Spin-out profile: PROGRESSIVE SPORTS
Progressive Sports Technologies works as an innovation partner to many global brands and smaller organisations in the sport and leisure sector to help them evaluate and develop novel sports products.
BACKGROUND
Progressive Sports arose from Loughborough’s Sports Technology Research Group, the largest group of its kind in the world, with a multi-million pound research income. The Group has been working at the forefront of new technologies with leading names in the sports and fitness industry for almost 20 years and currently has over 25 projects ongoing. The Group receives substantial income from key industrial collaborators including Adidas, Callaway Golf, Dunlop-Slazenger, Head, Nike, Puma, Reebok and Speedo.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
Progressive’s expertise spans ideation, product design, sports science and mechanical engineering, and sector specific sales and marketing. The company has a well established partnership with PDD Ltd, the largest innovation design consultancy in the UK. The deck has been licensed to Reebok Fitness and is currently being marketed worldwide under the Reebok brand. Fitness First recently signed a deal to put Reebok Decks into its entire fitness club chain in the UK. The Reebok Deck will soon be available on the UK high street.
Progressive is currently seeking to license several high profile products including RespiVest, an inspiratory muscle training garment, featured on BBC Tomorrow’s World and more recently BBC Dragons’ Den.
Progressive Sports has also developed ‘i.play’, an interactive playground product to combat obesity in children. Combining interactive electronics with conventional playground equipment, it has been created to engage the ‘playstation’ generation. It uses feedback and constantly changing goals to motivate children to exercise without realising how hard they are working. i.play has impressed Walkers, part of PepsiCo, so much that it has installed it as a feature of its ‘Parks for Life’ initiative. The first of these playgrounds featuring i.play were officially opened earlier this month by Gary Lineker in Reading and Leicester.
STRATEGY
Progressive takes products from initial concept to commercial realisation, generating income from licensing fees and royalties. Consultancy income enables Progressive to resource its own new product development programme whilst further strengthening links with the sporting goods industry. Progressive has won over £150k consultancy contracts in the last 12 months from companies such as Nike, Reebok and Umbro.
Patents are filed early and modified within 12 months, once an exploitation partner has been identified and final designs have been generated. Return on investment within a relatively short period of time is of paramount importance to the company. Progressive is seeking an investment of £2.5m to accelerate growth rate by securing its core team and expanding its considerable range of expertise. This will enable the company's patent portfolio to increase in order to secure further lucrative licensing deals. A trade sale for circa £50m is envisaged within five years.
COMPANY DATA
Incorporated 2001, employs three FTE, minimal borrowing, cash positive, profit making.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
Several PCT stage patent applications filed several further patent applications in draft format.
CONTACT DETAILS
Progressive Sports Technologies Ltd
Loughborough University Sports Technology Institute
Loughborough Science & Enterprise Park
1 Oakwood Drive
Loughborough
LE11 3QF
United Kingdom
E: info@progressivesports.co.uk
T: Public relations: +44 (0)1509 223445
T:
General enquiries : +44 (0)1509 564809