How far ahead to order custom team uniforms

Start your custom uniform order about 10 weeks before the first game, and approve the final proof at least 5 weeks before it. That covers sizing, design, a proof, production and shipping, and leaves two weeks to fix a wrong size or add a late player.

Production is only part of the wait. Collecting sizes and approving a proof take time too, and those are the steps your program controls. Work backward from the date players need them, and put every step on the calendar.

This guide shows the backward calendar for full-custom sublimated uniforms and for stock major-brand uniforms with printed names and numbers, with worked dates for fall, winter and spring. Use the free uniform order calendar to fill in your own dates.

The backward calendar

Count back from the first game. The production line uses the time your vendor puts in writing. Full-custom sublimated uniforms from Secondslide are delivered in as little as three weeks from design approval, so this calendar uses three weeks as the shortest case. If your quote says longer, move every earlier step back by the difference.

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The approval date is the one that matters most. Every day the proof waits pushes the delivery date back by a day. Name one person who can approve, and give them a deadline.

Full-custom sublimated vs stock major-brand uniforms

Full-custom sublimated uniforms are made for your order. The design, names and numbers are printed into the fabric, and the wait starts at design approval. Ask your vendor for the delivery date in writing before you approve.

Stock major-brand uniforms, such as Nike, adidas or Under Armour, usually start from a blank that has to be in stock in every size you need. Names and numbers are then added. Ask for the production time and whether every size is in stock today. If one size is short, ask whether the vendor will ship the rest first or hold the full order.

	Full-custom sublimated	Stock major-brand
What sets the wait	Production after design approval	Blank stock in every size, then decoration
What to ask	”What date will these arrive if I approve today?"	"Is every size in stock, and what date will they arrive?”
Common delay	A proof that waits for changes	One size out of stock
Late player	Reorder one piece in the same design	Check the same blank is still available

Whichever you choose, use the same calendar. Swap the production line for the vendor’s written date.

Worked dates by season

Season start dates vary by sport, state and league, so check with your league or state association for yours. These examples use a sample first-game date to show the math.

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Fall. Sizing falls in summer, when families travel and players grow. Collect sizes at a summer camp or tryout if you can, and expect a few changes at the first practice.

Winter. Fall sports are still running when winter sizing starts. Give the winter team manager their own deadline so the work doesn’t wait for fall to end.

Spring. Winter break sits inside the window. Collect sizes before break, so design and the proof can happen in early January.

For typical start months by sport, see when the lacrosse, soccer and basketball seasons start.

What pushes the date back

• Sizes come in slowly. Set a sizing deadline two weeks after you ask. Order the most common size for anyone who misses it, and note it on the order.
• The proof waits. Changes after the proof restart the clock. Decide colors and logo before the mockup, not after.
• Nobody can approve. Name one approver before design starts.
• The date is a ship date, not an arrival date. Ask whether the quoted date is when the order ships or when it arrives.
• A late player joins. Order with no minimum if you can, so one extra jersey is a small order, not a new one.

Ordering with Secondslide

Secondslide makes full-custom sublimated uniforms delivered in as little as three weeks from design approval, with no order minimum. You check a proof of the full set before you approve it. Programs can also choose Nike, adidas, Under Armour, New Balance, Mizuno and other major brands. See custom team uniforms and the lacrosse uniforms page for details.

When a program runs registration in Secondslide, the sizes and jersey numbers families enter at signup can start the uniform order without anyone entering them again. With no order minimum, late additions and replacements can be ordered as they come up.

Get the delivery date for your own order in writing. To start, browse the catalog and get a free quote. If you already have a quote from another company, Price Check shows whether Secondslide can beat it. To line up two or more quotes, use the uniform quote comparison worksheet.