The single biggest predictor of a smooth kit launch is when the conversation starts. The clubs who get the cleanest experience are the ones who start in May for an August opener. The ones who panic are the ones who message us late on a Sunday in mid-July. Both groups end up wearing kit, but the first one enjoys the process. Here's the timeline that gets you in the first group.
Week –10 to –8: get a real number
Before you talk funding, get a real quote. Open the configurator, plug in your squad size and finish, and you'll have a number in under a minute. That's the figure that goes to the treasurer or the AGM. Saves you guessing at "about £50 a player?" and discovering it's either £30 or £80 depending on what you actually want.
At this stage you don't need a final crest, final colours, or a final sponsor. You just need an honest number to plan around.
Week –8 to –6: lock the brief
- Squad size — confirm with the manager. "Probably about 16" becomes "definitely 18".
- Colours — primary and secondary. Look at the Pantones if you have them, hex codes if not.
- Crest file — find the highest-resolution version you have. If it doesn't exist as a vector, that's fine — we'll redraw it.
- Sponsor — confirm in writing whether you have one. Get their logo file and confirmation they're happy to be on the shirt.
- Goalkeeper — colour preference. Keepers often have opinions; this is the time to ask.
Send everything in one email. We'll come back within a working day and start the design conversation.
Week –6 to –4: the design rounds
Round one mockup typically lands within 3–5 days of the brief landing. You see the full kit on a real template — shirt front, shirt back, shorts, socks, GK kit. Round two follows whatever feedback you send. Most clubs sign off after round two.
Bring the design to a committee meeting if you can. One person's "sure, looks fine" turns into seven people's "actually, can we move the sponsor?" the moment everyone sees it together. Better to gather the feedback in one round than three.
Week –4 to –1: production
Once you sign off, the kit goes into production. Lead time is 3–4 weeks for a standard run. We'll flag any quality-check delays as they happen — quietly running into a problem and not telling you is the single thing we promise we won't do.
Two weeks before the kit ships, we send the sizing email. Coordinator fills in a row per player from the sample pack we sent earlier. Final cut to size, then box.
Week –1: kit lands
The full set arrives, sorted, ready for the squad. We aim for kit landing 7–14 days before your first fixture so there's a comfortable margin to swap a sizing issue or do a kit photoshoot if you're going to.
If you've gone for matchday tops or training pieces, they ship in the same box.
Week 0: first whistle
Squad pulls on the kit. Match photos go on the club's socials. Treasurer is happy because the number was the number. Manager is happy because nobody's wearing the wrong size. You spend the first half watching how the silicone badges look from the touchline rather than worrying about whether anyone got their kit.
What happens if you start late
Clubs message us in late July all the time for an August opener. Here's what we tell them:
- Three weeks out: tight, but doable. Quick design rounds, sublimated finish (skip silicone — adds production time), no sample pack (size off the squad's general kit). Risk of fitting issues.
- Two weeks out: very tight. Sublimated only. We'll tell you up front whether we can hit the date and what we'd skip to do it. We've made it work; we've also had to say no.
- Under two weeks out: usually no. We'll suggest an interim kit (training tops, basic shirts) and run the proper kit for round 2 of the league.
The mid-season case
If you're not in the pre-season window — you're commissioning kit for a January cup run, a charity match, a corporate fixture — the same 5–7 weeks applies. We don't have a "season" in the production sense; the timeline just runs from the day the brief lands.
The short version
- Start 8–10 weeks before your opener for a relaxed process.
- Get a real quote first. Funding conversation second.
- Send a complete brief — squad, colours, crest, sponsor, GK — in one email.
- Bring committee to the design round, not after.
- Late starters: tell us the date you can't move, and we'll tell you what's possible.