Edition 21 of the SportsBiz Spotlight shines on Cancha! Cancha designs high-quality sports and lifestyle bags inspired by life on the professional tennis tour.
We sat down with professional tennis player and Founder, Jack Oswald to learn all about Cancha…
Introduction to Cancha
Cancha designs innovative, high-quality sports and lifestyle bags inspired by life on the professional tennis tour. Our bags are built to adapt, built to travel and built to last.
Tell us about the business: what do you do, when was it founded, what’s the inspiration?
After nearly a decade of traveling the world on the men’s pro tennis circuit, I grew tired of the downfalls of traditionally built sports bags: broken zips, loose stitching, uncomfortable straps and bulky designs that certainly weren’t approved for the overhead locker of an airplane.
Bringing together industry leaders in textiles and industrial design with seasoned professional athletes, we set out to create uniquely adaptable, highly durable and customisable sports bags that could be used not only for avid and competitive tennis players but also for the outdoor adventurer.
Our bags are modular and highly adaptable, making them applicable to a wide range of sports activities. We also source our fabric from Bluesign® certified suppliers and are members of 1% For the Planet, in which we donate 1% of our annual revenue to certified environmental nonprofits.
What’s your main purpose?
Cancha’s mission is to create highly innovative tools that empower individuals to pursue their passions. I was lucky enough to pursue my dream in tennis and compete at the highest level. I see personal fulfilment as a basic human right – closely following food, water, shelter, and education.
I wanted to create a brand whose main purpose was to support, provide and foster passionate thinking and ambition. Just as companies like Apple create powerful tech tools to fuel digital creativity, we design innovative and purpose-built sports equipment to support an active lifestyle.
If failure wasn’t a possibility, what would be your biggest ambition?
We see Cancha pushing the boundaries in sports and outdoor equipment, both in a technological and sustainable sense.
Our ambition is for Cancha to develop unique, game changing products that improve the way we practice our favourite sports and activities, allowing us to reach new heights in performance, enjoyment and inclusion, all while positively contributing to the health of this planet and its future.
What’s your USP?
The innovative modular system that forms part of all of our bags is our biggest USP. It allows users to customise their Cancha Bag in seconds with purpose-built accessories designed to support their lifestyle and daily routine.
Our products are all compatible with each other, creating an ecosystem of modularity that makes each carry set-up unique to the user, their lifestyle and favourite sporting activities.
How many people work at Cancha Bags and in what capacity?
Two of us currently work full time on the company as directors, with about additional 25 contract staff covering roles in marketing, design – all the way through to accounting and finance.
This has allowed us to work in a lean and bootstrapped way, while also bringing on highly talented individuals in various sectors to help make Cancha a truly global brand.
Do you have any clients? If so, who are your usual clients?
We sell primarily D2C (direct to consumer) on our website. This allows us to build a strong connection with our customers and build a strong community around our brand.
It also allows us to quickly gain feedback, innovate directly from that and, in doing so, keep bringing more value. We also work with a few select retailers in the UK and US, who share similar values and collaborate with us to further expand our reach.
Who would be your dream client/distributor?
I feel very lucky to work with the current distributors and retailers we have selected. Now, it is more about building our brand and increasing the amount of customers we interact with on our own platforms (website, social media, etc).
This is where true open innovation comes, and seeing customers using, abusing and collaborating on our products is one of the most interesting and inspiring things this company has brought me.
My goal is to ensure that this collaborative presence grows, so we can continue to create unique products that support our expanding community.
How can people connect with Cancha?
You can visit us at www.canchabags.com and chat with us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Thanks to Jack Oswald for providing insight into Cancha, a brand on a mission to create innovative tools that empower individuals to pursue their passion!
If you would like to feature your sports based business or know of an organisation you would like to see feature on SportsBiz Spotlight, get in touch.
