T-Shirt and Hoodie Printing in Aberdeen

Aberdeen orders at FabricForge are printed at our own Aberdeen production house and sent on to wherever you are, from a Footdee flat to an office in Dyce. Think of the production house as a print workshop, not a shop: it cannot take walk-in callers, so every job starts with a message on WhatsApp, a phone call or an email.

We set no minimum order, and a discount applies once you reach 5 or more items. The guide below follows the Granite City's own rhythm: its light festival and street art, its Kiltwalk and Highland Games, its harbour and energy firms, its universities and hospitals, and the towns of Aberdeenshire that sit a short drive away.

Granite City institutions and who might need printing

Aberdeen earned its Granite City name from the Rubislaw granite used in buildings such as the Music Hall and Marischal College, and its Silver City name from the mica that makes the stone glint in sunlight. Rubislaw Quarry closed in 1971 and is now a lake. Each organisation below is introduced briefly, then paired with the people inside it who might want clothing and the garments we could print.

Learning and training

King's College in Old Aberdeen and the Foresterhill site are the two main campuses of the University of Aberdeen, which dates from 1495 and teaches many thousands of students. A medical society, a Highland dance club or a rowing crew wanting a distinct jumper could place a crest on the chest and a nickname on the sleeve; see society hoodies.

Marischal College was founded in 1593 and merged with King's College in 1860 to create the University of Aberdeen. Its granite frontage, begun in 1837, is said to be the second largest granite building in the world, and the city council now works there. Alumni reunion groups touring the building might like a heritage-style tee with a line drawing of the facade.

RGU grew from Robert Gordon's Hospital, set up in the 1700s to teach poor children, and has held university status since 1992. Its single Garthdee campus teaches professional, technical, health and creative subjects. Placement cohorts want name-badge polos, student-led enterprise teams need branded tees for pitch day, and graduating years can finish with a leavers' hoodie.

Aberdeen College and Banff & Buchan College merged on 1 November 2013 to form North East Scotland College, which teaches engineering, science, creative, computing, business and service subjects across Aberdeen, Fraserburgh and Ellon, with the Scottish Maritime Academy in Peterhead. Trade learners can have hi-vis and workwear carrying a college or cohort name, and hospitality classes need event polos.

Health, care and children's charity

Looking after over 500,000 people across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray, NHS Grampian is one of Scotland's fourteen regional health boards. Staff wellbeing groups, departmental charity teams and recruitment-event volunteers might ask for tees in one bright shade, tote bags for leaflet packs, or scrubs for teams who work in them.

Foresterhill is home to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, the largest hospital in the Grampian area and a teaching hospital with a Major Trauma Centre emergency department. Nurses and porters entering a sponsored walk can have matching shirts with a ward name on the back, and students on placement may want a society hoodie.

Next door at Foresterhill, the Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital has roots going back to 1877 and reopened in January 2004 after a full rebuild, serving children across northern Scotland. A sponsored-run squad or a school fundraising for it will like cheerful artwork and a child-size range of tees, with kids' names printed on the back.

Westburn Road is the address of Royal Cornhill Hospital, a specialist psychiatric hospital opened as the Aberdeen Lunatic Asylum in 1800. Awareness-walk organisers and staff wellbeing teams might pick a calm, single-colour tee with a short slogan, easy to read from a distance in a crowd.

Charlie House supports children in the north-east who have life-limiting or life-threatening conditions, along with their families. At its fundraising events, committees, school teams and corporate fundraisers could wear shared tees with a slogan of their own invention. See charity fundraising tees.

Councils and civic bodies

Forty-five councillors from thirteen wards sit on Aberdeen City Council, which has run from Marischal College beside the Town House since 2011. Neighbourhood clean-up crews, community gala committees and sports-day marshals in the city can have hi-vis and plain tees printed with a local group name.

Created in 1996 from the old Banff and Buchan, Gordon and Kincardine and Deeside districts, Aberdeenshire Council has 70 councillors in nineteen wards and works from Woodhill House on the edge of Aberdeen. Village show committees and parent councils across the shire need tees for helpers, and school sports days call for house-colour tops.

Behind Nuart Aberdeen and the Aberdeen Christmas Village stands Aberdeen Inspired, working with Aberdeen City Council to put on street art and festive markets in the city centre. Event stewards on Broad Street and Marischal Square would be simple to find in a shared-colour hoodie, and market traders could carry totes.

Energy, harbour and travel

Records of the harbour reach back to 1136, so the Port of Aberdeen has handled fishing, shipbuilding and, since the 1970s, North Sea oil and gas. A 2023 extension, South Harbour, added deep-water berths used for cruise ships, cargo and offshore wind. Contractor crews on the quayside need hi-vis with a company logo and a surname, and cruise-day greeters want clear polos. See bulk T-shirt printing for larger runs.

Dyce is the location of Aberdeen International Airport, about six miles from the centre and the main heliport serving North Sea oil and gas. Its ground teams and contractors need hi-vis, and charity bag-packers or staff social committees can have polos or hoodies bearing a department logo.

At P&J Live, Scotland's largest indoor arena, up to roughly 15,000 people can gather for concerts and exhibitions; it opened in August 2019 and has staged major exhibitions, conferences and a televised sports awards night. Exhibition teams stand out in matching polos, stewards in hi-vis, and delegate packs travel well in printed tote bags.

Theatres and concert halls

Archibald Simpson designed the Music Hall on Union Street, which became a concert hall in 1859, holds 1,281 and hosts orchestras such as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. Choirs performing there, including choral societies at Christmas, could wear matching polos or tote bags for scores, while stage crew choose black tees.

Granite-clad and the biggest theatre in the north-east, His Majesty's Theatre opened on 3 December 1906, seats over 1,400 and is a Frank Matcham design. Panto cast tees, usher polos and a hoodie for the backstage crew are all reasonable ideas for a long run.

Her Majesty's Theatre opened on the site of today's Tivoli Theatre in 1872 and Frank Matcham later rebuilt it; it seats 530. Amateur companies hiring the stage may want cast hoodies printed with the show title, and a comedy night promoter can put a logo on volunteer tees.

Aberdeen Performing Arts runs the Music Hall, His Majesty's Theatre, the Lemon Tree and the Tivoli, and also stages Granite Noir, the crime writing festival. Volunteer ushers and festival stewards could be given matching dark tees with a small crest, and visiting authors' teams might prefer something bolder.

Museums and galleries

Aberdeen Art Gallery opened on 7 July 1885, reopened in November 2019 after a major redevelopment and holds works by Monet and Bridget Riley among much modern Scottish and international art. Volunteer guides and learning staff could wear smart polos with a small logo, and school workshops can hand out tote bags.

On Shiprow near the harbour, Aberdeen Maritime Museum is run by the city council and tells the story of shipbuilding, fast sailing ships, fishing and North Sea oil. Its buildings include Provost Ross' House. Family-day helpers and school-visit leaders could wear nautical blue tees, and volunteers on harbour trails benefit from a name on the chest.

In Alford, Aberdeenshire, the Grampian Transport Museum is a charitable trust that opened in April 1983 and keeps working vehicles, among them a 1914 Sentinel steam waggon, a Mack snowplough and an electric tram. Rally marshals and vintage-vehicle clubs often prefer a retro-style design on a plain tee, and volunteers a hi-vis vest.

A former tram depot on Constitution Street houses Aberdeen Science Centre, formerly Satrosphere, where interactive exhibits, shows and workshops opened to the public on 15 February 1990. Science-show presenters and holiday-club leaders need bright polos, while school groups sometimes have class tees with the trip date.

The Gordon Highlanders Museum in the West End occupies the former home of the artist Sir George Reid and covers two centuries of the regiment, told through the north-east farmers, fishermen and students who served. Volunteer guides and remembrance event organisers could wear polos with a regimental-style crest design, and a veterans' group trip might want matching tops.

Football, gatherings and whisky

Formed in 1903 by merging three local clubs, Aberdeen FC are the Dons, winners of the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1983. Pittodrie, their ground since 1903, opened in 1899 and is credited with introducing the dugout. A supporters' branch might print matching tops with a surname and number for a trip to Hampden.

Held on the first Saturday of September under the Braemar Royal Highland Society, the Braemar Gathering features hill running, heavy and light events and Highland dancing, and has traditionally welcomed the royal family. Competitors' clubs want matching training tops, stewards want hi-vis, and visiting groups from the shire like a souvenir tee.

Hazlehead Park hosts the Aberdeen Highland Games each June, bringing between 8,000 and 15,000 visitors to trade and charity stalls. A stallholder team can print polos with a business logo, children's dance schools can order matching tees, and a charity table is easy to find when volunteers wear one colour.

Oldmeldrum is the home of Glen Garioch, a Highland single malt distillery founded in 1797 and one of the oldest in Scotland, now run by Morrison Bowmore Distillers under Suntory Global Spirits. Visitor-centre hosts and tour guides can wear dark polos with a printed crest, and a visiting corporate group may want a tote bag.

This page names Aberdeen bodies and events purely as local colour; FabricForge is not linked to, endorsed by or working with any.

Aberdeen across the seasons

Winter: light and crime fiction

Spectra, Scotland's Festival of Light, is usually held in February, with Granite Noir, the crime writing festival, following later in the month. Timings shift annually, so the organisers' own pages hold the current schedule. Volunteers, stewards and venue crews usually want dark tees or hoodies with a small logo, while artists' and producers' teams sometimes want a bolder design.

Spring and early summer: street art, walking and games

Nuart Aberdeen, the street art festival launched in 2017, is usually held in spring. The Aberdeen Kiltwalk follows in early summer, with a shorter family walk and a longer route, both ending at Duthie Park. Teams raising money for a charity tend to like one colour in matching sizes. Grampian Pride parades along Union Street to Marischal College each summer, and the Aberdeen Highland Games take over Hazlehead Park in June, with trade and charity stalls where stall teams like polos.

Autumn: Deeside gatherings and open doors

The Braemar Gathering falls on the first Saturday of September in Aberdeenshire. Doors Open Day opens Aberdeen buildings to the public in the same month, and volunteer guides like a clear name-badge polo. Aberdeen FC have home matches at Pittodrie through the autumn, and P&J Live hosts exhibitions, expos and concerts.

Late autumn into December

The Aberdeen Christmas Village usually opens in mid-November around Broad Street, Upperkirkgate and Marischal Square, and market stallholders and event crews tend to want matching hoodies. Choirs often perform at the Music Hall in December. Anyone organising a festival crew can read about festival T-shirts.

Torry to Bridge of Don, then out into the shire

Inside the city, orders go to the city centre around Union Street, the West End, Rosemount, Ferryhill beside Duthie Park, Old Aberdeen, Seaton, Torry, Footdee (known as Fittie) and the beach end, plus the suburbs of Bridge of Don and Cults. Dyce, where the airport sits, is within the area we cover too. Beyond the boundary we serve Peterculter, Kintore, Inverurie, Oldmeldrum (home to Glen Garioch Distillery), Ellon, Stonehaven and the Deeside villages of Banchory, Aboyne, Ballater and Braemar, and up the coast to Peterhead and Fraserburgh. Distances differ, so each address gets its own delivery terms in the quote.

How an Aberdeen order moves, in four handovers

The first handover is from you to us: send your artwork on WhatsApp or by email, with sizes, garment types and quantities. The second is from us back to you, as a proof that mocks up the artwork on the garment. We read each name, number and logo against your list on that proof, and printing starts only after you say yes. The third is the print itself, carried out at the Aberdeen production house. The fourth is delivery to your door, workplace or venue. How long delivery should take, and whether it carries a charge, is stated in the quote, so nothing comes as a surprise. When you are ready, start on the quote page.

Garments and print choices for Aberdeen jobs

The range stretches from hoodies and T-shirts to polos, workwear, hi-vis, scrubs and tote bags. Printing uses DTF, a method that transfers full-colour artwork onto fabric, so photographs, gradients, fine text and many-colour logos are all possible. You can also add names and numbers to team kit, crew lists or a retirement-party hoodie. A hi-vis job might carry a company logo on the chest and a name across the back, while a charity walk tee may simply have a bright design. Tote bags suit conference and exhibition delegate packs. For method details, see DTF printing explained.

Ordering tips that fit Aberdeen's calendar

Work backwards from the date. For the Kiltwalk, set a team headcount a few weeks out, then let people add their sizes. For Pride marchers and Highland Games stalls, agree a single colour early. For autumn exhibitions at P&J Live, confirm staff numbers and the logo version with your marketing team before sending artwork. For the Christmas Village or a December party, have your guest list and sizes ready by October, because late-year weeks fill up. For student graduation and leavers, a design signed off by the committee avoids last-minute changes. Turnaround is never promised in advance, so share your event date at the start.

Aberdeen printing questions

Can a Kiltwalk team have matching tees for the Duthie Park finish?

Yes. Send your team name, design and sizes and we will draw up a proof. A single bright colour makes your group easy to spot on the route. Tell us your event date when you ask for a quote, and the quote will confirm delivery details.

Do you print hi-vis with a company logo for energy and port contractors?

Yes, hi-vis garments can carry a chest logo and a name or job title on the back. Send your logo file, the garment sizes and any site requirements you know about. A proof is sent for approval before printing starts.

Do you deliver to Inverurie, Stonehaven, Banchory or Ellon?

Yes, we serve addresses across Aberdeenshire, including Inverurie, Stonehaven, Banchory and Ellon, as well as city districts. Once we have your postcode and order size, the quote says what delivery involves and whether it carries a charge.

Can a group at Robert Gordon University or the University of Aberdeen order hoodies?

Yes. Societies, sports clubs and course groups at either university can order. Share the design, sizes and a headcount, and we will return a quote and a proof. There is no minimum order, and 5 or more items attract a discount.

Our stall team is at the Highland Games in Hazlehead Park. Can you print staff polos?

Yes. Polos with a chest logo suit stall staff and volunteers. Give us the logo file, sizes and how many people need one, then approve the proof. Please ask early for summer events, because timings are set job by job in the quote.

Can a Grampian Pride group print rainbow artwork?

Yes. Full-colour DTF printing copes with rainbow gradients, which suits a march group, workplace network or society. Send your artwork, and the proof will show how the colours sit on the garment before anything is printed.

Is it worth asking for a quote on just a few garments?

Yes, please ask. There is no minimum, whether you want one hoodie or a hundred tees. From 5 items upwards a discount applies, and the quote explains the rest, including when to expect delivery.

How do I make sure the spelling is right on every name?

Send names exactly as you want them, ideally in a list. We place every name, number and logo on a visual proof, and you check it before printing. Nothing is printed until you approve, so corrections are easy at that stage.