Caps and other headwear are prime examples of how promotional products can grab attention and raise brand awareness, as end-users can wear them with pretty much any outfit. And since they are worn on heads, hats stand front and center in all of the wearers’ interactions.
There are certain qualities that are top-of-mind
(and top-of-head) for distributors when they look for headwear options. Here’s a look at what’s trending this year.
Never Go Out of Style
In terms of headwear styles, end-buyers and end-users want classic designs that won’t go out of style. Six-panel classic hats are the gold standard. But recent trends have had staying power (or returns to prominence), like five-panel hats and trucker hats, especially with mesh backs.
“It has been mesh backs, mesh backs, mesh backs,” says Ramona Watson, vice president of product development and marketing, Infinity Product Group, Lowell, Arkansas. “Everybody wants that trucker, whether it’s foam front or just a structured high-profile mesh back. So that’s been our No. 1 profile right now.”
David Lever, global vice president of sales, OTTO Cap, Ontario, California, also points to hats with mid and high crowns as a popular choice. The larger front has ample real estate for decoration.
Silvia Pallaro, North America country manager at Atlantis Headwear, which has headquarters in San Donà, Italy, adds that ribbed knit hats and beanies are trending as well.
Lever says that beanies are popular, but to be mindful that demand likely won’t be until the colder months. Instead, as summer ramps up, keep your eye on styles that offer more protection from the sun and ventilation to combat the heat.
“I think more and more people are being more cognizant of the effects of the ultraviolet rays and the sun and just how much they can destroy us,” Lever says. As a result, OTTO Cap’s boonie-style hat — which covers the neck, ears, and face — and performance bucket hat — which is lightweight, moisture-wicking, and provides greater coverage than your standard cap — are top sellers, especially in the summertime.
Alternatively, bandannas can be a versatile piece of headwear for end-users, says Scott Thackston, director of marketing and product development at Bandanna Promotions, Greenville, South Carolina. Thackston explains that a bandanna can be worn as a headband, head wrap, a liner under a hat, or even as a hat band for extra flair.
Color Me Classic
Like the styles that are trending, most of the colors customers are looking for are “evergreen, classic colors,” says Pallaro, such as white, black, gray and navy.
Lever says that he’s seeing similar trends at OTTO Cap, with customers gravitating toward hats with two colors, such as what he calls a “grandpa hat.”
“It’s a five-panel curved-visor hat, and the colors that are trending mostly are natural bodies with contrasting visors,” he says. “So it could be navy, could be black, could be red, could be forest green — and they’re just blowing off the shelf.”
While neutrals are certainly in demand, Pallaro says distributors can pitch the ideas of “pop colors” to their clients to add some spark to the promotion.
“There are some pop colors here and there like burgundy, maroon, some bright green, pastel colors,” she says. “We have some nice knits in light blue and light beige. But generally, that’s where I’m seeing the demand growing.”
At Infinity Her, Infinity Product Group’s hat brand developed specifically for women, color is all the rage.
“One big, big thing for us is animal print,” Watson says. “Right now, [it’s] leopard and cow print. It’s crazy how big cow print is right now. That’s one of our No. 1 sellers. So any animal print is doing well for us.”
She also says that Pantone’s 2024 color of the year, Peach Fuzz, is one of the colors customers have been most interested in this year.
As far as bandannas go, Thackston says that a lot of customers are opting for more of a full-color bandanna with PMS colors rather than a traditional paisley design. And, if they do go for paisley, they can choose specific PMS colors.
Dealing with Decorations
In terms of cap decoration methods, patches are big right now.
According to Lever, many of OTTO Cap’s customers are using patches, specifically thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), and silicone patches, since they can be done with a four-color process.
Watson adds that Infinity Her has been seeing more leather and woven label patches, and Pallaro says Atlantis Headwear even has a cork patch available. However, she, Lever, and Watson agree that the classic decoration method of embroidery will always be a big seller.
“I think embroidery is your staple, you’re never going to get away [from] embroidery,” Watson says. “If you can do it well, it’s always going to probably be the go-to because it’s probably a little less expensive than patches. But patches right now are definitely trending. It’s just something new and something exciting.”
Looking at bandannas as an alternative headwear option, Thackston says that you can feature logos front and center, or you can have them blend into the overall design for a more subtle — but still promotional — look.
More Than a Trend
While trends come and go, Pallaro says that sustainability is huge in headwear now — and here to stay. In fact, Atlantis Headwear has set a goal to have its entire collection contain “items with elements that have a reduced environmental impact” by next year, according to the brand’s website.
Pallaro says that sustainability has become a priority across the board for Atlantis Headwear, from recycled and organic materials such as plastic made of ocean-sourced fishnets, to environmentally friendly decorating methods.
“We use some eco-friendly dyeing like dope dyeing that, in a few words, is made by heat transfer and not by immersion in water,” Pallaro says. “So you will have a higher saving of energy of course, but especially water and pollution.”
Pallaro adds that Atlantis Headwear is keeping itself accountable by providing a QR code on the label of each product that traces the entire production process.
For Bandanna Promotions, sustainability is similarly top of mind for its own operations, as well as for customers. Because of this, Thackston says the 100% natural, sustainable cotton bandanna that the company offers is popular.
“When you can say that it’s fully sustainable and uses no chemicals, that is really, really cool because it allows us to be able to have [this] product — it’s soft, it’s natural-looking, and it still can imprint with PMS colors with the brand,” he says. “I think it really shows off for the client that they’re serious about sustainability, even on their promotional products and their marketing. We’re seeing more and more of that being requested, and the trend in the natural bandanna itself has innately tripled in the amount we do in the last three to four years.”
