Many of the world’s top businesses are family-owned and corporate wear manufacturers Imagemakers, is proud to have been in business for more than 40 years.
Founded by Hubert Spaun in Cape Town in 1982 with just three employees, the business has grown to over 500 employees, with its Head Office and factories located in Cape Town and showrooms and offices in Botswana, Namibia and Johannesburg.
Last year, Imagemakers dressed employees at more than 4 000 companies, from banks and financial services to hospitals, motor dealerships, educational facilities and the travel and tourism sector, among others. Their client list reads like a ‘Who’s who’ of South African business, and Imagemakers is certainly a proudly South African company itself, today run by Hubert’s son, Anton. All garments are locally made in their own factories.
In a country which has one of the world’s most unequal societies, uniforms are a great equaliser. “Employees can look the same whether they are earning R5 000 or R100 000, and no-one has to spend money to keep up with what their colleagues are wearing,” Anton said.
With the back-to-office movement gaining steam, Imagemaker’s sales have increased. “We have seen a pick-up in hospitality and travel industry uniforms specifically, which is positive for the economy.”
In the face of Chinese imports, the company has remained focused on local manufacturing. “In the past 15 years we have moved from a corporate wear brand into a fashion brand for business, and this has helped us to grow,” Anton said. “We don’t distinguish between a company with three employees or one with 3 000 employees.”
Anton and his team have dealt with many requests, including those from women who ask for their clothing labels to reflect three sizes smaller than the actual garment itself, “so that their colleagues don’t know what size they wear”.
Over the past four decades, workplace style has changed from being a set staff uniform to a more flexible, “mix and match” corporate wardrobe. “Today, instead of dictating a uniform, companies choose colour and their employees choose a style that suits their taste and figure. This also allows corporate wear to be a fit for any industry,” Anton said.
“Having a uniform is a walking billboard for any company. It not only makes the person wearing it feel good, but it also enhances the company image,” Anton said. While styles have changed over the years, the “power suit” remains a classic. “Every workwear wardrobe needs a classic suit, and we help corporates find the right office wear combination, in the right fabric and style, to suit their brand identity.” The garments are all machine washable and can be worn with little to no ironing required.
Imagemakers has a full design team including a Product Development Manager. “Our full-time designers and experienced pattern graders start the process that ultimately leads to a team’s smart, true-to-brand appearance.”
More than 500 staff are employed in three factories in Salt River and Lansdowne, responsible for everything from design to pattern making, grading, cutting, trimming, inspecting, finishing and packaging, using the latest state of the art machinery and technology. Much in-house training is done for young employees, before they become part of the Imagemakers family.“Everything is done in-house and this is key to our success – we have over 100 staff in our administration department and pride ourselves on a seamless customer experience between production and sales.” Having a hands-on involvement in every step of the design process through to production, is the key.
