Remember when boxed wine company Franzia launched a merch line that included a wine-dispensing backpack?

I'm over the #McNuggetBodyPillow now that I've seen the wine-dispensing backpack, tbh. https://t.co/B7koDVCF05

— Theresa Hegel (@TheresaHegel) September 10, 2020

How about that 5-foot-long insulated Busch-branded Christmas stocking that keeps a dozen beers cool? Or the body pillow shaped like a giant bottle of Mountain Dew? Then there are the throw pillows that double as Oreos and hot wings, cut-and-sew totes featuring Van Gogh and Da Vinci’s greatest hits, sheer chiffon rainbow-patterned scarves for Pride Month and so much more. It’s all in a day’s work for LBU Inc. (asi/65952). The Paterson, NJ-based supplier, which completed a $4.5 million factory overhaul in 2019, specializes in creating custom sewn products for distributors and their clients.

“After 30 years, it’s never a freaking dull moment,” says Jeffrey Mayer, CEO. “A lot of people think custom is a four-letter word.” But, he adds, building custom products can be a lot of fun and a great differentiator from the competition.

In this episode of Promo Insiders, Theresa Hegel, executive editor of digital content at ASI, chats with Mayer and Jordan Scaduto, executive vice president of LBU, about the ins and outs of customization and how domestic production can help distributors alleviate some of the supply chain issues plaguing the promotional products industry right now.

Podcast Chapters (only available on desktop)
2:18: Switching to Made-in-the-USA to sidestep supply chain delays
5:45: Liquor companies bounced back quickly from the pandemic
11:20: Custom products for Pride Month
18:50: Step-by-step guide to creating a custom item
23:30: How LBU handles challenging situations
26:00: Saving lives (and jobs) during the pandemic
30:15: What makes custom products powerful

LBU Inc. creates custom sewn products in over 50 categories in its 40,000-square-foot factory, located just minutes away from New York City. The supplier employs about 200 people, and will work “seven days a week, 24 hours a day” if necessary to complete a quick-turn order, according to Scaduto. The supplier also stocks large quantities of various fabrics to help avoid potential shortages caused by supply chain issues.

During the pandemic, LBU pivoted into PPE, making millions of masks in 2020. The supplier also worked with apparel companies across the country, helping them start mask-sewing operations, both to keep healthcare systems stocked with PPE and to keep people employed, Mayer says.

These days, however, the supplier is hard at work creating custom bags and soft-sided coolers for liquor companies and building fanny packs, sarongs, mesh pouches and more for Pride Month.

Though creating a custom product can seem intimidating, Mayer says, it’s often as simple as picking up the phone and calling your supplier. LBU, for example, has reps that can walk a distributor through the process – figuring out what the client is looking for and then creating a virtual deck with half a dozen ideas within a day. If the client likes an idea, LBU’s sample department will whip up a prototype and ship it blind, so it’s waiting on the client’s desk within a day or two. Showing clients “things that don’t exist” quicker than the competition can is what has helped LBU’s distributors – many of whom were small or mid-sized – “become large fish,” Mayer adds.

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