The Detroit Red Wings have a new company on their sweaters. The team announced that Metro Detroit-based DQS Solutions & Staffing is taking over as the franchise's jersey patch partner, with the DQS brand mark set to appear on both home and away jerseys starting September 21.
The multi-year agreement was detailed in a report by MLive.com, which first announced the switch. Ryan Gustafson, president and CEO of Ilitch Sports and Entertainment, said DQS is the club's new jersey patch partner and added that the company “represents the same Michigan work ethic” as the Red Wings organization and its fans, according to the same report. DQS will also serve as the team's official workforce partner, a designation the Red Wings confirmed Friday.
DQS founder Josh Morris, who also serves as CEO of parent company AXVOR, said the company entered its partnership with Ilitch Sports and Entertainment and the Red Wings after being built through hard work, a focus on Michigan industry workers, and a commitment to customers and communities, per the MLive report. Morris noted that DQS grew from a startup five years ago into a Red Wings partner, a trajectory borne out by the company's business record: DQS, founded in 2020 as Detroit Quality Staffing LLC, ranked 22nd nationally and first in Michigan on the 2024 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies, and has held a spot on that list for three consecutive years, according to a press release covered by The Malik Report.
A Company Already Betting Big on Sports
DQS has been expanding well beyond staffing in recent years. The company grew its industrial supply chain footprint in April by acquiring Comprehensive Logistics, Inc., bringing the company under AXVOR alongside DQS, per a DQS announcement.
Morris also broadened the company's sports sponsorship profile last year, co-acquiring a majority ownership stake in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team Niece Motorsports alongside J.F. Electric in August 2025. DQS had previously served as a primary truck sponsor for the team before taking the ownership stake, according to RACER.
Replacing a Sponsor Dogged by the 'Trash Patch' Label
DQS steps into a spot vacated by Priority Waste, the Clinton Township-based waste management company that became the Red Wings' first-ever jersey patch sponsor on February 29, 2024. It was a landmark moment for the Original Six franchise, whose sweaters had never before carried a commercial patch, according to DetroitHockey.Net.
That debut did not go smoothly with fans. After Priority Waste's patch appeared in March 2024, Red Wings fans launched Change.org petitions and voiced opposition to the logo online. Fans dubbed the patch the “trash patch” online, as reported by Sportskeeda.
Priority Waste's role in the story extended beyond its jersey sponsorship.
Jersey Ads Are Still a New Frontier for the Red Wings
Commercial branding on Red Wings gear is a relatively recent phenomenon overall. The team has used corporate branding on player equipment, including Michigan supermarket chain Meijer on player helmets, according to the Ilitch Companies News Hub.
Jersey patches themselves are a league-wide innovation. The NHL's commercial jersey-patch program followed the rollout of helmet ad decals. The Red Wings' new deal with DQS is discussed here without a dollar figure.
Fans will get their first look at the new DQS patch on September 21.
