People’s Champion Finalist: SportPursuit

Start-up name: SportPursuit
Founders: Adam Pikett, Victoria Walton, Rhys Jones and Luke Pikett
Started in: 2011
Based in: London
Business description: Flash e-commerce site for sports gear and outdoor brands

Shortlisted categories:

Retail Business of the Year
Venture Funded Business of the Year

The SportPursuit story:

With a passion for all things sport, young entrepreneurs Adam Pikett, Victoria Walton, Rhys Jones and Luke Pikett started flash sales site SportPursuit in 2011 as a way to make a “positive difference” for sports and outdoor enthusiasts.

Now, four years later, the team have built the UK’s largest shopping community of sports men and women – over 1.8 million members internationally – through its platform which sells kit from world-leading brands such as Puma and Asics at up to 70% off RRP in seven day sales.

Backed by over £5m in equity funding, the business is quickly notching up achievements as it looks to become a brand leader in the sports market. Recent milestones include 50% year-on-year growth, reaching 700 brand partners, becoming the top UK sport mobile-ecommerce site, and sales of over 500,000 items in 2014.

While the company admits it caters for the “treat” shopping mission rather than the classic “need” shopping mission, its approach works and its use of social engagement (it has over 228,000 Facebook likes), sport related forums and own referral engine have seen viral customer growth.

Not content with UK expansion, SportPursuit’s vision is to build Europe’s largest online specialist retailer for ski, outdoor, cycle and run customers.

Why SportPursuit made our 60:

Having successfully tapped into a highly fragmented market, SportPursuit is effectively disrupting how the European sports retail market works. Its fast-growing customer base, sales figures and expansion plans are all evidence that this start-up is going places.

Where to find out more about SportPursuit:

Website: www.sportpursuit.com
Twitter: twitter.com/SportPursuit  
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sportpursuit