The point of a team item is that everyone has the same one. That sounds trivial and it is the entire brief — the moment some people have a nicer version, or a size ran out, the item is doing the opposite of what you bought it for.

Avoid sized items if you can

Apparel is the obvious choice and the riskiest one. Sizes run short, the run never quite matches the room, and somebody ends up with a shirt that does not fit at an event about belonging. Drinkware, bags, blankets and tech have no sizes to get wrong and everyone receives an identical object.

If it must be apparel, collect sizes in advance rather than estimating, and order extras at the top of the range rather than the middle.

Remote staff need it posted

A distributed team where only the people in the room get the item has been handed a very clear message. Build the mailable version into the same order — something flat enough to post without a freight cost, sent to arrive the same week. It is the difference between an inclusive gesture and an accidental exclusion.

Date it or don’t

Printing the year makes it a memento of a specific offsite, which people keep. It also makes leftovers worthless and looks odd on a new hire in March. Decide which you are optimising for before artwork, because it cannot be changed afterwards.