Industry News
Manchester United and Columbia Sportswearjoin forces
dual branded outerwear for outdoor endeavours, including hiking, climbing, mountaineering, as well as water and snow activities. Columbia, the flagship brand of Columbia Sportswear Company has
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been creating outdoor products for enthusiasts since 1938. The partnership with Manchester United is considered to be indicative of the demand for Columbia’s high-quality and innovative outdoor gear. Eighteen styles will be available to consumers in markets around the globe starting in Autumn this year. All styles will feature the Manchester United crest and Columbia Logo, and will be offered in combinations of black and “Diablo Red,” Manchester United’s team color. The line will include styles for men, women and youth and will range
from rainwear to insulated outerwear, “puffer” style jackets, soft shells, windbreakers and fleece. Pinnacle styles within the collection include:
Race mates S
partan Race, the obstacle race company, and The UK division of Sports & Entertainment Limited, SEL, have
officially partnered, with SEL assuming the lead on non-race related business operations of Reebok Spartan Races in the UK. With more than one million global
participants in over 25 countries, Spartan Race has been pushing motivated Brits of all fitness levels to conquer its obstacle courses since first entering the UK in 2010, with over 100,000 competitors completing a race in the UK to date in 2015 alone. “Spartan Race has made such a huge impact
globally, specifically in the US, and its success over there is definitely something we want to mirror in the UK,” said Peter Phillips, managing director of SEL UK. “Spartan has been running in the UK for a number of years now and has not fully reached its potential, which is something that we are hoping to achieve. Working with Spartan Race will allow SEL to deliver on two core areas for the business: commercial implementation and development, and the management and delivery of hugely complex events. The team is looking forward to broadening the appeal of the Reebok Spartan Race experience and having such a fantastic brand as part of its portfolio.” SEL, a specialist in sports and entertainment, management, marketing and commercialisation, will continue to work with Spartan Race’s existing race production team to deliver quality obstacle courses, with an increased focus on attracting a wider audience. SEL will be sourcing
and managing the venues, and moving the events from more traditional locations, to world- famous sports stadiums and high profile sites within key cities around the country. This will allow racers to enjoy a more immersive experience and an enhanced ‘festival’ feel to the Reebok Spartan Races.
olumbia Sportswear has been unveiled as Manchester United’s first Official Outdoor Apparel Partner. As part of the agreement, the outdoor brand will design and create
• The OutDry Extreme Diamond Shell: This jacket features Columbia’s new OutDry Extreme technology. • The Heatzone 1000 TurboDown Jacket: Part of the Titanium line, the Heatzone 1000 gets its warmth from 900-fill, water- resistant goose down, 100g’s of Omni-Heat insulation, a thermal reflective lining, and finally Columbia’s wave baffle construction that eliminates the cold spots found in traditional down jackets. • The Barlow Pass 550 TurboDown Quilted Jacket: The Barlow Pass features 550-fill TurboDown insulation. TurboDown performance enhanced down combines Omni-Heat Thermal insulation with down and is lined with Omni-Heat Reflective. It offers the benefits of both down and synthetic.
Asologains footing in UK and Germany
O In addition to the loyal obstacle course race
(OCR) participants, SEL and Spartan Race will work together to encourage new racers, to drive awareness and participation among those looking for a challenge and those who have never done an OCR. Spartan Race has grown rapidly in popularity in the UK and globally, so we recognised the need to bring a strategic and extremely experienced management company on board to handle the growing scale of the events,” said Joe De Sena, founder and CEO of Spartan Race. “SEL and in particular Peter Phillips are the perfect partner due to their invaluable industry knowledge and experience of executing huge global events.”
utdoor footwear specialist Asolo is setting up its own sales and supply operations in Germany and the UK in a bid to engage more closely with
its customers in these two European markets. In Germany, Asolo is in the process of establishing an
Asolo GmbH company based in Munich and has hired an experienced German marketing manager. The company has also begun recruiting top outdoor agents to manage sales operations in the various regions of Germany. In the UK, Asolo has appointed Pro Agencies as its sales
agent for the UK which will begin selling for the FW2016 season. Asolo has also contracted WT Distribution Services Limited based in Kendal to manage its logistics and customer service operations. Commenting on the changes in each market, Asolo CEO
Luca Zanatta said: “Our marketplace in Europe is changing rapidly and Asolo has decided we want to work more directly in our key markets. We want to become ever more responsive to the needs of our customers. Our moves in both Germany and UK reflect this strategic direction and our plans to further grow Asolo for the future.” Matt Moore From Pro Agencies said: “Of course we know
Asolo very well and have a huge respect for the brand, the family behind it, and the quality and innovation in their products. We know the brand well having worked with Asolo before and were delighted when Asolo asked us to represent the brand in the UK. This will give us a great footwear package and complements perfectly the other high quality brands we represent. We look forward to developing the business in the UK in close co-operation with Asolo.”
www.sgboutdoor.co.uk • 7
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