Author: garethloopdesignagency

07/12/202211/01/2023

As he approaches his first year as a professional boxer, Kukri Sports sat down with sporting ambassador Kieran Molloy to look back on his career so far, from his incredible amateur career to signing with the sports brand, and his ambitions for the future.

“I only spoke to my girlfriend about it last week,” Kieran Molloy says, astonished, when asked if he realises the enormity of what he has accomplished since going pro earlier this year.

“We were on the way back to the airport to come back to England, and I was just sitting there and thought to myself if you told me this three years ago that I was going to sign as a professional, having Kukri Sports as a kit sponsor and training in England with a world class coach, I would be so happy.”

For Molloy, becoming a professional boxer has been his dream since he was five years old. He followed his two brothers, Connor and Stephen, to the local Boxing club in Galway and, as he puts it, has “never looked back since.”

The Irish boxer rose to prominence in the amateur scene with 202 wins in 221 fights, including 11x National Champion, 3x Irish Elite Champion, EU bronze medallist, as well as a Youth European and World medallist, all by the age of 23.

“I started having my first few fights when I was 9,” said Molloy. “Every guy that I would spar at my own age, I was far too advanced for them.

“Then I started sparring with kids three or four years older and I would hold my own against them. So we travelled around the country for sparring matches and I started winning national titles, so it was all good for my confidence.”

But there is one moment that stands out for him the most: winning his first league title. “To have my grandad there, who sadly passed away last year, and the people who were with me from the start, who supported me, it was just class to have everyone with me on the night.”

After making the decision to turn over to the pro ranks nine months ago, Molloy was signed by one of the best promotional companies in the business. His link up with world-class coach Angel Fernandez has seen him go from strength to strength, with three professional wins under his belt so far. However, his life has changed in more ways than one, in and out of the ring.

“I have to do a lot by myself now. I live by myself which has been a big change. On the weekends I have to stay disciplined and recover properly so I’m fresh for training on Monday. Even if I’m just going out visiting people, it still makes you tired when Monday comes, so I’ve been trying to get as much out of training as possible and my recovery, as well.

“I’m training extremely hard. I think I’ve upped my work ethic again since I’ve turned pro. I’m studying a lot about boxing this year, compared to before when training was done I would just forget about boxing for the rest of the day.

“Most days now, I’m going back and writing down what worked well. I’m studying, always, just to try and improve.”

When the subject turns to Kukri Sports, it is evident how much the support means to Molloy. The sports brand partnered with him ahead of his pro debut and now supply him with sportswear for his bouts, something the young boxer is grateful for, and believes has had a significant impact on his confidence in the squared circle.

“We’re on an exciting journey together,” Molloy gleamed. “I have a three-year goal for myself to become a world champion and to top that with the support from Kukri Sports, it’s amazing.

“They’re great at keeping contact and always have me kitted out properly for training, with not just me but my whole team. It’s good to look slick as a team together, going to weigh-ins or press conferences. They’re great people to work with.”

Molloy’s commitment and knowledge of the sport in which he operates is compelling, and with his fourth pro-bout scheduled for next month in Belfast, he is determined to keep his unbeaten record.

“I fought in Belfast in August in front of 11,000 people in a massive stadium with a great atmosphere. There’s always a good atmosphere in Belfast for fight nights.

“We’re looking to move to 4-0 that night so I’m looking forward to it. We’re in a heavy faze of camp at the moment so by the time fight night comes, we will be well prepared.”

Despite being heavily focused on his next fight, Molloy does have a long term vision. His approach has always been that he is better than his opponents and feels he can reach the pinnacle of the sport, but he remains humble and is determined for his performances to speak for themselves

“I’ve got a lot of dreams in my head, and I don’t want to share all of them, but the ultimate goal is to make sure I become a world champion”. Molloy’s boxing journey is not one to be missed.

05/12/202211/01/2023

Kukri Sports are proud to announce a new 10-year partnership extension with Rugby School, which will run until 2033.

The deal reconfirms Kukri as Rugby School’s official sportswear provider, offering a full range of bespoke sportswear for staff and pupils, both on and off field.

Located in Warwickshire, England, Rugby School are one of the most prestigious education establishments in the world and is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain (founded in 1567). To learn more about Rugby School visit www.rugbyschool.co.uk

“We are pleased to be extending our relationship with Kukri Sports. Rugby School has created a functional and inclusive range of sports kit with the help and support of Kukri – students and staff all look and feel part of our sports teams. We take great pride in our ‘nobody on the bench’ approach and this kit embodies our ‘whole person whole point’ ethos. We are delighted to be associated with Kukri, a leading brand in the sportswear industry as demonstrated by their appointment as this year’s Commonwealth Games kit supplier for Team England.” – Debbie Skene, Rugby School.

“We are very proud to be extending our partnership with Rugby School, a powerhouse in school sports with enormous heritage. The school’s history speaks for itself, being the home of Rugby, but the school’s modern sports offering has unbelievable breadth and depth, this year showcasing 57 teams, playing 8 different sports, with over 550 pupils playing a competitive game on a single day. The partnership extension allows for us to plan for the pupils and parents of tomorrow, developing school sportswear specifically for the school and its pupils. We aim to deliver continuity and consistency but continually adapt to the next school’s sportswear offering.” – Josh Beal, Sales Director at Kukri Sports.

2023 – Rugby’s 200^th anniversary at the game’s historic birthplace – Rugby School

Celebrations will take place throughout 2023 at Rugby School to celebrate the bicentennial of the game of Rugby itself.

Rugby School is the home of the sport, which was first played on the school pitch back in 1823.

Find out more about the celebrations

If you are interested in partnering with Kukri Sports, or want to know how we can help, Get in touch

03/11/202211/01/2023

As the world’s premier rugby event launches a much-anticipated return on 4^th November after a 3-year hiatus Kukri Sports are delighted to continue in our 17^th year as sponsor and official merchandise supplier.

The Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens is one of the most popular sporting events in Asia and attracts some of the world’s top rugby players and thousands of fans from around the globe to watch intense, fast paced rugby action in a carnival atmosphere at the famous Hong Kong Stadium.

The three-day event takes place from 4^th – 6^th November when 16 teams are set to compete on rugby’s greatest stage.

As well as supplying the official Hong Kong Sevens merchandise range, Kukri Sports are also official supplier to the Hong Kong Rugby Union teams across men’s, women, and national age grade teams.

This year we have produced a fashion forward range of leisure wear and accessories for every age of rugby fan including T-shirts, hoodies, and polo shirts, enabling everyone to take home a piece of history from the 2022 event, as well as a full range of replica home and away shirts for men, women, and kids.

As we move towards a more sustainable future, we have introduced the option of replica shirts made from recycled fabric giving the #HK7’s rugby fans a wider range to choose from and the chance to be part of the sustainable sportswear revolution.

Our online store is now open for you to purchase your merchandise ahead of the tournament or buy your memento at the event itself from one of the stalls located in the stadium.

Get a piece of history from the 2022 #HK7’s while stocks last and get ready for another truly memorable 3-day carnival of rugby.

01/11/202230/11/2022

Kukri Sports are delighted to announce a multi-year extension to our partnership with King’s College, Taunton.

King’s College was founded in 1880 and is an elite education provider, situated in Somerset, uk. They offer a carefully tailored curriculum, delivered by specialty teachers, from nursery through to Sixth Form, which includes an enviable sporting provision. Find out more about King’s College, Taunton.

As part of the partnership Kukri will provide a full range of bespoke school sportswear for both on and off field, for both staff and pupils.

“We have been with Kukri for a few years now and are delighted to be in partnership moving forward. The kit is really good quality and we love playing around with the designs of which there are many options. Our pupils and staff are incredibly happy and we are so pleased we continue to look smarter, more professional and cohesive thanks to the kit packages we have put together.” Phil Lewis, Director of Sport, King’s College.

“To extend our partnership with a school such as Kings College is exciting and a great opportunity to continue growing what we’ve started over the past couple of years. We have created an image and identity to the schools brand both on and off the field, this will only continue to grow and expand. Sport at Kings College plays such a huge part in the students journey and we get great pleasure in supporting a part of this, we look forward to what is up and coming.” Lloyd Alley, Regional Sales Manager, Kukri Sports.

If you are interested in partnering with Kukri Sports, or want to know how we can help, get in touch

19/10/202215/12/2022

Kukri Sports, the market’s leading bespoke teamwear provider, partnered with some of the competition’s top nations, including Team England.

Kukri Sports delivered an unprecedented service to partnered teams and athletes at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 as the competition’s leading bespoke teamwear provider. 

The games were a major success not just for the participating teams, but also for Kukri, who partnered with Team England, Team Canada, Team Barbados, Team Guernsey, and Team Isle of Man, as well as supporting Northern Ireland Netball, Scottish Bowls, and Scottish Wrestling.

With innovations such as sustainable teamwear ranges, direct collaboration with athletes to create more focused sportswear, and overcoming logistical barriers imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the global sportswear brand hit various milestones in preparation for the competition. 

Josh Beal, Sales Director at Kukri Sports, said: “The Commonwealth Games is a flagship competition in international sport, and we are proud of the partnerships we have had at the Birmingham games this year.

“Whilst the business has partnered with teams in previous games, this year’s had some significant hurdles for us to overcome, due to the Covid pandemic. 

“Our projects started on 17^th March 2020, meaning a lot of work needed to be completed during; various lockdown’s, travel and freight restrictions plus ongoing social distancing – all of which meant the businesses needed to adapt.

“We held up to 90% of meetings virtually, whilst making sure our kits perfectly matched the partner requirements for over 2,500 athletes and staff and over 96,000 individual items of kit – across 19 different sports.

“Having these obstacles to overcome didn’t mean it affected the development and innovations in our offerings. For the first time we introduced a sustainable range of teamwear, made from recycled plastic bottles, whilst ensuring 100% of our packaging was both recycled and recyclable. 

“We also worked directly with Team England athletes to make sure that the bespoke kit they received had their direct input, on fit and fabric, but also crucially the design.

“Throughout the whole project our team provided over 10,000 man-hours and 100% of the kit requested was provided in time for the games – it was some achievement!”. 

Lou Pullan, Head of Kit Operations at Team England, said: “Over the past two and a half years, we have been working with Kukri to design and develop our most Athlete focused kit range ever. 

‘The time, care and attention to detail provided by Kukri across our Delegation and Competition wear has been outstanding and really showed in the final product range in terms of both functionality and design.

“Our kit design was heavily influenced by the city of Birmingham, the rich history, culture and architecture that it has become known for. The opportunity to celebrate the home games through the kit design really underpinned the project, we were delighted to return to the red and white and a design inspired by the St Georges flag.”

Watch our short documentary on the development of the Team England teamwear. Kukri Sports are a global sportswear supplier offering superior quality bespoke garments, across multiple sports, from grassroots to elite level. To find out how we can support your sportswear needs contact us.

14/10/202230/11/2022

Kukri Sports are delighted to announce our new 3 year partnership with Gresham’s School, who are a leading co-educational school, based in Norfolk, UK.

Founded in 1555, Gresham’s offer fully rounded education to boys and girls from the age of two, through to Sixth Form. The school was recently awarded an ‘Excellent’ rating across all nine categories in an Independent Schools Inspectorate visit. Find out more about Gresham’s School

As part of the partnership Kukri will provide a full range of bespoke school sportswear for both on and off field, for both staff and pupils.

“We made a decision to move to Kukri for school sportswear and team and staff kit early in 2022 based on the design and quality of kit.  We wanted kit to fit and wear well but also look smart and be something the pupils were proud of and pleased to wear.  Pricing needed also to be competitive.  After a challenging selection process, Kukri worked hard with the School to ensure orders were finalised to allow delivery of kit before the new academic year.  Demand for the sportswear was high, reflecting how much the pupils and parents valued it, so we are delighted with the way things have turned out.  Much credit has to go to our Regional Sales Manager, Ali Easton, and his team, particularly our Account Manager, Katie Maddock, to keep on top of detail and remain in close contact with the school during an extremely busy period and deliver great service.” Steven Willis, Bursar, Gresham’s School

“It’s a privilege to partner with Gresham’s. Sport is an integral part of education at the school and we’re proud to be supplying all core PE, First Team and Staff kit to them.  Having worked closely with the school over the past months, we’ve developed a range of designs that respect the heritage of the school whilst utilising the high-performance qualities of our most up-to-date garments.  We’re looking forward to continuing our engagement with Gresham’s as we grow our partnership further in the years to come.” Ali Easton, Regional Sales Manager

If you are interested in partnering with Kukri Sports, or want to know how we can help, get in touch

28/09/202204/10/2022

Kukri sports are delighted to announce a 4-year extension of our partnership with Welsh Gymnastics. As part of the deal Kukri will continue to provide bespoke leisure and podiumwear for all performance programmes, National Teams and squads.

Welsh Gymnastics is the governing body of gymnastics in Wales, responsible for the governance and development of gymnastics across the country. Their mission is ‘For Wales to be recognised as a leading gymnastics nation, producing world-class champions and creating vibrant, inclusive communities where every gymnast has a high-quality experience’. Find out more about Welsh Gymnastics

“It is brilliant to extend our partnership with Welsh Gymnastics. A long-standing partnership which will now extend to over a decade. It is an exciting time where we will be launching new ranges across the organisation, advancing the style, fit and performance of the kit range. We can’t wait to see all the gymnasts showcasing it!” – Josh Beal, Sales Director, Kukri Sports

“I am delighted that we have been able to renew our partnership with Kukri Sports for four more years. We have worked with Kukri for a number of years now and to continue alongside them is exciting; we want to continue to bring our brand to life and they are able to make this happen through designs and our teamwear.” – Victoria Ward, CEO, Welsh Gymnastics

Kukri Sports are a global sportswear supplier offering superior quality bespoke garments, across multiple sports, from grassroots to elite level. To find out how we can support your sportswear needs Contact Us

13/09/202204/10/2022

Kukri Sports are proud to announce our new 5-year partnership with British Wrestling. As part of the deal Kukri will provide a full range of bespoke off mat sportswear for competitors and coaches, whilst offering support to grassroots clubs.

British Wrestling is the National Governing Body for wrestling in the UK, including the Olympic and Commonwealth styles of wrestling and other styles within the remit of United World Wrestling, as well as other indigenous forms of wrestling.

Find out more about British Wrestling

“I’m delighted with our new 5-year partnership with Kukri. After working with them as the Team England kit supplier for the past two Commonwealth Games the athletes have provided consistently strong feedback and working with a UK-based supplier means reduced costs and logistics for all. We’ve worked closely with Kukri’s design team to develop a British look that I’m sure will help to instil pride in all representatives across the talent and performance pathways.” – Craig Anthony, Chief Executive – British Wrestling

“We are delighted to partner with British Wrestling for the next 5 years. The performance and quality of the wrestling suits has gone down extremely well throughout Commonwealth Games and we are ecstatic to continue to supply the top wrestlers with Kukri singlets, a bespoke off mat range and support wrestling clubs around the country in this exciting partnership.” – Josh Beal, Sales Director – Kukri Sports.

Kukri Sports are a global sportswear supplier offering superior quality bespoke garments, across multiple sports, from grassroots to elite level. To find out how we can support your sportswear needs contact us

30/08/202204/10/2022

Kukri Sports are delighted to announce our 5-year partnership with Merchiston Castle, an all-boys school, who are one of the finest in Scotland.

The school has an enviable history, being founded in 1833 and boasts the world’s longest continuous annual rugby fixture in the world (Merchiston v Edinburgh Academy). Today the school continues to put high-quality learning and teaching at the centre of the boy’s experience.

Learn more about Merchiston Castle

As part of the deal Kukri will provide a full range of bespoke school sportswear for both on and off field, for both staff and pupils.

“We are excited to announce our new partnership with Kukri Sports for the next 5 years. Sport is a huge part of our school, and it is important to have sportswear that not only looks modern, but also performs, to allow our young athletes to reach their potential.

We appreciate the multi-sport expertise Kukri have acquired over the years, with high profile partners; including Ulster Rugby, Yorkshire CCC, British Gymnastic and many more, and are really looking forward to seeing our pupils and staff reap the rewards.”- Pippa Axon, Bursar, Merchiston Castle School.

“It is a privilege to partner with Merchiston Castle School for the next five years. Merchiston is a school founded on tradition and sporting culture and we aim to provide sportswear that showcases this tradition within the designs, whilst bringing modern day performance qualities to the kit.

We look forward to providing more than just PE and performance kit, as we look to delve ourselves into the sporting events that take place at the school, throughout the year. We can’t wait to deliver the first batch of kit to the school in September and also provide an online shop, for the school, in the near future too.” – Josh Beal, Sales Director, Kukri Sports.

If you are interested in partnering with Kukri Sports, or want to know how we can help, get in touch