Being a smaller sports brand can be difficult. The odds seemed against you when you compare yourself to the Adidas and Nikes of this world. Just ask Macron Sportswear.
However, the emerging European brand has proven that it can more than tackle the big sports brands and succeed through a dedication to quality and a resolute approach to creating bespoke ranges for high-profile football clubs like Crystal Palace and Stoke City.
Macron aims to be high-end sports equipment
When asked what he thought was the biggest differentiator between the Macron and its bigger competitors, he said:
'Part of our strategy is to create bespoke clothing. Being an Italian brand helps, it means that we can offer something unique and stylish, because it has a heritage '.
'We work in partnership [with clubs]. This is where we make a big difference compared to Nike and Adidas. '
He detailed this approach by highlighting the example of the brand's work with Stoke City, which he has sponsored since 2016.
'When we started with Stoke, our first proposal was a white paper. We sit down with the design teams, the club and start designing bespoke kits. This is how we do it. Plus, it's the same way we do it not only with match day kits, but also with the polo shirts and the entire collection.
'This is one of the reasons [for our success], when you look at the list of our clubs, most of them come from nike adidas, puma. The other brands produce standard [kits], unless you are Manchester United or Barcelona. '
'This year we have had four great deals that have been concluded with Lazio, Bologna, Sporting Lisbon, Hajduk Split. We have expanded and expanded with all of them. It's not just about financial data, it's also about trust. "
Macron Sports doesn't care about ambassadors
Interestingly, while sponsoring teams, for the most part, Macron does not sponsor brand ambassadors.
'Brand ambassadors, they are usually linked to shoes, for our strategy we focus on articles for team sports. Not producing football boots is part of our strategy. '
However, Macron provides gloves to goalkeepers, including Crotone's Alex Cordaz who plays in Serie A.
Given this level of growth, what does Casolari do?
There are so many different reasons, such as the way we approach the market and the strategy we use to sponsor the best clubs. However, from these sponsorships we get two things: awareness and reputation, "he said.
Casolari proudly mentioned that one of the proudest achievements within his meteoric rise was his fourth position in the 2015 UEFA Club Licensing Benchmarking Report, released this year. The ranking meant it was the fourth largest kit supplier based on the number of partnerships it had across Europe. Only Nike, Adidas and Puma preceded the Italian brand. The second part of this interview will arrive next week.