P26 Cleatskins:SGBGolf_NEW_template 28/8/09 10:32 Page 22
Cleatskins
Cleatskins
An interesting new product that’s already been a hit in the US is looking to make
waves in the UK sports market. Ladies and gentlemen, we bring you Cleatskins…
I
t’s genuinely not often that you see a themselves, but also to protect the athlete,
completely new product, so Cleatskins are because often if you are hard surfaces there is not
quite a refreshing sight. The idea came enough friction with the floor, so it protects
from Marianne and Rick Kay, an American against slips and falls. It also protects the flooring
couple with a sporting son, who wasn’t that you are on – carpets, hardwood, the car
allowed in the house in his cleated shoes; in interior, from the dirt and grass that you are
the UK, we call them studs. So the idea was carrying around from the game.
born to create a product which meant their
son could enter the house without taking his SGB: What are the RRPs, and are there many
boots off; the end result is Cleatskins, almost different types?
like a rubber cover which slips over the boot MK: Depends on the model, but our smallest size
to create a flat, non-slip sole for the wearer. retails for $17.95 and our largest size is for $19.95
in the US. Two specialised versions came out in
June, Cleatskins Premier, which is specifically for
football (soccer) and rugby, and that retails for shoe than it is to design an athletic cleat.
$22.95, and Cleatskins Pro, for field hockey, at We need it to be snug, because you to be sure
the same price. Cleatskins Golf has also recently that the athlete is completely secure whenever
been released and retails for $29.95. they are walking. We had to make sure that it
What we have out now is for all cleated sports, was malleable for it to be easy to put on. Then it
but we expect Cleatskins Premier to probably be had to be impermeable on the bottom, yet
our most popular line overseas, and Cleatskins lightweight so that the athlete wouldn’t mind
Golf as well. either carrying it around or wearing it, and it has
to fit any number of styles of cleats. I think we
SGB: Does this add significant height for the have addressed all those… It was a bit
Marianne Kay takes up the story… wearer or is it a low-profile sleeve? complicated, but I think we have solved it in
MK: It follows the profile of the original shoe. It is something that looks actually quite simple.
SGB: What was it about your son’s situation that not built up in the heel. We do have a protective
helped you come up with the idea for Cleatskins? layer that is only about a quarter of an inch. SGB: So were there problems in developing
Marianne Kay: My partner Rick was banished to It doesn’t add height – probably a quarter of an something that must have a universal fit, for all
the front stoop with Jessie (our son) with cleaning inch or less. It is because you are encapsulating brands of shoe?
out the cleats, or changing out the cleats because MK: We have separated the original Cleatskin
he had removable spikes or studs. He was sole product into two different models, Premier
changing them out and he was tired of doing it so and Pro, so they are much more accurate fits for
often, because our son had a tendency to run a specific sport. The biggest issue was designing
around with his cleats off the field. So Rick the correct topline that would encompass the
thought, ‘wait a minute, why can’t there be natural curve of everybody’s shoe so that we
something that will protect the cleats and protect would grip and hold. It would be easy to design
the athlete…’ He started looking and found something that would just look pretty on a cleat,
nothing. Cleatskins were born, and we started but that wouldn’t necessarily give you the
working on it from there. needed grip when you flexed your foot or turned
a corner. That was extremely important to us – it
SGB: What are they made from? was ‘safety first’.
MK: They are made out of Skintek rubber, a the cleats, you have to take into account the
specific compound of compression-moulded height of the studs. This took a bit longer than Cleatskins is currently searching for
rubber which is very durable yet malleable and we expected – we have a load of experience on UK and European distributors –
lightweight. You slip them over your cleats as a our design team, the core members come from contact Darren Phillips at Pure
protective cover that serves many purposes. First Nike and Reebok. When we were putting Sports Marketing on
to protect the spikes from wear and tear because together the team of designers to solve the 01332 866 455 or email
you want the ultimate performance when you are problems we were experiencing, we were told it darren.phillips@weknowsport.com
out on the field. It’s not only to protect the spikes is more difficult to design a skin for an athletic for more information.
26 SGB SPORTS AUGUST 2009
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