UK sports brand SUDU debuts with athletics collection

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
May 30, 2024

New UK sportswear brand SUDU has launched its first ‘Run’ menswear collection, featuring 16 products designed to “help runners of all abilities unleash their inner athlete”. 

SUDU, we’re told, “translates” into ‘speed’, ‘velocity’, and ‘tempo’ and the new range includes its SRM 01 debut running shoe while the brand’s wider 15-piece apparel collection features running vests and shorts through to a comprehensive selection of jackets and wider layering options “made from cutting-edge fabrics”.

Central to the range’s creation has been the brand’s design lead, Samuela Melidoni, whose experience spans Adidas, JD Sports and Berghaus.

The brand has received substantial backing from its parent Levy UK & Ireland, part of the sports and entertainment experiences company Compass Group.

This means SUDU “will lean on the scale and expertise” of Levy across tech, sustainability, data, e-commerce, buying and retail operations “to ensure the shared values of excellence, quality, innovation and fair play come through in everything [we do]”.

Samuela Melidoni, Head of Design at Levy Merchandising, a new arm of Levy UK & Ireland, said: “We’ve crafted the Run launch range with comfort, style and function in mind. 

Melidoni said its first running shoe features a responsive Spring Foam+ midsole “which bounces back to propel you further with every stride”, while Speed Weave+ engineered mesh, silicone details on the tongue and heel and a plush collar that wraps around the ankle “will keep you cool and comfortable.”

Vinny Clark, CEO of Levy Merchandising, added: “With SUDU, we have big aspirations to build a leading brand that not only equips individuals with the tools they need to excel in physical pursuits but also empowers mindsets with every motion.

“We want to inspire and create a community of athletes who love pushing boundaries and achieving greatness, to help them unlock their full potential.”

In line with this challenge, the brand's teaming up with Sported, the UK’s largest network of community groups, “helping over 550,000 young people overcome barriers to reach their potential”. The partnership will see it support a number of different initiatives and programmes, “with the vision to make running and sport even more accessible and fair for all”.
 
Also, the product pipeline will “soon bring further Play football, Train fitness and Rest lifestyle categories to market”, alongside working with Levy ambassadors and a wider advisory board “to inform the creation of women’s specific product collections across categories expected to launch from early 2025”.