An English company that makes vintage football shirts allowing sports fans to dress like their heroes of yesteryear will visit Australia in June to search for a local business partner.
TOFFS was founded in 1990 by Alan Finch after discovering his mother had given away his prized vintage Arsenal shirt. Although distraught at his loss, Finch set about making a faithful reproduction of the shirt with the help of a local dressmaker, and the finished result generated a life-changing idea.
Finch made an appointment with his beloved Arsenal Football Club which on the spot ordered 150 replicas of their 1949/50 Cup Final shirt. The first batch sold out within weeks and buoyed by those initial sales, Finch and his partner Michele set about visiting sporting clubs around the UK to explain their concept. The response was overwhelming.
Fifteen years later and TOFFS is the world's largest supplier of vintage cotton and polyester football shirts. Labelled the 'custodians of football history' by Manchester United, TOFFS have an average turnover of £2 million ($A5 million), a staff of 20 and their own manufacturing plant. Each shirt can be personalised with the number of the customer's sporting great stitched on.
TOFFS supply many clubs around the world and have a strategic partner in Italy, Nostalgica TOFFS, which accounts for more than a tenth of the company’s turnover.
TOFFS is visiting Australia from 11-17 June as a part of a UK Trade & Investment supported trade mission of around twenty companies from the Tyne and Wear district in England's North East. The company is hoping to find an Australia business partner which already sells football and/or soccer gear online.
Contact:
Alan Finch, Toffs, on Tel: +44 7768 070703
Michele Finch, Toffs, on Tel: +44 7967 341299
e-mail: enquiries@toffs.com
website: www.toffs.co.uk
or Rob Hemming, British Consulate-General, Melbourne on Tel: (03) 9652 1605
