The Origins of BUZZ Gear
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, a grappling martial art, is one of the fastest growing sports in the world, and combines discipline, fitness and competitiveness. Practitioners either wear tight, dry-fit shirts, called rashguards, or thick kimonos called gis.
I got hooked on jiu jitsu in 2014, and thought it was amazing how the mat brought together all walks of life, regardless of age, race, religion, color, creed, or sexual orientation. That said, most of the rashguards that were on the market at the time seemed to all be very similar and only marketing towards adult men.
With backing from Josh Ketry Ross, a gym owner in Buffalo, NY, I founded BUZZ Gear and designed a line of rashguards that were centered around geometric designs, fun modern colors, and performance quality.
Social Promotion
To attract more potential shoppers, I encouraged athletes to send images in of themselves wearing the apparel while being awesome. These images were posted to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to promote the brand and to stay top of mind.
Promotions were run ahead of tournaments that BUZZ Gear would attend offering discounts to competitors who wore BUZZ rashguards in their tournament matches.
Influencers & Pro Athletes
BUZZ partnered with several Instagram influencers and pro athletes to increase visibility in their respective sports. Influencers were provided free gear in return for predetermined social posts and review. Pro Athletes were provided gear "on flow", in return for competition wear.
Team Apparel Design
In addition to designs for consumer sales, BUZZ Gear also took on team orders, with competitive pricing on orders over 20 shirts.
These orders involved client communication on art direction, order quantity and sizing, and occasionally freelance illustrators. All orders, team & consumer, required extensive communication with the production company, Genex, located in Sialkot, Pakistan.
Fight Family Kimono Company Gis That Do Good
BUZZ Gear designed the original three gi designs that kicked off the Fight Family Kimono Company's (FFKC) Gi's that Do Good campaign, a social entrepreneurship project where for every two gis purchased, one would be donated to a youth in a low-income area.
In total, over 50 gis were donated, and outfitted much of the city of Buffalo's gyms.
