p10,11 Outdoor Brasher:SGBGolf_NEW_template 27/01/2009 10:08 Page 10
brasher - Outdoor
brasher
SGB talks to Andy Loeber, Managing
Director of brasher about the past
year – which saw an eight per cent
rise in sales – and what they've got for
2009.
"T
he brand evolved around innovation," explains Andy. "As
Chris Brasher was walking on the roof of Wales in
traditional walking boots he experience discomfort and
had to take them off. He said, "Why can’t walking boots be as
comfortable as training shoes?" At the time he was involved in the
distribution of New Balance and Reebok, so he took it on himself to
look at the reasons why walking boots were so uncomfortable.
Chris then developed a lightweight product with a membrane
construction to deliver waterproof performance - something the
marketplace had never seen before through innovative technology
brown leather boots were made lightweight. A lot of the products
that he introduced are still running and are the benchmark products
of the industry today."
SGB: How are you moving the brand forward?
AL: The overall objective is to make the brand appeal to a broader consumer
base, while retaining the loyal customer we already have. To do this we
have aggressively targeted the fabric membrane boot market, the massive
multi active market and have led the way in Outdoor Lifestyle product. features result in incredible comfort.
Many of the new Outdoor products have a more modern design, use more The retail reaction, and the consumer feedback has been fantastic, and
colours and have more overt technology. The key ingredient is still the we grew this collection after launch by 160% over the last four months of
performance, however, and we never lose sight of the lightweight ‘out of the year – we now have around 10 core styles which represents a real dual
the box’ comfort that the brand was founded on. Within Outdoor Lifestyle, gender collection. This product also gives our Outdoor retailers incremental
we updated our core collection and introduced a new all day – everyday business, as it is maximising the potential of the Outdoor consumer they
collection. This product retained many outdoor features resulting in have captured.
fantastic comfort for use both off and on the hills. To drive these
new initiatives we invested heavily in marketing. Our new SGB: What's new for Spring/Summer 09?
headline campaign of “What’s your playground?” AL: Our key objectives remain consistent with last year – we have, however, learnt that
incorporated a modern look, new ‘less is better’ – we have developed less product but have undertaken extensive
circulations and ground breaking in-store research to enable the product to be ‘best in class’. This approach has ensured that we
support. can target key brand and market opportunities and has proved very successful.
SS09 key development has returned to our roots of lightweight
SGB: Tell us more about the products… performance under the umbrella of Mountain Sports – this collection
AL: Our lifestyle is called AT:20, which includes a trekking boot, multi active trail shoe and open mesh multi
relates to Adventure Travel and the function product.
pareto theory of 80% of product being We are especially proud of the trekking boot – Lithium GTX.
worn for general purposes and 20% on This boot epitomises all the brasher values of durability,
rugged terrain. Our unique points of support, excellent traction and cushioning all enclosed
difference on lifestyle product are foot in great cosmetics. The boot’s extensive
form lasts to promote a natural walking testing results are outstanding and at a
motion and generous fit to allow the weight of 1250gms it is the lightest, as
toes to align naturally. Memory foam well as the best performing product in
for a personalised fit and feel, a new that category!
technical footbed and Gore membrane
to cater for the UK weather – which SGB: And leather?
happens in cities as well as on hills !! All these Lithium XCR AL: Our search for improvements never
10 SGB OUTDOOR JANUARY 2009
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