Attire Accessories - Sep/Oct 2018 (Issue 72)

COMPANY PROFILE 95 Tell me a bit about how the company started. What was the aim of the label when it was launched? BOING was inspired by the ropes my husband relied on for safety in the many outdoor sports he did in the ’90s. He trekked in South America, New Zealand, the Pyrenees and Scotland. He ice-climbed, abseiled, bungee-jumped, rafted, waterskied, paraglided and loved windsurfing so much he took this passion to every continent, but his big love was being on top of mountains. Amongst others, he scaled Venezuela’s highest mountain, Pico Bolivar, then Nevado Pisco in Peru, during which he missed a crevasse by a foot while popping to the loo during the night, so BOING could have disappeared into oblivion years before it eventually arrived! Ropes were essential for most of these activities, and he built up a sizeable collection – all tough, beautiful and tactile. He always felt these ropes could be turned into a colourful, simple outdoor bracelet with the right connecting clasp for a more extreme sports market in the UK. That’s where I came in, and in 2011 we worked on designing an engineered clasp that is effective, unfussy, attractive and, importantly, complements these characteristics in the ropes. We launched in June 2012 and felt so proud to breathe life into BOING. How were the initial products developed, and what was the response? We felt it was important to test the market by launching our own website and attend as many retail events as possible, just to see whether people loved our brand – we weren’t disappointed. From there, we were approached by stores wishing to stock BOING, giving us the push to invest in trade events to grow our trade accounts. What challenges were overcome when the company was starting out? Our main challenge was making sure that we sourced everything from the UK and were able to cope with the higher costs that the UK demands. It was and still is a key part of the brand, something we are proud of and hope to grow. “People will always want beautiful things and buy into a lifestyle that inspires and lifts their mood; jewellery brands that know and promote this will never fail.”

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