AS Colour
AS Colour (est. 2005, New Zealand) manufactures premium blank apparel for wholesale buyers, creators, and retail consumers across the UK, Australia, NZ, US, Canada, and Europe via 32 supplier factories, four UK stores, and a European distribution centre, with ~$500M turnover.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What AS Colour does
AS Colour is a premium blank apparel manufacturer established in New Zealand in 2005 by Lawrence Railton, now operating across the UK, Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada, and Europe with reported turnover of approximately $500M as of December 2025. The company designs and produces blank garments, principally t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, and an activewear range, sourced from 32 third-party garment factories located across China, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. Distribution is multi-channel, combining B2B wholesale, direct-to-consumer e-commerce, and a growing UK physical retail footprint currently comprising four stores (Shoreditch, Bristol, Newcastle, Leeds), anchored by a 5,899 m² European distribution centre in Leighton Buzzard.
The business model monetises across three customer segments: wholesale buyers purchasing blanks for printing or resale, creators and makers using AS Colour's relabelling service and printer directory for customisation and small-batch production, and retail consumers purchasing finished garments via e-commerce and UK stores. The company is asset-light in manufacturing (outsourced to 32 supplier factories) but has built out internal fulfilment, retail, and brand infrastructure, and holds third-party sustainability certifications including Better Cotton, OEKO-TEX, amfori BSCI, and partnerships with CarbonClick and Reemi. In December 2025, AS Colour received a private equity investment from Quadrant Private Equity, providing institutional capital for the next phase of geographic, channel, and product expansion.
The core technology and platform are conventional apparel manufacturing and distribution rather than software-led, with no disclosed AI/ML, data platform, or proprietary production technology. Competitive differentiation rests on supply-chain scale and certifications, multi-channel distribution reach, twenty years of brand equity in the premium blank category, and a customisation ecosystem that pulls in creators and small-batch printers as repeat customers.
AS Colour firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AS Colour
- Legal name
- AS Colour
- Website
- https://ascolour.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- AS Colour (est. 2005, New Zealand) manufactures premium blank apparel for wholesale buyers, creators, and retail consumers across the UK, Australia, NZ, US, Canada, and Europe via 32 supplier factories, four UK stores, and a European distribution centre, with ~$500M turnover.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AS Colour industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Premium Blank Apparel Manufacturing
- NAICS
- Cut and Sew Apparel Manufacturing (3152), Apparel Manufacturing (315), Apparel Accessories and Other Apparel Manufacturing (31599)
- SIC
- Men's & Boys' Furnishgs, Work Clothg, & Allied Garments (2320), Knit Outerwear Mills (2253), Retail-Apparel & Accessory Stores (5600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Tops & Shirts Cut & Sew (T-Shirts/Shirts/Blouses) (IMAOAEAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Outerwear & Cold-Weather Apparel Manufacturers (CRAAAAAI), Headwear Manufacturing (Hats/Caps/Beanies) (IMAOAFAA), Sports Team & Promotional Apparel Cut & Sew (Screenprint/Embroidery-Ready) (IMAOAEAK)
Keywords
Where AS Colour is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices5 records
Markets served
AS Colour business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Apparel Sales: Direct sales of premium blank apparel through retail stores and e-commerce platforms, with turnover of approximately $500 million
- Wholesale/Bulk Orders: B2B wholesale channel offering tiered bulk pricing with discounts for larger orders (1-9, 10-49, 50+ units), targeting screen printers, embroiderers, and apparel businesses
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Women's Active Bike Shorts - Retail pricing with wholesale bulk discounts |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Women's Active Leggings - Retail with bulk pricing tiers |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Wholesale Returns Policy |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels4 records
AS Colour product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AS Colour designs, manufactures, and distributes premium blank apparel (T-shirts, sweats, hoodies, leggings, headwear, accessories) for men, women, and kids. Garments are built to be customised through screen printing and embroidery, sold directly to consumers via retail stores and e-commerce, and supplied in bulk to B2B customers (screen printers, embroiderers, apparel decorators) via tiered wholesale pricing and relabelling services.
Product overview
AS Colour is a New Zealand-founded premium blank apparel company established in 2005, operating as the global leader in blank apparel for customisation. The company offers a comprehensive product portfolio across Men's, Women's, and Kids categories including T-Shirts, Tanks, Longsleeves, Sweats & Hoodies, Shirts & Polos, Jackets, Shorts, Joggers, Leggings, Headwear, and Accessories. Products are sold through wholesale channels (with tiered bulk pricing), retail stores (Shoreditch, Bristol, Leeds, Newcastle), and online. The company supports customisation through relabelling services and a curated directory of screen printers and embroiderers. A new 5,899 m² European distribution centre serves mainland Europe. Key product lines include the Activewear collection (recycled materials, moisture-wicking), Organic & Recycled Range (eco-friendly organic cotton), Workwear Collection (durable canvas), and Headwear (multiple styles across branded franchises). The brand organizes products into franchise sub-brands including Staple, Classic, Heavy, Made, Relax, Box, and Stencil ranges for men's; Maple, Martina, Classic, Heavy, Relax, and Cropped for women's; and Surf, Finn, Stock, Access, Icon, Class, Frame, and Mesh for headwear.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Men's Apparel Core men's clothing range including T-shirts, tanks & singlets, longsleeves, sweats & hoodies, shirts & polos, jackets, shorts, joggers, and trousers, designed for both wholesale and retail customers who customise garments through screen printing and embroidery.
- Women's Apparel Core women's clothing range including T-shirts, crop tops, tanks & singlets, longsleeves, sweats & hoodies, jackets, leggings, and joggers & shorts, designed for wholesale and retail customers who customise garments through screen printing and embroidery.
- Kids Apparel Children's clothing range including T-shirts, sweatshirts, and headwear accessories.
- Headwear Collection Headwear collection including caps, snapbacks, five-panel, truckers, bucket hats, quick-dry nylon, and beanies across multiple branded ranges.
- Accessories Accessories range including totes, bags & wallets, socks & pants, belts, aprons & overalls, gadgets, printing equipment, point of sale, and stickers.
- Activewear Collection Performance athletic wear made from recycled materials featuring buttery soft matte finish, quick-drying and moisture-wicking properties, suitable for low to medium impact activities. Includes bike shorts, leggings, and bra tops.
- Organic & Recycled Range Sustainable apparel collection made from eco-friendly organic cotton grown without herbicides or pesticides, and recycled materials. Over 90% of AS Colour's offering is made from 100% natural fibres.
- Workwear Collection Durable workwear apparel designed for industrial and trade use, often featuring Heavy Duck Canvas materials.
- Relabelling Service Service allowing wholesale customers to relabel AS Colour garments with their own branding for resale under their own label.
Quantifiable outcome
- Extending garment life by 9 months can reduce carbon footprint by 20-30%
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use AS Colour
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
AS Colour technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature3 records
AS Colour partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- amfori (BSCI)coreAS Colour is a member of amfori, which leads ethical compliance in supply chains, supporting companies to drive social compliance and improvements within factories and farms in their global supply chains.
- Better Cotton InitiativecorePartnership with Better Cotton Initiative to make global cotton production better for people who produce it, better for the environment, and better for the sector's future.
- OEKO-TEXcoreOEKO-TEX Standard 100 certification ensuring garments are made with non-toxic dyes, minimising environmental impact of dyeing industry and ensuring safety for consumers and workers.
- CarbonClickminorPartnership with CarbonClick to support carbon offsetting through reforestation projects.
- ReemiminorPartnership with Reemi, a non-profit providing culturally appropriate, sustainable and innovative period products to people in developing countries. Women make up over 80% of global garment workforce.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
AS Colour competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Los Angeles Apparel: US-made premium basics and blanks producer with strong DTC and wholesale channels; competes in the premium-blank category with similar attention to construction quality and garment-dyed aesthetics.
- Anvil Knitwear: Knit-blanks specialist with a long-standing presence in the screen-print and decorator channel; offers comparable t-shirts and fleece basics with sustainability variants that overlap AS Colour's organic and recycled lines.
- Bella+Canvas: US-based premium blank apparel manufacturer with comparable positioning around retail-quality tees, sweatshirts, and hoodies targeted at decorators and direct-to-consumer brands — the closest global analogue to AS Colour's premium-blanks proposition.
- Alternative Apparel: Premium basics and blanks brand with eco-friendly materials and soft-handle fabrics, selling through wholesale and DTC; competes for the same sustainability-conscious decorators and premium blank customers as AS Colour.
- Stanley/Stella: European premium blank apparel brand focused on sustainable, GOTS-certified organic cotton garments for decorators and retailers; closely mirrors AS Colour's sustainability-led, premium positioning and serves overlapping European wholesale customers.
- Next Level Apparel: Premium blank apparel maker with a deep catalog of tees, tanks, and fleece targeted at screen printers and apparel decorators; competes head-on with AS Colour in the wholesale blanks channel, especially in North America.
- Continental Clothing: UK- and Europe-based sustainable blank apparel manufacturer offering organic, Fairtrade, and recycled-cotton tees and sweatshirts to the print and embroidery trade; directly comparable product mix, geography, and customer base.
Emerging players
- Printful: Print-on-demand marketplace and contract decorator that also offers its own blank apparel (including its 'Underwear & Basics' private label); adjacent to AS Colour because it is both a potential customer (decorator) and a potential competitor (vertically-integrated blanks).
Broad incumbents
- Hanesbrands: Broad portfolio owner of Champion and Hanes-branded blanks; competes with AS Colour at the value and mid tiers of the wholesale blank apparel market but lacks the same premium-creator positioning.
- Gildan: Vertically integrated global apparel giant with the largest blank apparel catalog worldwide (tees, fleece, activewear); competes with AS Colour on price, scale, and breadth but does not focus on the sustainability-led premium niche.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
AS Colour social profiles
Digital presenceAS Colour compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance13 records
AS Colour financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AS Colour leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
AS Colour funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AS Colour M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about AS Colour
What does AS Colour do?
AS Colour designs, manufactures, and distributes premium blank apparel (T-shirts, sweats, hoodies, leggings, headwear, accessories) for men, women, and kids. Garments are built to be customised through screen printing and embroidery, sold directly to consumers via retail stores and e-commerce, and supplied in bulk to B2B customers (screen printers, embroiderers, apparel decorators) via tiered wholesale pricing and relabelling services.
Is AS Colour a public or private company?
AS Colour is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was AS Colour founded?
AS Colour was founded in 2005. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is AS Colour based?
AS Colour is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does AS Colour make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Apparel Sales are the primary driver. The others are wholesale/Bulk Orders.
Who are AS Colour's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Los Angeles Apparel, Anvil Knitwear, Bella+Canvas, Alternative Apparel, Stanley/Stella, Next Level Apparel and Continental Clothing. Printful is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Hanesbrands and Gildan.
Does AS Colour have an API?
No public API is recorded for AS Colour.
What industry is AS Colour in?
AS Colour's product category is Premium Blank Apparel Manufacturing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAOAEAE, Tops & Shirts Cut & Sew (T-Shirts/Shirts/Blouses), with a secondary code of CRAAAAAI, Outerwear & Cold-Weather Apparel Manufacturers. Its NAICS code is 3152 and its SIC code is 2320.