Ad Meyers Stands The Test of Time

By Susan Derby

Comparing the uniform industry of the 1940s to the 2000s is like comparing a squirrel to a lion both are animals with fur and four legs, but there isnt much else in common.

The uniform industry has changed processes and styles while speeding up delivery times and offering much more variety in those 60 years. Just comparing retail bookkeeping between then and now is enough to bewilder some business owners.

So how has Ad Meyers Uniforms, a retail uniform store in Brooklyn, been able to manage all the changes and developments? Easy; it has reacted to the needs of its customers while injecting new ownership and skills to keep pace with demands.

The biggest change in the stores history was in 1986, when two brothers and a cousin joined forces to buy and run the business. The stores time-tested, established methods and location were great selling points, but the trio started applying each of their own strengths to improving aspects of the retail store.

My brother (John), Jack and I felt our individual strengths would complement each other in carrying out the daily activities necessary to run a business enterprise, says Matt Winters, one of the three current owners. John handles all payroll functions and is very strong in human resources and interacts extremely well with all staff and supervisory personnel. Jack excels in structuring day-to-day activities and special projects requiring an expertise for processing large groups of new employees in a very abbreviated time span. I am the salesperson of the group and have been instrumental in expanding Ad Meyers growth over the last decade.

What began as a staff of only four has grown to 12 full-time staff members. Store personnel are predominately minority members with close connections to the local community. The staff is kept on its toes, managing sales and orders from police personnel, correctional officers, post office workers, emergency medical technicians, security forces, maintenance employees and doormen from throughout New York City and across the country. Ad Meyers stocks more than the expected uniform apparel, patches and leather goods. Metal detectors, facemasks and bulletproof vests are also among the variety of goods sold there.

But the store doesnt stop at just products. The list of services it offers is just as long. Customers enjoy volume discount rates, customized tailoring, 15-minute engraving, embroidering and alteration services, special early opening and after hours accommodations on an ad hoc basis, and expert advice to new firms in outfitting their employees in both security and/or professional attire. That full gamut of services and products is one of the keys to Ad Meyers great success. Customers know they can get the items they need and the services they want in one location.

It was almost expanded to a second location last year.

Timing is everything, and we had considered opening a second location in the city, Matt says. As it turns out, the [building] owner decided that he only wanted to sell the building and not offer any leasing terms. This made it a rather easy decision not to proceed with our expansion plans. If the right opportunity presents itself, Ad Meyers would be amenable to possibly opening another location.

To help continue the growth, a new generation of Winters is being brought into the business. Kevin Winters, Johns son, has been working with Ad Meyers for about six years. While he has formal college business courses under his belt, much of his business experience comes directly from the family business.

Under the tutelage of my family, I have garnered a tremendous amount of insight in understanding the daily responsibilities needed to make a business successful, Kevin says. A lot of preparation has to occur before and after the official store operating hours. I have assumed a host of managerial functions from assigning weekly staff work schedules, daily work and special order assignments, advertising store promotional sales, keeping the business adequately stocked and computerizing all store activities.

That last item has been a major factor in bringing Ad Meyers to a higher performance level and in its ability to continue to remain competitive. Kevin has led the way to computerizing many aspects of the business, from managing orders and tracking inventory to providing past purchase information for customers. Hes opened up new possibilities and streamlining to the old dinosaurs, as Matt calls himself, John and Jack.

In their 18 years of ownership, the Winters have seen the annual sales volumes triple. Shortly after taking over the company, they bought the building adjacent to Ad Meyers, adding 6,000 square feet to the store area. Now at 11,000 square feet, the store provides enough room for the variety of products, inventory and tailoring machinery Ad Meyers needs to accomplish its high level of quality service. And space in New York City is a precious commodity that the customers have come to appreciate.

Kevin says, Ad Meyers is set up in such a way to enable the customers to see and handle the uniform garments and items that they may wish to purchase. The layout is spacious, meticulously maintained and bright. The dressing rooms are large and comfortable. The employees are extremely helpful with all the customers, and our tailors are the best.

In addition to the physical store, Ad Meyers operates a mail order uniform program for thousands of Federal Bureau of Prisons corrections officers across the United States and Puerto Rico. That program has been a boon to spreading the name of Ad Meyers Uniforms beyond the New York area.

To bring new customers in, the store relies on ads in the phone directories as well as mass mailings. Mailings both mail and e-mail are targeted to existing and potential companies of all sizes as well as individual customers. Flyers announcing upcoming sales or special hard-to-find-items are sometimes sent to the police departments around the city to post or circulate.

Word of mouth is also a key advertising medium, so Ad Meyers likes to follow up with customers to assure they are happy. Kevin says follow-up phone calls are performed randomly with customers to get feedback on service, quality and any needed improvements. That helps highlight the best parts of the store operations, but it also helps Kevin focus himself and the staff on the areas that could be better. There may be a product or service that the customer was really looking for but couldnt find. The follow-up call can help uncover something new that other customers might be looking for as well.

Listening to manufacturers also has been important to helping the company evolve and improve. Ad Meyers has been around since the 1940s because it has been able to adapt and recognize new trends.

Ad Meyers stays abreast of the ever-changing trends in the uniform industry by meeting regularly with various manufacturers and other uniform dealers, Matt says. Communications and the fresh exchange of ideas and suggestions are essential for all parties involved in the apparel field. New fabrics are developed on a regular basis that are lighter, more durable, warmer, weather and stain resistant, wrinkle free, etc. Ad Meyers has always played an important role in introducing to its customers the latest trends in professional and uniform attire and will continue to do so in the years to come.

And for as much as Ad Meyers learns from the manufacturers, it has some information to share as well. Matt says, Dealers are excellent resources for the manufacturers to know the reasons a particular line does or does not sell.

Ad Meyers works closely with police and safety officers of all types in New York City. Sept. 11, 2001, was no exception. Ad Meyers, like many of the businesses throughout the five boroughs, assisted the New York Police Department, New York Fire Department, EMT and security officers in whatever ways it could, donating boots to World Trade Center volunteers and revising store hours to fill the uniform needs of various police and security details assigned to the WTC who were working 24 hours a day. Its Brooklyn location was close enough to be convenient for many of the officers yet far enough to operate safely and provide a much-needed change of scenery for many of the workers.

Ad Meyers Uniforms has stood the test of time by listening, evolving and reacting. Ownership, employees, customers and manufacturers all have input as to how the company is run, and the dynamic has proved to be very successful.

Kevin says, Ad Meyers Uniforms, quite frankly, has been so successful because it provides its customers with quality goods at highly competitive prices. Ad Meyers takes great pride in its professionalism and commitment to excellence. In addition, Ad Meyers is known throughout the uniform industry as a company that delivers on time and stands behind its products.

Thats something its been doing since the 1940s, and luckily theres no end in sight to the success Ad Meyers Uniforms is enjoying.

Ad Meyers Uniforms
63 Flatbush Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11217
718-855-4018