UniFirst Launches Always U™ Workwear Collection Designed for the Active Workforce

New collection combines comfort, mobility, modern design, and a women's line in a budget-friendly solution built for uniform rental programs

WILMINGTON, Mass., Sept. 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF), a North American leader in customized business uniform programs, facility service products, and first aid and safety services, today announced the launch of Always U™, a new workwear collection designed to address a long-standing gap in the uniform market. Purpose-built for active teams, Always U delivers the comfort, mobility and modern style workers want with the professional appearance and value businesses require.

Always U collection highlights:

• All-day comfort and unmatched mobility: Poly/cotton fabrics engineered with mechanical stretch deliver 10% to 12% more stretch than standard uniforms. Paired with internal elastic waistbands, integrated crotch gussets, and articulated knees, the collection provides unmatched comfort and mobility.
• Modern design: Contemporary, professional designs created for the way today's active teams work.
• Dedicated Women's Line: Designed entirely around a woman's natural profile, fit, and movement from the start, rather than adapted from men's apparel.
• Purpose-built for active workers: Functional details including versatile storage, utility pockets and design features that support movement throughout the workday.
• Uncompromising value: High-quality workwear designed to meet the needs of value-conscious businesses.

Founded in 1936, UniFirst outfits more than 2 million workers in clean uniforms each workday and serves more than 300,000 customer locations per year. Drawing on that experience, the company developed Always U to address a common operational challenge: standard uniforms offered durability and a professional look, but workers wore them out of obligation. More comfortable styles existed, but they were often too costly or impractical for uniform rental programs.

Across manufacturing floors, distribution centers, transportation fleets, technical services, and the contracting trades, active employees spend full shifts bending, reaching, and staying in motion. Rather than simply updating the look of standard workwear, UniFirst reimagined the design around how active employees actually move throughout the workday.

"When frontline workers spend their entire day in a uniform, what they wear matters to them and to their business," said Steven Sintros, CEO of UniFirst. "Always U delivers the best of both worlds. We have a high-performance collection with mechanical stretch, advanced mobility features, and modern style, all at an affordable price point built specifically for a managed rental program."

Always U also addresses a long-overlooked gap in the uniform market with a dedicated women's line. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women now make up approximately 14.3% of construction employment, 28.6% of manufacturing employment, and 26.2% of transportation and warehousing employment. Yet standard workwear has not always been designed to reflect that workforce reality. Women's work shirts in the Always U collection feature waist shaping and hem lengths cut to a woman's natural profile, while pants and shorts offer a contoured mid-rise fit with internal elastic waistbands, lay-flat pockets, and streamlined cargo storage that adds utility without bulk.

"Women have long been an essential part of the workforce, but traditional workwear hasn't always been designed with their specific needs in mind," said Leigh-Anne Zavalick, Product Manager at UniFirst. Added Heather Trumbell, Director of Sourcing, "With Always U, we designed around women's fit, movement, and functionality from the start because that's who is doing these jobs today, and their uniforms need to reflect that reality."

The Always U™ collection begins shipping September 5, 2026, and is available through UniFirst's managed uniform rental programs, which include hygienic laundering, garment inspection, maintenance, automatic garment repairs and replacement, and uniform pickup and delivery.

To learn more about Always U™, visit unifirst.com/uniforms-workwear/always-u/

To learn more about UniFirst, visit unifirst.com

About UniFirst
UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) helps businesses of all sizes keep their workers safe, comfortable and professional with work uniform and facility service solutions, as well as first aid and safety supplies and services. Headquartered in Wilmington, Mass., the company manufactures its own branded workwear, protective clothing, floorcare products and restroom supplies at three company-owned facilities. Guided by a commitment to Always Deliver® for its customers, Team Partners, and communities, UniFirst operates more than 270 service locations across North America, serves more than 300,000 customer locations, and outfits over 2 million workers daily with the support of more than 16,000 Team Partners. For more information, visit UniFirst.com. Follow UniFirst on LinkedIn, Facebook, X, YouTube, Instagram.

SOURCE UniFirst Corporation