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Skins
Skins
Best known for their compression gear, recently Skins has spread its wings
into cycling gear and also its ICE Cool range of infused compression wear.
SGB caught up with Ian Reid, Marketing Manager, and Ed Hames, Business
Development Manager to find out… Well, everything.
SGB: Skins is very well recognised with always done to a wider audience with a slightly reviews and editorial coverage. We’re working
consumers and retailers for doing one thing really different product… hard to ensure that as well as knocking on doors,
well; is there any worry that the new ranges – ie consumer awareness is being maximised, through
cycling gear – might weaken your core brand and Ed Hames: Yes, it’s basically taking a extensive print and PR activity.
the principles you’re recognised for? compression garment and making it suitable for
use on a bike. So the diversification isn’t actually SGB: Have you got any pro cyclists wearing your
Ian Reid: It’s important to point out that at the out of a category, we’re still making compression gear?
core of our brand and product proposition is garments, we’re just making them suitable for
that specific sport where EH: Yes, we’ve got three Pro Tour teams –
there are specific Columbia HTC, Rabobank and Milram. They’re
requirements in that the three big names, and we’ve got several high
garment technology. profile mountain bikers wearing the product as
well. The nice thing is that we’re starting to get
SGB: Many sports shops deal riders that we’re seeing wearing products that
with triathlon gear, but has it haven’t been in contact with us, they’re just
been difficult getting into going out there sourcing it, the physios are
bike specialists? sourcing it and that’s starting to feature quite
heavily.
EH: The last thing we want
to do is go into a cycle shop SGB: How has ICE gone
and say “Here’s another pair down with retailers?
of black cycle shorts,”
gradient compression. We operate across many because they’ll just look at the wall of black cycle
sporting categories and we provide a product shorts they have and go “Right, we need that like
that above all, delivers more oxygen to your a hole in the head.” So we’ve gone in with the
working muscles. Whether you’re a cyclist, play gradient compression story. The problem within
cricket or football, it’s the same principle – if you cycling is that we’re breaking new ground again;
have more efficient oxygen delivery, then you can cyclists may have touched on compression within
perform better and also recover quicker. So in recovery but use on the bike, that’s completely
terms of diversifying new ground and we’re the only
the range into cycling, voice talking about it as well at the
it’s a very natural and moment. So it’s a new concept for
logical step in that, them. The difficulty is getting them
from a lower extremity to grasp the concept of gradient
perspective, cyclists will compression and clothing
suffer more so than improving performance on the bike.
many other athletes in Where you get an individual that IR: ICE has
terms of the clicks on to that we’ve done very, been in store now for a
punishment to their very well, but generally speaking it’s couple of months and
muscles. Therefore, a new sell so it’s quite a long the response so far has
we’ve created a range process to get in there. been fairly positive.
that takes what’s Having already established
already established in SGB: How do you do that? as market innovators in the
cycling, that compression category, we
compression fit, and EH: Knock on doors and explain raised the bar again by
added our own unique you’ve got a unique proposition offering the first compression
gradient technology which will lead to additional sales – garment of its kind that
which increases the not substitutional. You mentioned incorporates active agents that create the
blood flow back to the triathlon, triathletes tend to be the perception of cooling for the wearer. As we come
heart and in turn driving force on technology, they into the summer period (hopefully) just now,
improves performance like their ‘techie’ products. They’re we’re expecting big things to happen with ICE,
in those bigger muscle early adopters of new technology the range absolutely lends itself to cricket, has
groups. and that’s been reflected in our obvious pre-season benefits for those involved in
launch period. team sports and can offer a credible solution for
SGB: So you’re essentially taking what you have IR: We’ve also been getting some great product those exercising and participating in a hot, indoor
12 SGB SPORTS AUGUST 2009
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