Case study
How to Start an Activewear Brand
Who are BRC?
Belgrade Running Club (BRC) is a running community 300 strong. They actively participate in various running events since 2009. They pride themselves as not being an athletic club but rather a place where everyday people can challenge themselves, get out of the comfort zone, or simply maintain a healthy habit in a group of like-minded people. And even though they’re most vocal about their commitment to working with the non-professionals, training programmes for avid marathon runners are a part of their portfolio.
As their numbers grew, a need for distinguishable running gear followed suit.
This is where they’ve faced the challenges of finding the equipment that will “tell their story”.
How to Start an Activewear Brand
It’s easy. Make sure the clothing manufacturer you choose is an expert in making sportswear. An expert will be able to both adhere to your guidelines and give advice.
In this case study, you will learn how Belgrade Running Club started their own clothing brand with our help. The key factors of our successful cooperation were: full garment customisation and thorough on-field product testing.
Who are BRC?
Belgrade Running Club (BRC) is a running community 300 strong. They actively participate in various running events since 2009. They pride themselves as not being an athletic club but rather a place where everyday people can challenge themselves, get out of the comfort zone, or simply maintain a healthy habit in a group of like-minded people. And even though they’re most vocal about their commitment to working with the non-professionals, training programmes for avid marathon runners are a part of their portfolio.
As their numbers grew, a need for distinguishable running gear followed suit.
This is where they’ve faced the challenges of finding the equipment that will “tell their story”.
BRC’s trials and tribulations of finding the best clothing solution
All of the major manufacturers in the running equipment industry could only offer what they have in their portfolio already. None of which could be customized in a capacity that would fully satisfy their needs. That resulted in having a BRC runner absolutely indistinguishable from the sea of other marathoners.
In some cases, to adapt to a major brand global campaign, BRC had to give up their identity. That was the only way to attain an equipment sponsorship from a major clothing manufacturer. And that equipment still had to be paid for. As a result, they could only count on standing out performance-wise, not equipment-wise.
BRC’s trials and tribulations of finding the best clothing solution
All of the major manufacturers in the running equipment industry could only offer what they have in their portfolio already. None of which could be customized in a capacity that would fully satisfy their needs. That resulted in having a BRC runner absolutely indistinguishable from the sea of other marathoners.
In some cases, to adapt to a major brand global campaign, BRC had to give up their identity. That was the only way to attain an equipment sponsorship from a major clothing manufacturer. And that equipment still had to be paid for. As a result, they could only count on standing out performance-wise, not equipment-wise.
FUSH˚ to the rescue
Given all the adversities BRC was facing, FUSH˚ as a company whose entire production revolves around offering custom clothing manufacturing to all clients, big and small turned out to be a perfect fit. Especially since sportswear takes up a big chunk of our portfolio.
This cooperation was really interesting for us since we were looking for a way to promote our capabilities in the activewear industry and were in need of a testing group for our B2C products in-the-making. With their 300 active members, BRC turned out to be a perfect fit right back us.
The only visual demand on our part was to introduce the logo of our B2C activewear brand – PUSH. Everything else aligned with how people from BRC saw their brand. Also, they’ve tested different fabrics, knitting patterns, and shapes of clothes. The final fabrics, patterns, and cuts were decided after thorough on-field testing.
Every piece of running gear that you see is a product of back and forward communication between the designing, knitting, and sewing departments of FUSH˚ and the “on-field” people from BRC.
FUSH˚ to the rescue
Given all the adversities BRC was facing, FUSH˚ as a company whose entire production revolves around offering custom clothing manufacturing to all clients, big and small turned out to be a perfect fit. Especially since sportswear takes up a big chunk of our portfolio.
This cooperation was really interesting for us since we were looking for a way to promote our capabilities in the activewear industry and were in need of a testing group for our B2C products in-the-making. With their 300 active members, BRC turned out to be a perfect fit right back us.
The only visual demand on our part was to introduce the logo of our B2C activewear brand – PUSH. Everything else aligned with how people from BRC saw their brand. Also, they’ve tested different fabrics, knitting patterns, and shapes of clothes. The final fabrics, patterns, and cuts were decided after thorough on-field testing.
Every piece of running gear that you see is a product of back and forward communication between the designing, knitting, and sewing departments of FUSH˚ and the “on-field” people from BRC.
Design
BRC’s online presence was already quite significant. Website font styles and the Victor statue logo were determined as integral parts of their sportswear stylization. That made the connection with their brand much easier. Adding to that, we’ve included the PUSH logo, in the above-mentioned attempt to affirm our own brand of clothes in the world of running.
Choosing the colours was also carefully handled. We focused on the pallets that will draw the eye easily. However, we didn’t take the easy way out by using overly saturated colours and extreme hues. As for most of our textile work, Pantone™ colours were used to achieve the “catchiness”. The photo clearly shows the effect of making the right chromatic decisions – catchy salmon pink that is pleasing to the eye.
Design
BRC’s online presence was already quite significant. Website font styles and the Victor statue logo were determined as integral parts of their sportswear stylization. That made the connection with their brand much easier. Adding to that, we’ve included the PUSH logo, in the above-mentioned attempt to affirm our own brand of clothes in the world of running.
Choosing the colours was also carefully handled. We focused on the pallets that will draw the eye easily. However, we didn’t take the easy way out by using overly saturated colours and extreme hues. As for most of our textile work, Pantone™ colours were used to achieve the “catchiness”. The photo clearly shows the effect of making the right chromatic decisions – catchy salmon pink that is pleasing to the eye.
Knitting, cutting, sewing, and printing
Even though positive visual presence was very high on the list of priorities, achieving highly functional activewear remained paramount. Having been in the business since 2005, this was probably the easiest part of the cooperation. All it took us was to analyse the most successful contributions from our private label history and apply those experiences to the new collection. With BRC’s massive on-field presence, they’ve thoroughly tested all the draft models in various running and weather conditions. Once the runners were happy with how the clothes behaved on-field, we started mass production.
Knitting, cutting, sewing, and printing
Even though positive visual presence was very high on the list of priorities, achieving highly functional activewear remained paramount. Having been in the business since 2005, this was probably the easiest part of the cooperation. All it took us was to analyse the most successful contributions from our private label history and apply those experiences to the new collection. With BRC’s massive on-field presence, they’ve thoroughly tested all the draft models in various running and weather conditions. Once the runners were happy with how the clothes behaved on-field, we started mass production.
The range
After the principal tests conducted with the most active club members, over 600 part-time runners from the club and around 10 000 runners of the Belgrade Business Run 2019 have further tested the PUSH sportswear to great satisfaction.
Here’s a full list of custom-made BRC/PUSH garments:
- T-shirts (100% polyester, 100% cotton)
- Sleeveless tank tops (100% polyester)
- Windproof/waterproof running jackets (100% polyester)
- Buffs (100% polyester)
- Shorts (100% polyester)
- Tracksuit bottoms (100% polyester, 100% cotton)
- Sweatshirts (70% polyester, 30% cotton)
- Sweatpants (70% polyester, 30% cotton)
- Beanies (100% polyester)
- Arm warmers (100% polyester)
- Compact backpacks (100% polyester)
- Triathlon suits (100% polyester)
The range
After the principal tests conducted with the most active club members, over 600 part-time runners from the club and around 10 000 runners of the Belgrade Business Run 2019 have further tested the PUSH sportswear to great satisfaction.
Here’s a full list of custom-made BRC/PUSH garments:
- T-shirts (100% polyester, 100% cotton)
- Sleeveless tank tops (100% polyester)
- Windproof/waterproof running jackets (100% polyester)
- Buffs (100% polyester)
- Shorts (100% polyester)
- Tracksuit bottoms (100% polyester, 100% cotton)
- Sweatshirts (70% polyester, 30% cotton)
- Sweatpants (70% polyester, 30% cotton)
- Beanies (100% polyester)
- Arm warmers (100% polyester)
- Compact backpacks (100% polyester)
- Triathlon suits (100% polyester)
These were the benefits for BRC:
By working with us, they got their custom-made running clothes that looked exactly how they wanted and performed exactly how they wanted.
They got their visual identity sorted by finally aligning all the runners under the same set of garments that truly stands out in a positive way.
We manufactured the fabrics right here in Serbia so their carbon footprint is minimal.
As this cooperation is ongoing, both BRC and FUSH˚ will continue to reap benefits from having both brands noticed and tested continually by the very people whose needs both organisations cater for.
These were the benefits for BRC:
By working with us, they got their custom-made running clothes that looked exactly how they wanted and performed exactly how they wanted.
They got their visual identity sorted by finally aligning all the runners under the same set of garments that truly stands out in a positive way.
We manufactured the fabrics right here in Serbia so their carbon footprint is minimal.
As this cooperation is ongoing, both BRC and FUSH˚ will continue to reap benefits from having both brands noticed and tested continually by the very people whose needs both organisations cater for.