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Un géant québécois du chandail de hockey voit le jour (


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#1 Junkyard Athletic

Junkyard Athletic
  • LocationUSA

Posted 03 September 2017 - 04:00 PM

Didn't see this posted anywhere... interesting

http://www.lapresse....oit-le-jour.php

#threadcloser


#2 WheelSnipe

WheelSnipe

Posted 03 September 2017 - 05:04 PM

Edited, misread article



#3 Dupes

Dupes

Posted 04 September 2017 - 07:27 AM

Interesting article.

It made sense for Adidas not to include Sports Maska in the CCM transaction.

Glad to see it will remain open and that SP has plans for it.

 

I didnt know SP produced IIHF jerseys, very interesting.


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#4 Fielder07

Fielder07
  • LocationNew Hampshire

Posted 06 September 2017 - 12:56 PM

A new global giant in the manufacture of high-end hockey jerseys is taking shape in Quebec.
 


The owners of the Granby Clothing SP company have agreed with Adidas to acquire the Saint-Hyacinthe Sport Maska plant, which produces official sweaters worn by players of all National Hockey League teams.

The sale price has not been disclosed, but according to our information this is a transaction worth a few million dollars.
The value of the agreement cannot be separated from the fact that it is textile, an industry that does not generate profit margins of the same order as those of other sectors.

The Saint-Hyacinthe plant was excluded last month from the sale of CCMs by Adidas to the Ontario investment firm Birch Hill.


The transaction is carried out by a new entity created by the three SP Clothing owners: Steve Bérard, Serge Bérard and Manon Bourget.

ADIDAS, CCM, NIKE

Clothing SP is, among other things, already the designated subcontractor of the American giant Nike for the execution of the sweater-making contract of all the teams participating in the annual tournaments of the International Ice Hockey Federation (Olympic Games,
world, etc.).

"The opportunity to acquire the Saint-Hyacinthe plant allows us to become the world's leading producer of high-end hockey jerseys," said Steve Bérard, executive vice president and general manager of the company. Working for both Adidas, CCM and Nike, we find ourselves making quite a lot of high-end hockey.
"

At the Saint-Hyacinthe plant, Adidas manufactured the licensed products of the NHL, a contract obtained from the league two years ago and still in effect for five years.
The German giant keeps the contract and will henceforth contract it out.

Mr. Bérard explained that the acquisition is through a new company to facilitate "management with customers".

"The 140 or so employees all retain their jobs in Saint-Hyacinthe.”

Asked about the profitability of operations in Saint-Hyacinthe, Steve Bérard replied that the plant was a "cost center" for Adidas. "It was not run as a business for operations to be operationally profitable. There is a restructuring to be done, but not in terms of the number of employees. The business practices in place at SP Clothing will be incorporated into the Saint-Hyacinthe model.
"

Manufacture of other products

According to Steve Bérard, the Saint-Hyacinthe plant was excluded from the sale of CCM in Birch Hill because Adidas wanted to make the uniforms of the NHL teams through a "neutral" intermediary. It is also the Saint-Hyacinthe plant that produces on behalf of CCM the jerseys of the Canadian Hockey League (major junior), the American Hockey League and ECHL (former East Coast Hockey
League).

"We will try to make something else in Saint-Hyacinthe," says Steve Berard, "because hockey is a very cyclical market.
There is capacity at the plant to make other products. "

The two Quebec factories specialize in "custom fabrication”. “This is what makes the products available here because there is a need for delivery time, customer service and quality," says Steve Bérard.

"From the moment there is a repetition volume - that is, the replicas of lower quality sweaters - it is unfortunate, but the products are made in Asia by other manufacturers.”

Serge Bérard - Steve's father - is a sort of return to the roots, since he worked at the Saint-Hyacinthe plant for a decade. He has already held the position of Vice President of Operations for CCM.
Serge Bérard had gone into business in the late 1990s and founded SP Clothing.

About the Saint-Hyacinthe Factory

• Number of employees: 140
• Year of construction: 1973
• Start of operations: 1974
• Number of hockey jerseys and stockings manufactured per year: over 200,000
• Main Hockey Uniforms: National Hockey League, Canadian Hockey League, American League and ECHL
• SP Clothing at a Glance
• Head office: Granby
• Owners: Serge Bérard, Steve Bérard and Manon Bourget
• Number of employees: 100
• Year of foundation: 1999
• Number of hockey jerseys produced per year: over 250,000
• Main Made-up Hockey Uniforms: Olympic Games, World Championships, Quebec Midget AAA Hockey League, Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League

 


Looking for new CCM HPTK pants - Black - Size XL


#5 MikeO

MikeO
  • LocationSan Francisco

Posted 06 September 2017 - 01:31 PM

 

 

I didnt know SP produced IIHF jerseys, very interesting.

 

Yep, all the Nike branded swift jerseys (and whatever they call the most recent ones) used by IIHF & D1 colleges are all made by SP. That also applies to all the Nike branded IIHF/NHL/NCAA jerseys prior to the Swift jerseys (the traditional sized jerseys with SP's version of Air-Knit or Ultrafil material).  

 

It was a bit easier to tell with CCM/Reebok being made by Maska as they had Maska printed on the inside laundry/materials tag located in the body of the jersey...the Nike/SP jerseys have that tag but don't say "Made by SP" on it.