Uniforms for barbershops, restaurants and trades
Custom work uniforms for a small business do not need to be complicated: a tee or long sleeve with your logo on the chest, a hoodie for cold days, and a hat if it suits the job. At Papaya, a printed tee starts at $20 for 5 pieces and gets cheaper as the order grows, with a 5-piece minimum per order that you can mix across sizes, colours and garments.
What changes from one business to the next is which garments, which colours and where the logo sits. Here is how we would set up a barbershop, a restaurant and a trades crew.
What works for a barbershop?
Barbers want something clean that looks sharp in photos and holds up to a full day on their feet. A black or grey tee with a chest logo covers most of it.
- Tees in black or grey for the floor, with the logo on the left or right chest
- Long sleeves for the colder months, in the same colour so the team still matches
- A hoodie for the barber who opens up on winter mornings
- Trucker hats for events and giveaways rather than daily wear
Since the shop's Instagram is full of photos of barbers at work, the chest logo shows up in your content without anyone thinking about it.
What works for a restaurant?
Restaurants usually need two looks: front of house and kitchen. Splitting them by colour makes it easy for customers to tell who to flag down.
- Front of house: tees in a colour that matches your brand, logo on the chest
- Kitchen: black tees, since they hide the inevitable splashes
- Hats: trucker hats in black or navy, with one logo on the face
- Patio and delivery staff: a hoodie for cool evenings
If you run a patio, order the hoodies before the season starts rather than after the first cold night.
What works for trades and construction?
On a job site, people see your crew's back more than their front. That is where a big back logo earns its keep: your company name is readable from the street, from a ladder or from the next lot over.
- Long sleeves and hoodies for most of the season, with a chest logo and a big back logo
- Tees for summer, in white, grey or blue
- Trucker hats for crew members who do not wear a hard hat all day
One clear note: these are everyday work garments, not high-visibility or safety-rated clothing. Wear them under whatever your site requires.
How much do custom work uniforms cost?
Pricing is per piece, includes the garment and one DTF-printed logo, and the tier depends on the total number of pieces in the order. Prices are in CAD, plus HST.
| Pieces in the order | Tee | Long sleeve | Hoodie | Trucker hat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5+ | $20 | $25 | $40 | $25 |
| 10+ | $18 | $22.50 | $36 | $22 |
| 25+ | $16 | $20.50 | $33 | $19.50 |
| 50+ | $14.50 | $18.50 | $30 | $17.50 |
| 100+ | $13 | $17 | $28 | $16 |
A big back logo adds $12 per piece on garments. Trucker hats take one logo, on the front.
Here is a worked example. Say a small restaurant orders 8 tees, 4 hoodies and 3 trucker hats. That is 15 pieces, so everything prices at the 10+ tier: $144 for the tees, $144 for the hoodies and $66 for the hats, or $354.
Add a big back logo to the 4 hoodies for $48 and the order comes to $402. With 13% HST, the total is $454.26.
How does ordering work?
You order online at /shop: pick garments, colours and sizes, then upload your logo. Tees, long sleeves and hoodies come in white, black, grey or blue, hats come in black or navy, and sizes run S to XXL.
Before anything is printed, you get a digital proof to approve. If your logo file is a blurry screenshot, sort that out first; our guide to getting a logo file ready for printing explains what to send.
A few practical tips
- Order one or two extra in your most common sizes so new hires are covered.
- Keep one colour per role so customers can tell staff apart.
- Since the minimum is 5 pieces per order, group small reorders rather than buying one shirt at a time.
- Keep the logo simple. Fine detail and thin lines are harder to read from across a room.
Where Papaya fits
We print uniforms for small teams across Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph and Southern Ontario, with a 5-piece minimum and a proof before printing. The apparel page covers garments, logo placement and pricing in one place; for anything unusual, use the contact form.
Common questions
What is the minimum order for custom work uniforms?
Papaya's minimum is 5 pieces per order. You can mix sizes, colours and garments to reach it.
Can I mix tees, hoodies and hats in one uniform order?
Yes. The price tier is based on the total number of pieces in the order, so mixing garments still counts toward the lower per-piece tiers.
Can trucker hats have a back logo?
No. Trucker hats take one logo on the face; the big back logo option is for tees, long sleeves and hoodies.
Business Apparel
Staff uniforms and branded merch for your team — tees, hoodies and hats with your logo, priced online.