New product is here for the second time this year! Big news! New product is here for the second time this year — and it’s fleece, just in time for fall! For those unfamiliar with Street Fleece , it’s to our bestselling lineup of luxe hoodies, sweatshirts and joggers constructed with our ultra-soft Sponge Fleece fabric. It’s our go-to cozy styles for lounge, street and everything in between! We’re proud to have an unprecedented number of colors and styles, and this season we’ve added more than ever before.
We’ve added 9 new silhouettes and 6 new colors to fleece, bringing us to over 30 styles and more than 60 colors across the collection. This solidifies BELLA+CANVAS as the industry leader in premium fleece.
Our new styles include the Unisex Classic Pullover Crew Neck (3911), the Unisex DTM Full Zip Hoodie (3759), the Unisex Straight Leg Sweat Pant (3725), the Unisex Sweatshort (3724), the Toddler Sponge Fleece Pullover Hoodie (3719T), the Youth Jogger Sweatpants (3727Y), the Toddler Jogger Sweatpants (3727T), the Toddler Full Zip Hoodie (3739T), and the Toddler Raglan Sweatshirt (3901T).
As for our new colors, we’re introducing Strobe, Heather French Vanilla, Dark Lavender, Heather Charity Pink, Atlantic, and Heather Blue Lagoon — perfect for any project. All new styles and colors will be made available through both our own website, bellacanvas.com, as well as through our distributors. Plus, there are even more options to come for our FWD Fashion line, so be sure to check in for updates on that!
We’re constantly developing new silhouettes and diversifying our color palette to ensure we have options for everyone. From classic to on-trend, we do it all. For more on our Street Fleece category and why our signature sponge fleece is dubbed the “softest in the industry,” check out our dedicated Street Fleece page here. To view our latest styles and colors, check out the Fleece category on our website here.
For a deeper look at why Fleece is a fabric you should pay attention to, we’ll look at three main catalysts behind its success: it’s on-trend; it’s more profitable; it has a high-growth opportunity.
Commenting on being on-trend, the creative director of Balenciaga recently stated, “I’d rather see a well-made and well-shaped hoodie than a poorly designed high-fashion gown.” Fleece has become a fashion as the line between streetwear and fashion has disappeared. They are one in the same. In February, Vanessa Friedman at The New York Times detailed, “Streetwear-the-fashion-sector was born in the 1980s and ’90s from the intersection of skate and surf kid culture, hip-hop and underground art…yet the use of graphics with casual clothing as a canvas became an instant badge of belonging — and a collectable.” Now, with social media and the digital technologies of today, we see exclusive product drops, collaborations, and celebrity influence that have made sweatshirts, hoodies, and sweatpants year-round fashion staples.
Millennial and Gen Z B2B buyers are behaving more like consumers, placing a higher value on branding and brand awareness. Whether you’re outfitting a customer going from studio-to-street with a branded pullover sweatshirt or leaning into the matching tracksuit trend with bold graphics, fleece is relevant across demographics. For example, high-end streetwear brand Fear of God Essentials serves a variety of basic fleece styles across both adult and youth in the $60-80 range. This proves there are no boundaries within the fashion fleece category when it comes to both age and price point.
In terms of profitability, selling fleece is much more profitable than selling tees. Fleece styles boast significantly higher ASPs, for the same operational costs as a t-shirt. Let’s look at the math. Let’s say the cost of style 3001 with decoration is $9.00. It’s sold for $13.00 at a 30% margin. That style has a gross profit of $4.00 per unit. Now let’s say the cost of style 3719 with decoration is $22.00. It’s sold for $32.00 at the same margin. That style has a gross profit of $10.00 per unit. In this scenario, the difference in gross profit is $6.00 per unit.
If the order is for, let’s say, 1,000 units, that is an incremental gross profit of $6,000. It costs the same to order, receive, process, print, and ship a $22.00 item versus a $13.00 item. But it’s much more profitable. Now you might say that your customer doesn’t have the budget for fleece, it’s more out-of-pocket for them. Yes – that is true. But, fleece is a differentiator. It is less commoditized than t-shirts. There are far fewer premium brands in this space so you can sell on fit, fabric, silhouette, color and quality – not just price. You can tell a meaningful story about fleece. It yields increased customer satisfaction and greater perceived value. So while it requires greater spending for your customer, it will yield far greater impressions for them as well.
Lastly, we have made it our mission to educate the industry on the benefits of premium basics. It started with the No COE campaign back in 2011 and we have seen a big shift take place with t-shirts converting out of trade into premium at a rapid rate. Fleece is at the same precipice today that t-shirts were over a decade ago. Yes, premium fleece costs more than trade fleece. But what is the value that’s being created? Does that hoodie fit well? Does it feel good? Is there minimal shrinkage? Is the end-user going to wear it over and over again? These are the questions to ask. If your customer isn’t showing their clients premium fleece, someone else is going to be.
Fleece is a high-performing, high-growth category that drives incremental unit volume within our business, and yours. It will continue to grow as this shift takes place. That means it is one of the fastest paths to growth for you, as a salesperson, as you work towards your own sales goals.
No one does fleece better than BELLA+CANVAS.
