From Best-Kept Secret to a Digital Platform Built for Growth

Apparel Redefined used IMEC and Cook County resources and B2Btail’s Digital Game Plan to transform its digital foundation, build customer trust, and create a clearer path from marketing to business development.

Company Snapshot

• Company: Apparel Redefined
• Location: Cook County, Illinois
• Industry: Custom apparel manufacturing and decoration
• Specialty: Custom apparel, printing and advanced direct-to-garment capabilities
• MEP Partner: IMEC, the Illinois Manufacturing Extension Partnership 
• B2Btail Role: Digital Game Plan, website strategy, SEO, content strategy, social media and business-development alignment

“Specifically for B2Btail, you took us out of the dark ages.” — John LaRoy

Taking Growth to the Next Level Required a Different Approach

Apparel Redefined was not short on expertise, ambition or manufacturing capability. The company had been part of Cook County since 1970 and was continually looking for ways to innovate and compete.

But President John LaRoy recognized that the competitive landscape had changed. Apparel Redefined was no longer competing only against regional businesses. Its marketplace had become national, and the company’s digital presence needed to reflect the quality, speed and service customers experienced offline.

“Taking ourselves to the next level was going to take a different approach,” LaRoy said.

Through IMEC and Cook County, Apparel Redefined gained access to B2Btail and a practical process for defining that approach.

Turning Digital Marketing Into a Roadmap

The B2Btail Digital Game Plan helped Apparel Redefined move beyond disconnected marketing tactics and start building a deliberate digital foundation.

An early priority was the website. What began as an SEO-focused effort evolved into creating a stronger website capable of serving as what LaRoy later called a “digital welcome mat”—a place where prospective customers could validate who Apparel Redefined was, what it did and whether it could be trusted.

Then came the challenge familiar to many manufacturers: having a great website doesn’t help enough if you remain the best-kept secret.

B2Btail helped Apparel Redefined build a repeatable content strategy around authentic conversations with customers, partners and industry experts. A single 20- to 30-minute interview could become pillar content distributed across LinkedIn, YouTube, YouTube Shorts, Facebook and Instagram.

For LaRoy, the simplicity mattered.

“It’s like going from nothing, like zero to hero,” he said. “This has been a really nice…roadmap of like, here’s what you can do with not a ton of investment or lift.”

From Content Creation to Business Development

The goal was never simply to post more content.

B2Btail helped Apparel Redefined connect its SEO keywords, website, interviews, social content and customer expertise into a more cohesive system. Once that foundation was established, the conversation shifted toward a bigger question:

How can marketing help create the right sales conversations?

The next evolution was becoming more intentional about interview guests, including customers, industry influencers and prospective “home run” accounts and using educational content to support business development.

LaRoy saw the pieces coming together.

“You had to have the website to establish the trust for the clients that we’re going after,” he said. With the website, LinkedIn presence and growing library of content, “I got all the boxes checked.”

Building Digital Trust and Measurable Momentum

By the October 2024 closeout, Apparel Redefined had moved from little social activity to a consistent multi-channel presence supported by a repeatable content process.

The early digital indicators were moving in the right direction:

• Domain authority increased from 6 to 9.
• Numerous tracked keywords improved in Google rankings, including several reported No. 1 positions.
• YouTube Shorts were generating hundreds of views, with individual content cited at approximately 500 and 1,500 views.
• Facebook and Instagram activity showed substantial growth from a near-zero starting point.
• A repeatable interview process created multiple pieces of content from a relatively small time commitment.

The more important change, however, was strategic. Apparel Redefined now had a digital foundation designed to support trust before a salesperson ever entered the conversation.

“If people don’t know about it…and you don’t present yourself well digitally, you’re going to lose that shot,” LaRoy said.

IMEC and Cook County Helped Close the Gap

For LaRoy, IMEC’s value extended beyond access to funding. It provided a trusted connection to specialized expertise while reducing the time and friction required to find the right resources.

He described the experience as a “pleasant surprise” and credited IMEC with helping Apparel Redefined navigate difficult periods, think strategically about its future and connect with professionals who could close important capability gaps.

“How much time, how much money are you going to spend to get where you want to be?” LaRoy asked. IMEC, he said, helped “close that gap.”

He also praised the Cook County-supported process as easy, friendly, communicative and helpful a contrast to the bureaucracy businesses sometimes expect from public programs.

No Longer Content to Be the Best-Kept Secret

Today, Apparel Redefined is looking beyond its initial digital transformation.

The company is pursuing new manufacturing capabilities, developing new apparel products, advancing a new Shopify-based opportunity, and planning a new facility in Cook County. LaRoy also wants to continue turning the marketing foundation into a more focused lead-generation and business-development engine.

After years of working with IMEC and B2Btail, perhaps the strongest measure of the relationship is simple.

“I don’t want this to end,” LaRoy said. “I would love to keep it going.”

Apparel Redefined knows where it wants to go next. Now it has a stronger digital foundation and a practical roadmap to help get there.