Abacus

The lovely Linda took some time out of her busy schedule to answer some questions from the 66 gang:

Who are you?
Abacus Sportswear AB
Swedish clothing company Abacus design, market and sell apparel for men and women with golf at the heart of the inspiration. The collections combine functionality, design and quality. The Abacus head office is situated in a converted farmhouse outside Lund in Sweden, right in the middle of Scandinavia's most golf populated area.

Abacus is available in twenty countries, with very strong market positions in Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Germany and Canada. The goal is to continue developing Abacus into an international lifestyle brand that reaches beyond the world of golf. In particular one of the main focuses is the UK and Irish markets.

Abacus' partners in 2010 include many well known organisations such as The European Challenge Tour, The Solheim Cup, The Danish Golf Federation, and The Norwegian Golf Federation. Abacus also supports a number of individual players on The US PGA Tour, The European Tour, The Ladies European Tour, The Japanese Tour, The Challenge Tour, The Ecco Tour and The Tinius Cup.

How long has the brand been established?
Abacus has had its own brand since 1999 when the very first collection was a success. And that success has continued resulting in sport and functional clothing for a target group who like to challenge themselves and the elements; and therefore set great store by functional clothes of high quality with unique and well thought out design.

Are you intending to market the brand heavily in the UK or you will you allow word of mouth to attract customers?
We will undertake some marketing activities in UK this year and hope to increase this in 2011. Of course word of mouth is the best form of advertising if you have a premium product, which we do!

What section of the market do you aim for?
The clothing is not strictly aimed at the golfer, it is a real "lifestyle" brand and can be worn on and off course. There is a big part of the range which is highly technical and functional which is perfect on the golf course for men and women aged between 25-55 approx.

Are you hoping that the brand becomes more than just one for the golf course?
We will always have the heart close to golf, but through the years the active family has been able to wear Abacus garments the collections have developed so that the clothes can be used and feel right to wear off the golf course.

Do you feel that your clothing manages to combine performance with style?
Absolutely, our garments are a combination of functionality, quality and design. With innovative functionality and design Abacus' stylistically pure and Scandinavian accent is consistent through the collections. We work exclusively with fabrics and comfortable designs that perform on the course. Our Pitch Europe rain programme is the flagship of the abacus range. For many Tour Professionals, it is the only rain jacket worth playing in. The outstanding 4-way stretch and extreme breathability give unique freedom of movement and superior comfort. The easy-to-swing feature created by the special sleeve construction and lining, in combination with the lightweight and quiet fabric, make Pitch the answer for the most demanding players.

Where does the brands inspiration come from?
The inspiration comes from the Scandinavian nature. The strong Nordic elements are the starting point when we manufacture our clothes, they can cope with rain and sun; cold and wind.

You have some ambassadors, do they solely wear just this brand?
We are very proud of our ambassadors that have chosen to wear abacus clothing at all tournaments and support the brand worldwide. Mention some of them we have entered a sponsorship with the US PGA player Richard S Johnson, LPGA tour player Louise Stahle, Christian Nilsson and Barry Lane at the European Tour and Christine Hallström, LET.
To read more about our ambassadors you are welcome to visit our website; www.abacus-outdoor.com.

That's some collection of players, almost as good as the collection of clothing...any new players lined up?
We currently are talking to several young highly successful players with a view to a clothing contract. One of our main sponsored players, Richard S Johnson won the Scandinavian Masters on home soil a couple of weeks ago !

Super, thanks Linda!