No Minimum? No Problem: Hersh Rostex Seeks to Expand Customer Base with In-stock Fabrics Program

It’s a scenario all too familiar in today’s uniform market. A customer’s want-it-yesterday order is jeopardized because the fabric can’t be delivered on time, forcing the vendor to scramble to find other options. And those looking to buy fabric in small or no minimum quantities may be hard pressed to find a mill with which to do business.

Enter Hersh Rostex, a relative newcomer to the industry that is making a name for itself by doing what many nowadays eschew. While most are reducing inventories in the hope of minimizing financial risk, Hersh Rostex continues to build its stock, keeping an ample supply of wool and wool blended products on the floor, ready to ship at a moment’s notice. “Lead times continue to increase, making it more difficult to find quality wool fabrics when you need them,” says David Shashoua of Hersh Rostex. “But the need still exists in the North American market, so for that reason an in-stock program makes good business sense.”

So too, does the elimination of minimums. To position itself as an alternative to some of the larger mills who are often uninterested in filling small orders, Hersh Rostex eagerly courts every order, no matter the size. “We provide options to the smaller manufacturer or end-user,” notes Shashoua. “If you only need 200 yards, we’ll ship you 200 yards.” Fabrics are provided to customers in the USA and other countries, with shipment made directly from overseas mills or exported from the Canadian-based firm.

Established in 1935 as Hersh Woolens, a menswear company, the family-owned Hersh Rostex branched out to the uniform industry in 2000, a move timed with the end of world wide quotas on apparel. “When quotas disappeared, we had to ask ourselves where manufacturing as an industry was going, and the answer was clearly that more and more sourcing would be done offshore, while product development would continue here,” says Shashoua. “We needed to learn how to manage this development, and how best to maximize our business potential.”

As purchasing domestic fabric became more cost-prohibitive, the company developed a global network of mills from which it sources various programs for its clients. “The majority of our fabric comes from China and India,” Shashoua notes. Within the uniform industry, the company played upon its strengths, concentrating on the Canadian law enforcement market, which largely uses wool in the fabrication of its uniforms, and the retail-inspired hospitality industry.

The demise of a major Canadian mill also played a role in Hersh Rostex’s decision to launch a uniform division. Several years ago, the company introduced its line of in-stock wool and wool blended fabrics hoping to fill the void left by Cleyn & Tinker, the leading Canadian worsted wool manufacturer that had recently been purchased by Burlington WorldWide. “We had been buying from Cleyn & Tinker and learned a lot about the business from them,” says Shashoua. “Their sale opened a door for our company.”

Its customer base in Canada includes many well known companies, but its niche is really with small, lesser known entities. “We’ve been able to do well with smaller companies because we provide the options and service they’re looking for,” says Shashoua.

Hersh Rostex hopes to grow its customer base in America, a country that has a seemingly endless stream of law enforcement and hospitality customers. Of particular interest is the burgeoning hospitality industry, with its emphasis on retail-inspired designs and appearance. “When you spend as much money on a property that hotels and casinos are doing, then you have to dress up your workers in order to convey the message that you’re high end,” observes Shashoua. “If you don’t place a premium on appearance, what does this say about your property?”

But tapping the U.S. market is not without its challenges, most notable being the border. “Despite NAFTA, the border presents the biggest problem for our U.S. side of the business.” This is particularly true for smaller orders, where shipping and government fees can drive up the price of the fabric. “I need to know what you’re buying and how we’re shipping it before I can determine the price,” adds Shashoua.

Like others in this country, Shashoua believes much of recent talk about renegotiating NAFTA by Democratic Presidential candidates is just that – talk. “Renegotiating NAFTA will only penalize the American companies who are already in Mexico and will drive up the price of apparel in the United States,” he says. “If you’re going to protect an industry, then protect it; otherwise, measures like these are simply counterproductive.”

Since Hersh Rostex buys and sells in U.S. dollars, the recent decline in the American currency has played little to no role in its business. “Our margins haven’t been affected by the decline,” he notes.

Cultural differences between the countries have served as both a driver and impediment to sales in the U.S. “The mentality is different in Canada,” says Shashoua. “Here, customers are mainly driven by price; in the U.S., it’s more about service and value. It’s a need-it-now type of market, and this has served us well.”

Other factors have been more daunting. “The color selection is so much more diverse here, and it’s been a challenge to supply the variety required by the market,” he notes. There are also more styling options and a greater emphasis on accessories, and for good reason. Competition in the service industries is fierce – a way to distinguish yourself with customers has traditionally been through a comprehensive uniform program. “Canada is an understated culture and the uniforms reflect that,” Shashoua notes. “There’s no Las Vegas, no MGM to compete with, so uniforms are more straightforward.”

Hersh Rostex recently joined the venerable North American Uniform Manufacturers and Distributors (NAUMD) with the hope that its membership will give the company credibility in the American marketplace.

And it is counting on its quality, no minimum, in-stock fabric program to bolster its standing within the industry. Says Shashoua: “We like to think of ourselves as a company that wears many hats – we’re an importer, distributor, a global sourcer. Even if we don’t have what you’re looking for in-stock, we’ll find it for you. We provide another option in the wool and blended market.”