Ashworth Inc has signed a global licensing agreement with W.L. Gore & Associates to use the company’s world famous GORE-TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® fabrics.
Ashworth Inc becomes the first global golf apparel brand to acquire usage rights of both the GORE-TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® fabric licenses. Callaway Golf apparel, under license to Ashworth Inc, has the European usage rights to both the GORE-TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® fabrics. Ashworth Inc has acquired a global license to use WINDSTOPPER® fabric and a will release a specific WINDSTOPPER® range early in 2008.
Ashworth Inc’s designers have been working closely with Gore over the past few months initially on the development of the Callaway Golf apparel line up. This will be a comprehensive range of technical outwear, which will be on sale this Autumn.
Grahame Jenkins, Ashworth Europe’s managing director considers this new partnership to be a defining moment in the company’s history, “This is an extremely exciting time for Ashworth as we embark on the development of our new outerwear programmes with our new partners, W.L. Gore & Associates. Ashworth Inc. is now the only truly global golf company to have the global rights to use both the GORE-TEX® and the WINDSTOPPER® fabrics and is without doubt one of the most important developments in the company’s history.”
John Overdijking of Gore, who has been instrumental in negotiating these new licenses, anticipates that the new relationship with Ashworth will be incredibly successful. “Ashworth and Gore share many of the same brand values, so we are very excited to be working with them. The success of GORE-TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® products are reliant on working with the best partners. Ashworth Inc are a global company, at the core of the golf industry and we are confident that the new Ashworth and Callaway Golf apparel product ranges will be very well received.”
Ashworth Inc www.ashworthinc.com