Almost every disappointing patch order fails for one of five reasons, and all five are avoidable in about ten minutes of thought before you order.

Measure the panel, not the patch

The single most common error is ordering a patch that is a quarter-inch wider than the loop field it has to sit on. It curls at the corners immediately and there is no fixing it.

Measure the loop panel on the plate carrier, jacket or pack first and send us that measurement. We fit the artwork to the space rather than the other way round.

Choose the backing for the life it will have

Hook if it moves between garments or has to come off for the wash. Plain if it is being sewn on permanently. Adhesive only for display and short-term use — it is not a wearable backing, whatever the internet says.

Order the subdued version at the same time

Teams that run a full-colour patch for the board and a subdued one for duty almost always order them months apart and pay setup twice. Same artwork, one order, two colourways is materially cheaper and arrives together.

Quantity: think in years, not weeks

The minimum here is 12, and plenty of orders are exactly 12. But per-piece price falls sharply with volume because the tooling is the fixed cost, so if you know you will reorder the same design twice more this year, ask for pricing at two or three quantities on the same quote.

Check the proof like it will be printed 500 times

Because it will. Read the motto letter by letter, check the chevron direction, confirm the year, and have somebody who did not write the file check it too. Our proofs catch a spelling or direction error on a meaningful share of first orders, and it is always cheaper at that stage.

Then relax about the rest

Mockups and revisions are free and unlimited, tooling is kept on file for identical reorders, and you pay nothing until the artwork is exactly what you want.