STAG Review STAG takes centre stage
A bustling STAG buying show was the perfect place for many brands to showcase themselves and their products. David Pittman walked the show floor to find out what exhibitors thought.
More than 60 brands took their place at the Cotswold Water Park at the end of November for the STAG buying group’s latest UK show, which was a bustling affair for many.
A range of sports were represented at the show, from hockey and rugby, to athletics, football, darts, table tennis, yoga and swimming. Specialist sports were also in abundance, with Nordic walking, archery and skateboarding represented, while outdoor equipment brands covering bags and clothing through to socks made their presence felt too.
Many of those on show had new products to talk about, such as Precision Training which talked up new ranges of running, boxing and goalkeeping equipment.
This included the debut of its Schmeichology range of goalkeeping gloves, developed in conjunction with Leeds United shot-stopper Kasper Schmeichel, son of Manchester United legend Peter. Schmeichel himself put in an appearance on the afternoon of the first day (see panel, p12), taking time to talk to retailers and other exhibitors, as well as signing autographs for Precision Training to give away to its partners. Of the new goalkeeping glove range, Dave Sanderson, national sales manager for Precision Training, had said: “We have worked closely with Kasper to produce a glove that can perform at the highest level of the game and he will be heavily involved in the future development of the Precision Goalkeeping ranges.” Speaking on the first day of the show, Sanderson added that interest had been high in its new boxing and running lines, also. Sanderson said: “We’ve already had early orders come in for our running range, so we are very hopeful for it.” Selsport and Reusch had displays of gloves on hand at the show as well. Although a spokesperson admitted Reusch doesn’t have as strong a presence in the UK as other brands, primarily due to the way kit deals are organised between brands and professional teams, he said the brand has better recognition in Europe, with both goalkeepers playing in the recent low-scoring Milan derby sporting its newest range for instance.
As such, Reusch UK country manager Bob Fidler said the brand used the show to highlight itself to retailers who may not stock its products already, with the response “positive”. Samurai Sportswear likewise reported positive feedback for its autumn/winter range, with this year the first time it has been ready and available to demonstrate at the STAG buying show. A spokesperson said this was important as it had allowed it to showcase its new range of style and colour combinations to retailers in the flesh. For hockey brand Dita, the STAG buying show was more of a ‘flag-waving exercise’. A spokesperson for Dita said: “Retailers generally buy our equipment in the spring so this event is all about brand awareness.
“We’ve picked up three new contacts this year, so we’ll have to wait to see if they translate to actual business.” Athletics brand Viga was making a return to the STAG buying show after three years away, with the company’s Danielle Knight admitting that Viga had fallen off the radar in recent years,
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