Kit geekery: QPR to switch to Errea

[TWOCHOICEStom]

QPR ditched Nike 2 seasons into their 5 year deal due to fans' dissatisfaction with the kits. They signed a 10 year deal with Dryworld which has gone to pot to due to difficulties at the company, now who've they switched to? Errea.

http://www.footballshirtculture.com/Sponsorship/queens-park-rangers-announce-errea-kit-deal.html

I thought this quote was particularly interesting, coming from their Commercial Director

“Our replica shirts will continue to be 100 per-cent bespoke designs, which is an absolute pre-requisite for the club, building on the success of the current kits from the 2016/17 season.

Nice to see a club like QPR prioritising opinions of their fans like this. I fully appreciate that we have to squeeze as many pennies as we can from every possible commercial avenue. I also fully appreciate that the little swoosh on our shirts = high volume and good margins. But I think the sacrifice the club make is that we, the customer get a pretty naff product. I also think we'd sell more merchandise if we switched to a manufacturer like Errea, who really care about their customers.

Errea weren't the best kits in the world (the fit was a bit dodgy and that waterproof material was weird), but they were OUR kits. Looking through oldfootballshirts.com it just struck me how many decent, bespoke kits Errea gave us. Third shirts, special edition shirts, anniversary shirts, women's shirts... Then below you just see a load of £10 teamwear with an Amex logo slapped on the front and I dunno... it just all feels a little bit like an X-Factor winner's song. It doesn't matter if it's a bit shit, if it's a song which has been covered 400 times before, if it'll be forgotten in a month. The people will lap it up anyway, because X-Factor.

Know what I mean?

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

I absolutely know what you mean. A wise choice by the Hoops me thinks.

 

[GloryDays]

QPR ditched Nike 2 season's into their 5 year deal due to fans' dissatisfaction with the kits. They signed a 10 year deal with Dryworld which has gone to pot to due to difficulties at the company, now who've they switched to? Errea.

http://www.footballshirtculture.com/Sponsorship/queens-park-rangers-announce-errea-kit-deal.html

I thought this quote was particularly interesting, coming from their Commercial Director


Nice to see a club like QPR prioritising opinions of their fans like this. I fully appreciate that we have to squeeze as many pennies as we can from every possible commercial avenue. I also fully appreciate that the little swoosh on our shirts = high volume and good margins. But I think the sacrifice the club make is that we, the customer get a pretty naff product. I also think we'd sell more merchandise if we switched to a manufacturer like Errea, who really care about their customers.

Errea weren't the best kits in the world (the fit was a bit dodgy and that waterproof material was weird), but they were OUR kits. Looking through oldfootballshirts.com it just struck me how many decent, bespoke kits Errea gave us. Third shirts, special edition shirts, anniversary shirts, women's shirts... Then below you just see a load of £10 teamwear with an Amex logo slapped on the front and I dunno... it just all feels a little bit like an X-Factor winner's song. It doesn't matter if it's a bit shit, if it's a song which has been covered 400 times before, if it'll be forgotten in a month. The people will lap it up anyway, because X-Factor.

Know what I mean?

I know what you mean. Kit designs are my favourite thing in football, pretty much and I loathe these template designs. I'll be interested to see what Errea do. That first Amex kit was our best ever kit.

 

[deletebeepbeepbeep]

Well done QPR, didn't think I'd be saying that twice in the same 24 hour period.

For all sorts of reasons we should ditch Nike.

 

[beorhthelm]

always felt the criticism of Errea over done. was it because it just wasnt a big brand? may i didnt/dont wear a shirt enough to notice the material shortcomings, its just a bit of casual wear usually over a long sleve top and under a jacket in the autumn, winter and spring.

 

[carteater]

I miss Errea. They designed some great looking kits for us, and the last one, which was the first AMEX sponsored one, had the letters printed and a bar made not an ironed on a yellow patch.

 

[indy3050]

I haven't bought a single home Nike kit for the boy as they look pony (admittedly have bought him the volt and the new black shirts)

 

[junior]

I must admit the only replica shirt I've bought since the centenary shirt was a 'Vicente' shirt. I seem to remember with Errea that i needed to buy a 5x XXL despite only being slightly overweight.

 

[Notters]

Not bought any kits since we switched to Nike (having had about the 20 before that). Would LOVE it if we followed suit.

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

Nike do make non template kits as evidenced by the recent one on the Albion Roar but profit paul wont have any of that!

Funnily enough I prefer the away shirts with Nike because each letter is an iron on instead of the "panel" which I hate on the home shirts

To be fair Erreas last couple of kits were pretty good quality wise.

 

[Dirk Lehmann's Python]

It's the goons in our support who couldn't recognise that 80% of our Errea kits were good that mean there's no chance of that happening with us.

"We want Nike or Adidas, Errea are shit"

*gets rubbish Nike shirt*

"We want Errea back!"

Profit Paul will follow the cash and has about 15 years of people moaning about Errea to back him up.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

 

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

Not bought any kits since we switched to Nike (having had about the 20 before that). Would LOVE it if we followed suit.

Same.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I haven't bought a single home Nike kit for the boy as they look pony (admittedly have bought him the volt and the new black shirts)

My son has the volt and black away kits.I really like them, as does he. He's not been interested in the last couple of home shirts at all.

 

[JJ McClure]

I'm not entirely against template shirts as long as they're good templates. The Nike catalogue in unfortunately just rubbish.

 

[BUTTERBALL]

Errea shirts were far better than the rubbish Nike offerings.

 

[Drebin]

If errea can rehash 'lively' away kits from the 90s for Norwich then they can do it for us. What a sight it would be if we got to the premier league and turned up to goodison park on the first day in the chewits kit. Marvelous scenes.

 

[Nixonator]

Didn't PB allude to no panel next year. So there's a bespoke one in the works.

 

[BBassic]

Didn't PB allude to no panel next year. So there's a bespoke one in the works.

Did he? Was it in that article on the website where he answered a bunch of questions? I skimmed that.

 

[Sussexscots]

See, Grandson likes Nike gear generally but doesn't like the home strips. Got to say, I hate the shirts we've had the last two seasons with stripes on the front and a plain panel on the back. Just looks like some off the shelf crap that's had a badge sewn on and a panel logo stuck on the front -gash. Not paying for that. I want to see blue and white stripes front and back.

I've said before, Canterbury of New Zealand - CCC - make a bespoke kit for the Rugby team I follow, London Scottish, and we are a relatively small Rugby club in terms of gate numbers with a small production run. The supporter version, however, is quality with all the sponsors and logos fully sublimated into the fabric so no itchy stitching on your chest. Nike need to up their game.

 

[Easy 10]

Its not just the Nike kit that is SHITE, its the casual / leisurewear in the club shop these days. Its such a poor range. I love a polo shirt me, but the Nike ones are all gubbins. And ok I'm not exactly Kate Moss, but I'm not Eric Pickles yet either, yet even their XXXL's are somewhat "snug".

I'd love it if we ditched Nike and went back to Errea. I've got a couple of Errea polo's that are still going strong from about 5-6 years back.