely inside the machine throughout the process. This swooshing

around helps mix the detergent up to thoroughly permeate the clothes

ensuring a proper cleaning process. As we know most machines will then

do two rinses with clean fresh water to thoroughly remove all traces of

the washing process and the dirty water created before spinning the

garments to remove as much water as possible so they dry quicker –

either on the line outside or in the dryer.

DETERGENTS & WASHING MACHINES

COMMERCIAL LAUNDERING

Watch commercial laundering carefully as often these

machines use strong commercial formulations that

are not suitable for delicate personal (and expensive!)

clothing.

While absolutely fine for washing sheets, towels or

industrial clothing commercial machines can destroy

garments relatively quickly. This is because they are often

preprogrammed to a set schedule, wash at very high

temperatures, spin considerably faster than at home and

use stronger formulations that are directly injected into

the wash.

These concentrated formulae are often really good at

their job of removing dirt but really need to be dissolved

throughout the water before clothes are added. Many

are the garments I have seen that have bleachlike

marks where the concentrated formulae have “hit” the

garments while in the machine.

Check out our enormous range online at www.arrowuniforms.co.nz or call us free for a catalogue.

Spinning in the machine can be something to study too for good

results. Fast Spinning can be good for most clothes but it may pay to

use a Slow Spin for some products like shirts or blouses as if these

can be left to drip dry you will find they are much easier to iron – and

sometimes you don’t even have to. Check the CARE label too as this

will be a great indicator of what is best for each item – and they vary

from garment to garment.

WHY USE BRANDED DETERGENTS?

• Branded detergents may cost a little more but it is really worth paying a

little extra to consistently get the best results. Although somewhat dearer

they will generally help your clothes last longer as they are produced

by large corporates who have developed their products after extensive

research and they are designed to remove dirt efficiently and gently.

• They usually are kinder to the garments and after processing gentler

on the skin. They have scientists who toil for hours, days, weeks and

even years to perfect their products and find chemicals that work

better as well as being kind to the environment.

• They work in all types of water. Some areas have “hard water” which

can often preclude a detergent dissolving properly and this means that

garments may not end up getting washed as well if all the chemicals

don’t work as they are designed to. Usually they work perfectly

adequately in a COLD WASH and this is certainly an economical option

most of us prefer. However generally almost all the best detergents work

better in a WARM WASH so we recommend that you do do a WARM

WASH occasionally to get the best washing results for your gear.

CARE LABELS are required to be inside every garment sold in New

Zealand. These labels are meant to contain information on the way

your garment is to be washed and dried and must be in Plain English

(although they also often have symbols a drycleaner will know the

meaning of too).

By law each garment sold needs to contain the composition of the fabric it

is made from and how it should be washed (or the maximum temperature)

and if it should be hand or machine washed as well as how it should

be spun (sometimes they say “Don’t Spin” or “Slow Spin”) and dried.

Garments also need to clearly state their country of origin.

Garments have to smell nice too and a fresh smell

is often a good sign that clothes are clean. This

too is a component of the formula but is also one

that can aggravate some skin conditions so do be

careful if anyone in the household has dermatitis or

other skin condition and ask specialist advice on the

best option if necessary.

CARE LABELS

SKIN SENSITIVITY?

Not really any place for the faint hearted and definitely a hive of activity

at lunchtime or as dinner time approaches. How then does any chef

keep their cool in such an environment. One might well wonder.

The traditional chef’s jacket is a garment that has evolved over the years

to become an identity of its own albeit with a practical twist. Typically

any chef worth his weight in cucumbers would have been told at some

stage in his or her career to dress like an Arabic sheikh who wears his

gear loose and flappy to allow the air to circulate underneath his robes.

Not bad logic I’ll admit but also such excess fabric can be somewhat off

putting to the uninitiated or those wanting to look chic on the job.

AS COOL AS A CUCUMBEREvery one knows that working in a kitchen is intense. There are naked flames, scorching ovens, blazing lights and boiling water as well as hot gravy and sizzling pots and pans.

Also the double breasted look was practical giving the wearer another

“face” to reverse if they did splash the gravy as well as doubling the

thickness of fabric across the midriff to protect against spills and heat.

Traditionally Chef’s Jackets have been made from quite a thick 100%

Cotton Drill or Polycotton Drill to give longevity and to enable the gear to

last in the rough’n’tumble kitchen environment. Sometimes the weight

of fabric (i.e. the thickness of the cloth) has felt oppressive, sweaty and

heavy after a hard days work.

Until Arrow Uniforms invented the Cool Chef’s jacket with mesh vents.

View our full range of Chef’s Gear, download a catalogue from our website at www.arrowuniforms.co.nz or request a free catalogue by calling us toll free on 050 UNIFORM (0508 643 676).

ARROW COOL CHEFS JACKET ONLY $79.70 + GST

JCM22 Sizes XS – 3XL ex stock.

Larger sizes available upon request (but may cost more)

Back yoke

detail with

cool mesh

panels for

ventilation

ARROW UNIFORMS has introduced the COOL Chef’s

Jacket – a lightweight yet tough polycotton fabric that is

called Hercules. This is a very stable cloth proven over

many years in the uniform industry named after the famous

Greek warrior himself – that can take the knocks and is very

strong.

In addition to the special Hercules fabric the garment has

airtex type vents in it to allow the air movement that will

keep the hottest chef cool all day and makes working in

these environments so much more comfortable. The basic

traditional design is maintained – it’s just the combination

of the lightweight yet tough Hercules Polycotton with the

“air conditioned” venting system that makes this COOL

Chef’s Jacket so appealing.

STAY FRESH

Most New Zealanders use deodorant to prevent body odours being a problem, or even a possibility. But watch them – deodorants can soil and damage your clothing.

If you wear deodorant always apply before you get dressed to allow

it to dry. Avoiding applying it after your clothes are on can extend

their life considerably.

“Roll on” is better than the ‘psst, psst’ spray on kind as the overspray

can directly contaminate clothing quite quickly leading to unsightly

underarm areas on garments. Many are the garments we have seen

returned as faulty yet they are quite clearly victims of aerosol based

deodorants as the area under the arms is quite discoloured and

sometimes rotted out.

It can be quite toxic stuff and – although necessary – pre-dressing

application is always best and you’ll not only smell nicer on the job

but your gear will last longer too.

View our full range of Chef’s Gear, download a catalogue from our website at www.arrowuniforms.co.nz or request a free catalogue by calling us toll free on 050 UNIFORM (0508 643 676).

Interested but not sure? Ask us to send a sample piece of the Hercules fabric to see for yourself.

SNOOD CAPS SNOOD: 1: fillet worn by maidens in Scotland to confine hair; 2: Loose net worn over the hair at the back of a woman’s head (courtesy of OXFORD Dictionary).

The ARROW UNIFORMS SNOOD CAP is available in BLACK or WHITE

and is a legendary item that is an absolute must for people who

prepare food in any production food area.

Everytime the wearer puts an ARROW UNIFORMS SNOOD CAP on

and tucks their hair into it (and both men and women can wear these

without any shame) it reminds them to take food hygiene seriously.

Surprisingly it can flow through to other areas too with a greater

appreciation of and higher commitment to general cleanliness,

personal hygiene and work habits. SNOOD CAPS also send a

subliminal message to customers, passersby and management that

this organization takes food hygiene seriously and I’ll be safe eating

food from here. After all who wants a hair with their meal?

STRANGE BUT TRUE; The ARROW UNIFORMS SNOOD CAP is quite

a famous item. Originally developed for CADBURY’s in Dunedin we

have sold these all round the world. More than once they have been

nicked by overseas visitors and the new owner has phoned us up

from their food factory in the USA or wherever to order these Snood

Caps for their staff. A tidy little export earner!

Cool to wear with a netting top and elasticated net at the rear into

which you can neatly tuck up the longest or fuzziest hair.

In a world where disposable hats reign almost supreme the ARROW

UNIFORMS SNOOD CAP holds its own. Apparently it’s too big to

stuff into a can when things aren’t going too well with the boss

(apparently that’s the “fate” of some disposable caps! - YUK!)

All prices are for standard sizes XS – 3XL, 8 – 24, 72cm – 116cm,

3 – 12 inclusive. Larger sizes cost more per size step. All prices are

GST Exclusive unless stated. No information in this publication maybe

reprinted without written permission of Arrow Products NZ Ltd. All

information contained is the opinion of the writer and no liability for

misinterpretation or misadventure due to the methods described or

suggested will be accepted.

ARROW PRODUCTS NZ LIMITED

66 Pharazyn Street, Lower Hutt. PO Box 38-385, Wellington Mail Ctre.

Ph: 04 589 5888, Fax: on 04 569 6307

Email: sales@arrowuniforms.co.nz

Visit our website at www.arrowuniforms.co.nz

Call us free on 050 UNIFORM (0508 643 676)

Snood Caps:

WHITE $10.75

BLACK $11.65 + GST

the perfect hair constraint