Brand drift happens slowly: different designers, different printers, slight color variations, font substitutions, proportion changes. Over three years of quarterly orders, your brand can look like it belongs to five different organizations.

The prevention: a design system with locked assets. This isn't a design agency luxury. It's a practical file called "brand standards" that includes exact hex codes, exact logo files (with version numbers), approved placement specs, and approved garment styles.

Versioned files: every approved logo should have a version number and approval date. File naming convention: [BrandName]_Logo_[Version]_[YYYYMMDD].ai. When you update the logo, retire the old file: don't keep both in the same folder.

Pantone references: if your brand has specific colors, get the Pantone equivalent for each and include it in your brand standards. This ensures color matching is possible even across different printers.

Approved vendors list: not every printer can maintain the quality standard your brand requires. If you've found one (or two) that consistently deliver, document the relationship and route all orders through them.