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Kitting out Olympic hockey teams

July 24, 2012

When hockey teams from around the world go head-to-head at the London Olympics the vast majority of their goalkeepers will be wearing protective gear designed and made by a Massey graduate’s company.

Obo Simon Barnett's company

Obo, Massey grad Simon Barnett's company will be kitting out most of the Olympic hockey players

Over the past 18 years Palmerston North-based OBO has grown rapidly and now exports around $4 million of its products annually, says Simon Barnett, who founded the company in 1994.

He said close to 70 per cent of the goalkeepers at this year’s Olympics would be kitted out in protective gear such as leg guards and helmets made by the New Zealand company, whose products cater solely for goalies.

OBO occupied a niche thanks to its focus on just one part of the field hockey market, which allowed it to develop the perfect product, said Barnett, who is also a part-time marketing lecturer at Massey University.

“There’s probably only 100,000 people we can sell to globally, but we export to 62 countries and have 65 to 70 per cent market share.”

He said New Zealand’s two hockey goalkeepers – Kyle Pontifex and Bianca Russell – would be sporting OBO equipment in London.

Find out more and check out Simon’s story.

Posted in: Business, Entrepreneur, Sport

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