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Bob Lazar knows his product. For over 50 years Artcraft, his Pittsburgh, Pa.-based company, has been manufacturing what is arguably the trademark of any career apparel program – the blazer.
Now occupying 30,000 square feet on one level at 7502 Thomas Street, Artcraft Blazers first opened its doors in 1950. Lazar recalls, “We started with three sewing machines and kitchen chairs. Spartan would be a euphemism.” Today, the air-conditioned facility inventories 15,000 to 18,000 blazers, including blouse coats and trousers year-round. The corporate offices are situated in the front of the building, and the stock area is positioned in the center right. Production goes counter clockwise from where the orders are passed through the cutting, sewing, pressing and shipping/receiving departments and ultimately out the door.
In its infancy, Artcraft designed and made waitress uniforms for local restaurants and choir robes for church groups. Not long after, the company began to get requests for blazers. Lazar remembers, “We started to buy blazers from someone in New England. The blazers were all shaded. They came in five different shades of navy; the limited color options kind of forced us into manufacturing. We started to pick up a fair amount of business from parochial and private schools, and it was this market that provided the genesis for Artcraft Blazers. As our blazers gained in popularity, the choir robe and restaurant apparel lines went by the wayside.”
Though headquartered in Pittsburgh, Artcraft’s customer base is both nationwide and international. “We sell all over the United States, Europe and Asia, and our blazers are used in all sorts of industries.” Early on, the navy security blazers done in polyesters and blends were its bread and butter. From the security blazers, Artcraft began to make blouse coats with trousers to match for fire and police departments. To this day it continues to do substantial business in these two areas. Says Lazar, “With the more recent innovations in fabrics, we’re using 55/45 percent Dacron/worsted wool blends as well as all polyesters even some Trevira. It’s easy care with good crease resistance, low pill quality, and good shape and color retention.”
Aside from school, police and fire, Artcraft does strong numbers in the identity market. Together with loyal national accounts like the Boy Scouts of America, the VFW and the American Legion, who use their blazers exclusively, the end users that Artcraft supplies read like a “Who’s Who” of American culture. “We supply apparel for Disney, the World Cup, the Kentucky Derby, the National Basketball Association, the Green Bay Packers, the Apollo Theater Foundation Choir, New York Stock Exchange members, and the Chicago and Harlem Boys’ Choirs,” Lazar says, “We’ve even been asked to provide blazers for three movies, the most recent of which is The Princess Diaries. The diversity of our customer base and problem-solving for these different groups makes this a really interesting business.”
“We’ve been through a few fashion cycles over the past 50 years, and the one thing I’ve learned is that there is always a place for the blazer. If you offer the public quality, your product will sell.”
Artcraft goes the extra distance by machine wrapping their blazer buttons. After the blazer is sewn, pressed and inspected, it goes to a machine loaded with a special kind of poly thread that wraps the button in a hot liquid plastic. It just touches the spot where it has been wrapped (not unlike a seamstress would do by hand). When the solution dries, the button is firmly anchored to the blazer and unlikely to fall off. Bob Lazar notes that when manufacturing blazers for school-aged children, this is a very desirable feature.
“Our customers like our added value,” he continues. “We do a logo flap for blazers with pockets where the embroidery for a specific account is embroidered onto a little gizmo attached by Velcro. The embroidery or corporate logo is put on the inside edge of the Velcro. It attaches to the pocket and is used on every pocketed blazer we manufacture. It’s a great application because it is detachable. Let’s say as an example that you are a car salesman and are wearing one of our blazers. Five o’clock comes and you stop in at a restaurant for dinner. You pull off the Velcro attached logo, slip it into your pocket and nobody knows it’s a ‘work’ blazer. The next morning, you reattach it and are appropriately attired for the showroom.”
A strong focus on customer service is a major component in Artcraft’s success. Lazar says, “The major improvements and diversity in fabrications, enhanced global delivery, which reduces turn-around times, and our SYMIX manufacturing software system that tracks inventory, orders, deliveries and pricing have really driven the business forward.”
Artcraft doesn’t use an outside sales force. Reputation and word of mouth create a steady business flow. Lazar is quick to praise his staff of 50, particularly Vice President of Manufacturing Dorothy Hill, who has been with Artcraft for 11 years. “She attends all the NAUMD conventions, and many of our customers call her for her expertise. In fact, she’s become a better salesperson than any of the people we’ve hired over the years,” he says. In addition to Hill, two of their sewers have been with the company for over 20 years.
Artcraft’s sewing machines have been working virtually 24/7 since the events of Sept. 11. “It’s been a very hectic time for us. There is not even a way to predict what is needed. We’ve opened many new accounts because of anticipated security needs post-9/11. We’re getting the fabric in, cutting, sewing and shipping it out as fast as possible.”
Lazar has recently embarked on a new venture diversifying the product base. “We’ve developed a fabric and product we call KoolART,” he explains. “It took two years to bring the product to market and the big investment is, of course, in the technology. We buy the yarn, knit the fabric, dye, finish and manufacture a line of boxers, a variety of t-shirts, long-sleeved crews, turtlenecks, ladies briefs and socks. This is a moisture management fabric that is a combination of combed cotton and polyolefin. When a person perspires, the fabric takes the moisture through the cloth to the outer surface, which is combed cotton. The moisture then evaporates and the garment comes off totally dry. This is an ideal product for anyone whose job description includes physical labor. We’ve already sold the New York Police Department Bicycle Patrol and other police departments. The University of Pittsburgh football team and a local hospital are testing them as well. Its application potential is unlimited.”
A half-century and a few more sewing machines since his arrival, Bob Lazar has no immediate plans to retire. He continues to oversee a thriving business relying on the same principles that guided him in 1950 manufacturing first-rate products, earning loyalty from customers and employees alike and thoroughly enjoying himself along the way.
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