Celebrating our 30th anniversary!
29/06/2022
Campus Clothing
This year, Camus Clothing celebrates 30 years of providing graduation merchandise to university students around the UK.
For the past three decades we have been honoured to supply personalised hoodies, t-shirts and other graduation memorabilia to graduating students at more than to 90 of the UK’s higher education institutions.
We first launched in 1992, when Rupert Forsythe, had one box of t-shirts, which he sold to the graduating students of the year above him at Birmingham University. They were an instant hit, and the following year Rupert did the same for his own graduating cohort.
By 1994, Rupert was selling graduation t-shirts at Hull University, the first client of Campus Clothing. As their popularity grew, Rupert introduced more apparel including hoodies, and by the early 2000s, Campus Clothing was providing graduation apparel to universities up and down the UK.
Daniel Simmonds, Director of Campus Clothing, said: “The cap and gown are, without question, the item of clothing you think of when you think of graduation. But very few students own the cap and gown they wear to the ceremony, nowadays they are hired and are given back at the end of the day.
“But a hoodie or a t-shirt with the University logo on it, the date of graduation and the names of the graduating cohort is something a student can own and keep forever. They will be able to show their children and their grandchildren in years to come. My friends and I still have our hoodies from university, and we are still as proud of them today, as we were back then.”
We are proud to give a percentage of each sale back to the institution where that sale took place, for that university to use it how they see fit. Many universities use it to make improvements to the graduation ceremonies for future student cohorts, while some use it for student bursaries and funding award schemes.
The COVID-19 pandemic prevented Campus Clothing from attending on-campus graduation ceremonies, but they were able to adapt, and students could still order their merchandise online. However, this year Campus has a full diary of graduation events throughout the spring and summer.
Daniel said: “Like most businesses, the pandemic was a very challenging and uncertain time, but we managed to keep going. We were able to get back to some live events last year, which was fantastic, and this year our diary is packed full of graduation celebration. There’s nothing like being at a graduation event.
“We are incredibly proud to have been providing quality graduation merchandise for the past 30 years – from Rupert starting out with one box of t-shirts, we now provide thousands of items to students around the UK.