Freshening up the hockey bag
A former executive with sports company Nike Inc. is opening a new front in the battle over the $545 million hockey equipment industry: the fight to corner the odour-free equipment market.
John Collins, a onetime senior executive with Nike’s hockey division, this fall will relaunch Winnwell Hockey, an idle equipment brand that was once endorsed by Hockey Night in Canada celebrity and former Boston Bruins coach Don Cherry.
The Winnwell brand, which will be sold at Canadian Tire Corp. stores starting in late August, will feature an enzyme Collins says will kill the nasty odours that are the hallmark of any well-used bag of hockey equipment.
"The enzyme reacts to moisture so the wetter the equipment gets, the more the enzyme will kick in and kill the bacteria that causes the odour," Collins says. "It’s the best innovation in the hockey business since the one-piece graphite hockey stick. That was the last thing that really moved the needle."
During a recent presentation to Canadian Tire executives, Collins says he highlighted the enzyme’s effectiveness by using it to eliminate the potent smell of fox urine from a rag.
Winnwell will face competition from Fury Hockey, an equipment division of Crocs Inc., the company that makes a range of popular flexible and lightweight shoes cash advance loans us fast cash. Endorsed by former NHL player Keith Primeau, Fury Hockey last year launched a line of equipment it said contained antimicrobials to help battle odours.
Collins says the Winnwell products are different.
"The antimicrobials are basically masking agents; they don’t get rid of the smell."
A Crocs spokesperson declined to comment.
Collins says he commissioned research that shows female consumers are willing to pay as much as 20 per cent more for equipment that didn’t stink.
The Winnwell products will have various price points, Collins says, adding the company is considering hiring an NHL player to endorse the product.