Athletic Towel Buying Guide
Athletes have different needs for their athletic towels, whether it’s in the gym, for the shower, or while traveling for their competitions. If you’re a training facility owner or coach/trainer purchasing towels for your athletes, you’re likely overwhelmed with the options available and deciding on the right ones for their circumstances.
This guide breaks down the different athletic towels available, features of each towel, and things you’ll need to consider when buying athletic towels.
Things You Need To Know Before Buying Athletic Towels
Here are a few things you need to know that will help you purchase the right athletic towels:
Knowing about the following 3 properties will help purchase the right athletic towels:
Fabric Type
Cotton is the most common type of fabric to make athletic towels. It’s highly absorbent, soft to the touch, and very durable. Cotton-poly blends are a variation that helps reduce shrinkage. Microfiber is a synthetic fabric that is light, compact, and dries faster than regular fabrics.
Fabric Weight
Measure Fabric weight (density) by using GSM (grams per square meter) or lbs per dozen in bulk. This shows how dense the fabric is per square meter of material. Generally, a higher GSM means a towel is more absorbent and softer, but heavier and takes longer to dry. A lower GSM means a towel is lighter in weight and dries faster, but absorbs less water overall.
Microfiber towels tend to have lower a GSM, while cotton towels can range from low to high GSM.
Fabric Construction
Fabric construction consists of how the yarn is made and any decorative patterns on the fabric. Ringspun cotton provides a smoother touch and is stronger. Patterns such as a dobby weave add a decorative touch.
Now that you have a better understanding of what makes a good towel, let’s take a look at the different types available.
Types of Athletic Towels
Hand Towel
Hand towels make the ideal workout towel for your athletes. They absorb sweat and are light enough to carry throughout the workout area of your gym. Texon’s hand towels are available in 3 options: Economy, Premium, and Colors.
Economy hand towels are 100% cotton and are priced affordably.
Premium hand towels are 100% ring spun cotton with 2 different densities available: 3lbs/dz and 4lbs/dz. A unique feature of our hand towels is the dobby border decoration which can be matched with our bath towels.
Colored hand towels are available in 15 different shades of color.
All hand towels are 16” x 27” in size.
Bath Towel
Your athletes will need bath towels for their shower after a hard training session. Texon offers premium white bath towels that are 27” x 54” in size, with two versions available: 14lb/dz and 17lb/dz.
Microfiber Towel
Athletes need a cloth to clean their gym gear and wipe equipment surfaces. Microfiber towels are well suited for this. They lift dirt and debris and store the liquid or particle until the towel is washed. Texon microfiber towels are available in white or 12 different colors. All towels are 16” x 16” in size.
Assessing Your Needs
The following questions will help you decide on the type of towels you’ll need to purchase:
Economy vs Premium?
Economy towels provide a standard experience at a reasonable price. If your facility is on a budget or has issues with loss prevention, these towels will keep your expenses under control.
Premium bath towels provide a luxurious experience since they are highly absorbent and have a soft, fluffy, feeling when touched. This towel is well suited to higher-end facilities that want to distinguish themselves.
Microfiber vs Cotton?
The softness and absorbency of cotton towels make them the best bath and workout towel hands down. However, they aren’t great for cleaning and wiping equipment surfaces as they tend to stain easily.
Microfiber towels are excellent for cleaning. Also, because they are light they can make good workout towels for athletes that need to travel.
Plain White vs Color Options?
Plain white towels are the most popular type of towel purchased. However, if you need to separate your team towels, using colored towels is a good way to stay organized. You could use a color coding system with towels for different purposes.
Retail vs Bulk?
Most commercial training facilities require bulk quantities of athletic towels to meet the needs of their athletes. While a retail store has sufficient supplies for your home, they rarely have the bulk quantity and pricing that a bulk supplier can offer.