The 90-Day New-Hire Kit Program
Most new-hire kits are one box on day one. This program adds a second piece at the 30-day check-in and a third at the 90-day review, and with a DTF print on each piece the first two drops cost $68.85 for each hire at list. Below are the calendar that gets each piece there on time and the one-page runbook that keeps the program going.
The team onboarding kit guide covers what goes in the box. This one covers days 2 through 90, when the hire has stopped being new and hasn't decided to stay. The program spreads the pieces across the three moments where onboarding already happens and runs them on a calendar instead of leaving them to whoever remembers. A hoodie, a tee and a cap arrive for day one, a polo or a second tee is handed over at the 30-day check-in, and a sweatshirt follows at the 90-day review. Day one and day 30 together come to $68.85 at list, or $60.59 once the order reaches the 50-piece tier, and the sweatshirt is priced in one business day.
Why three drops work better than one box
Day one is crowded with laptop setup, a dozen intro meetings and a benefits portal. A kit that lands in the middle of all that gets its photo and not much more attention.
Day 30 and day 90 are quieter, and each already has a meeting attached, the check-in and the review. A garment handed over in that meeting shows the hire that someone is still paying attention, and it gives the manager something to do besides fill in a form.
The spacing also gets the pieces worn more. Three pieces that arrive together get worn as a set, while the same three arriving over 90 days each get a week as the new thing, which improves the cost-per-wear math.
The calendar from day −49 to day 90
A reorder spends three weeks in production from the day you approve it and two more in transit. Add a week of buffer and the approval has to happen six weeks before the start date, which is day −42 in the table.
| Day | What happens | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| −49 (typical) | Offer accepted. Recruiting sends the share link the same day: size, fit preference, delivery address. | Recruiting |
| −42 | Sizes due and last call. The hire goes in as one line on this month's cohort reorder, approved today. Anyone accepting inside six weeks moves to the late lane. | People ops |
| −21 | Production done. The kit ships with a name on every sleeve. | AffirmGear |
| −7 | Kit lands at home or on the desk, with the manager's handwritten line inside. | Manager |
| 1 | Unboxing. The welcome message names the team channel to post the photo in. | Manager |
| 30 | Check-in. Second piece handed over in the meeting. | Manager |
| 90 | Review. Tenure piece in the second colorway. | Manager + people ops |
The share link collects size and address once, directly from the hire, without a round trip through the recruiter. Our sizing guide has the fit notes to put on it, and because XS to 4XL costs the same, no hire's size changes the budget.
What goes in each drop
Day 1: the core kit
A 330 GSM hoodie ($23.96), a 220 GSM tee ($17.02) and a structured cap ($10.85), each with one DTF print, come to $51.83 at list. This is the box that gets photographed, which makes the name sleeve and the note matter as much as the fleece. The hoodie is cut roomy, and anyone who wants a closer fit should size down. Anatomy of a New-Hire Kit People Post About breaks down what shows up in the photo.
Day 30: the piece for the job
By day 30 you know what the hire wears to work. Customer-facing roles get the pique polo, $20.18 with a printed mark. A small tonal mark suits the piece whether it's printed or embroidered, and embroidery is quoted in one business day. It runs true, and anyone between sizes should size down. Everyone else gets a second tee in a different colorway ($17.02). In both cases the manager hands the piece over in the check-in meeting instead of sending it through the mail room.
Day 90: the tenure piece
The 90-day review is where "new hire" ends. Mark it with the crewneck sweatshirt in the second colorway, which we price in one business day, or the button-up shirt ($28.37 with a print) for client-facing roles. The sweatshirt is cut roomy and most people keep their normal size, while the shirt is tailored and anyone with broad shoulders should size up. We use the second colorway on purpose, because on a video call it tells everyone who owns one that the wearer has been here a while.
The one-page runbook
The program outlasts the person who started it only if it's written down. Keep the runbook to one page, stored where whoever holds the role next can find it, with these six entries:
- Collection on file. Lock it once in the Design Studio, where a designer on our team finishes it, and record which colorway goes in which drop. If you want to see the pieces before the first bulk run, a sample set costs extra and adds about two weeks.
- Recruiting sends the share link at offer acceptance. The runbook holds the email script, where the link lives and the wording of the five-day reminder.
- People ops owns the monthly cohort reorder on a fixed date, the buffer count and the late-lane call at day −42.
- Managers write the day-1 note, hand over the day-30 and day-90 pieces and prompt the photo, which adds two lines to the manager checklist.
- Finance carries the kit as a per-hire line in the recruiting budget instead of the merch budget, using the template in the budget math guide.
- Buffer caps. Add 15 one-size caps to the first order and hold them for the late lane. The cap fits 54 to 61 cm.
One reorder a month, with three lines
Your artwork and size list stay with us between orders, which lets the whole program run as one order a month. If you approve that order on the 1st, it carries three lines:
- Line 1, day-1 kits for starters two months out, whose sizes are already in from the share link.
- Line 2, day-30 pieces for next month's starters, whose check-ins fall the month after.
- Line 3, day-90 pieces for the cohort that started last month.
An order approved on October 1 might hold six kits for December starters, five tees and one polo for November starters, and four sweatshirts for September starters. It would be delivered by November 5, ahead of every hand-off on the list. Remote teams add split shipping to home addresses at the same step, as the remote onboarding kit guide explains.
What the program costs per hire
| Drop | Piece | List | At −12% (50+ pieces) | At −22% (150+ pieces) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Hoodie + tee + cap | $51.83 | $45.61 | $40.43 |
| Day 30 | Tee | $17.02 | $14.98 | $13.28 |
| Day 90 | Sweatshirt | Priced in one business day | 12% off the quote | 22% off the quote |
| Days 1 and 30 | $68.85 | $60.59 | $53.71 |
Every price in the table carries one DTF print. A client-facing hire who gets the button-up shirt at day 90 adds $28.37 at list, $24.97 at −12% or $22.13 at −22%, so all three drops come to $97.22 at list. Swap the day-30 tee for a polo and the first two drops list at $72.01, or $63.37 at −12%. Because the tier counts the whole mixed order, 17 kits (51 pieces) on one order take 12% off all of it. Technology teams tend to run this hoodie-first version, while professional services firms lead with the polo and the shirt.
Which numbers show the program is working?
- Share links back within five days. When they trail in late, the email script is usually what needs fixing.
- Kits on the desk before day one. Count the misses, and remember that the late lane keeps a miss from being visible to the hire.
- Size swaps. Swaps are rare when the hire picks their own size, and if yours aren't rare, look at what the link asks.
- Sightings on calls. Count kit pieces on video calls in weeks 4 and 8, because this is the number that becomes next year's budget slide.
- 90-day retention. Compare the cohorts hired before the program with the ones hired after it. The kit isn't the only variable, but it's the one you changed.
Related reading.
- The Team Onboarding Kit Guide
- Onboarding Kit Budget Math: Cost Per Wear
- Remote Onboarding Kits for Distributed Teams
Questions we get.
When should I order a new hire's kit?
At offer acceptance. Send the size and address share link the same day and place the order once sizes are in. An order approved six or more weeks before the start date lands before day one, because production takes three weeks from approval, shipping takes two, and the sixth week is buffer. Inside that window, hand over a one-size cap from your buffer on day one and deliver the full kit with the day-30 piece.
What goes in the day-30 and day-90 drops?
Day 30 is the piece for the job. Customer-facing roles get a pique polo ($20.18 with a printed mark) and everyone else gets a second tee ($17.02) in a new colorway, handed over at the 30-day check-in. Day 90 marks tenure with a crewneck sweatshirt, priced in one business day, or a button-up shirt ($28.37 with a print) in the second colorway, given at the 90-day review.
How do monthly cohorts work with the minimum order?
Fifteen pieces is the smallest run we publish. Because we keep your design and sizes between orders, a monthly cohort is one order with three lines: day-1 kits for starters two months out, day-30 pieces for next month's starters, and day-90 pieces for the cohort that started last month. All we need from you each month is the count for each line.
What if a hire accepts less than six weeks before starting?
Put them on the late lane. On day one they get a one-size cap from your buffer with a handwritten note, and the full name-sleeved kit arrives with the day-30 drop. The buffer is the 15 caps you added to your first order, and the late lane needs no purchase beyond them.