Sportswear brand SKINS aims for £2m via crowdfunding

Australian label SKINS, which has established a name for its sports compression wear, has detailed how it plans to raise £2m via an international equity crowdfunding campaign that launches this week.

SKINS was set up 20 years ago with the aim of developing sportswear that would improve performance and aid recovery from injury. Its first pair of tights was launched on the Australian market in 2002 after a five year period of design and testing, which included consulting NASA scientists and other experts.

The company, which today has its head office in Switzerland, now sells its products in 43 countries and is working with the UK equity crowdfunding platform Seedrs – as well as partner company Equitise in Australia and New Zealand – to launch the fundraising campaign and woo potential investors.

SKINS’ profile has been further raised by high-profile activist initiatives in the sports world launched by its executive chairman Jaimie Fuller. In what he describes as a “mixture of sport and corporate agitation and intervention [that] can help the company become a huge global brand that will make good profits and lead to significant social change,” campaigns have included lobbying to reform the scandal-hit Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and for corporate governance change at both the International Cycling Union (UCI) and the International Olympic Committee.

“SKINS began life making sportswear that enabled athletes to improve their performance,” says Fuller. “Over the years, our mission has transcended the field of play and we have become increasingly concerned with making a difference in the world of sport. We see crowdfunding as a fantastic opportunity for like-minded people to become part of our journey.”

Seedrs, which launched in July 2012, enables investors to invest as little as €10. It has funded over 320 deals to date and raises up to £6.8m per month.

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