Speedo
| File:Speedo-brand.svg | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | Bondi Beach, New South Wales, Australia (1914) |
| Founder | Alexander MacRae |
| Headquarters | , England |
| Products | Swimwear |
| Parent | Warnaco Group[1] |
| Website | www.speedo.com |
Speedo is a manufacturer of swimwear and accessories. The company was started by Alexander MacRae under the name of MacRae Hosiery Manufacturers in Bondi Beach, an eastern suburb of Sydney, Australia.
Today the company is headquartered in Nottingham, England, and is owned by the London-based Pentland Group. The company is currently the world's largest-selling swimwear brand and manufactures products for both recreational and competitive swimming.
History
The company was founded in 1914 by hosiery manufacturer Alexander MacRae, who migrated from Scotland to Australia in 1910, as McRae Hosiery Manufacturers, then MacRae Knitting Mills[2] in an effort to expand his company into swimwear. In 1928, the name Speedo was first adopted after the firm developed its racerback design of swimwear,[3] making it one of the first manufacturers to specifically produce athletic designs. The name was made up by a Captain Jim Parsons who won a company competition with the slogan "Speed on in your Speedos".[3]
During World War II the manufacturer shifted nearly all of its production to war materials such as mosquito nets. Speedo resumed production after the war and became a publicly traded corporation in 1951. In 1955, Speedo introduced nylon into its fabric for competitive swimwear. The 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne saw the widespread debut of the new fabric and the introduction of the style of mens briefs that has become associated with the brand. The company quickly expanded into the international arena from there until the present, boasting that 70 percent of swimming medals were won by athletes wearing its products in the Olympic Games of 1968, 1972, 1976, and 2008.
Australian Peter Travis was recognised in 2008 for his invention of the Speedo bathing costume — or as the Sydney Morning Herald puts it, for creating the nation's best-loved stretch of nylon. Travis became a Member of the Order of Australia for his Speedo invention. He was also recognised for his work as a designer, sculptor, ceramicist, kite-maker and teacher. Travis invented the skimpy bathing costume while working for Speedo in 1961.
Travis says the crucial thing was to position the briefs on the hips, not the waist. He also cut the fabric on the side of the hips to just 5 cm deep. The report in the Sydney Morning Herald says the costume was an immediate hit, but did not go down well with the prudish.
'Bondi's beach inspector arrested the first man to wear the briefs on the beach, but Travis recalls that the magistrate did not pursue charges, because there was no pubic hair showing.'
During the 1970s and 1980s, new fabrics such as lycra were incorporated into the company's swimwear design. During the late 1990s, the company turned its attention to its Aquablade and Fastskin lines of competitive swimwear. The designs employ new fabrics that the company claims will reduce resistance in the water by replicating biological skin characteristics of various marine animals such as sharks.
In March 2007 in an attempt to appeal to a younger audience, Speedo's collaboration with Japanese brand Comme des Garçons hit UK fashion store Topshop with a collection of classic women's Speedos decorated with quirky Comme des Garçons designs.[4]
Products
Though it still manufactures the traditional swim briefs, jammers, and racerback designs that made the company famous, Speedo's latest competitive swimwear designs provide greater coverage to the arms, legs, and even the full body. These high-end suits often sell for in excess of US$300 for the Fastskin II and FS Pro series. The company also continues to manufacture recreational swimwear, goggles, earplugs, swim caps, swimfins, towels, robes, sportswear and other logo clothing, watches, sandals, beach volleyball and triathlon products, lifeguard gear, and training supplies for competitive and recreational swimmers.
On 12 January 2008, the company launched the LZR Racer suit, made of a new high-technology swimwear fabric they call LZR Pulse fabric and composed of a lightweight woven fabric, with polyurethane panels to reduce drag.[5][6] This suit was developed in association with NASA and the Australian Institute of Sport as well as the support of Speedo's sponsored athletes, and the company claims that it's the world's fastest swimsuit.[7] This suit was the focus of Speedo's campaign for the Beijing Olympics, spearheaded by Michael Phelps of the US, who won eight gold medals at those games. It also represents a collaboration with Comme des Garçons, introducing an element of fashion to a performance suit for the first time. As of 7 June 2009, 182 world records have been broken by swimmers wearing a LZR Racer.[8]
Competition
Over the last decade Speedo has faced increasing competition from other swimwear companies focusing on fashion based products such as TYR, Funky Trunks and Funkita. Other sportswear companies, such as Nike and Adidas have expanded their merchandise to reflect recent trends in water sport (and present direct competition to Speedo), offering multiple lines of sports and fashion swimwear. Other direct rivals of Speedo include Eyeline, Kiefer, Arena and Zoggs, a company that specialises in goggles.
Athletes
Athletes who have been sponsored by Speedo include Oussama Mellouli, Grant Hackett, Michael Klim, Libby Trickett, Megan Jendrick, Greg Louganis, Janet Evans, Liam Tancock, Michael Phelps,[9] Lewis Gordon Pugh, Natalie Coughlin, Ryan Lochte, Ian Crocker, Erica Morningstar, Amanda Beard, Dawn Fraser, Wu Peng, and Kosuke Kitajima.
See also
References
- ^ "News Headlines". Cnbc.com. 12 August 2008. Retrieved 10 June 2010.
- ^ "Speedo official website, History 1910s". Speedo.com. Retrieved 27 July 2009. [dead link]
- ^ a b "Speedo official website, History 1920s". Speedo.com. Archived from the original on 11 February 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ "Blog Archive » Comme des Garcon & Speedo for Topshop". Sassybella.Com. 27 March 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ "Press Release for SPEEDO LZR Racer". Speedo.com. Archived from the original on 24 April 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ Reuters: Space-age suit races into uncharted waters[dead link]
- ^ "Engineering the world's fastest swimsuit at". Physorg.com. 28 February 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ Thurow, Roger (14 August 2008). "Fast Times — WSJ.com". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ "Speedo official website, History 2000s". Speedo.com. Retrieved 27 July 2009. [dead link]
External links
