Swix Sport Group announced Wednesday that it’s changed its name to Brav—reflecting the group’s evolution into a house of brands with a total turnover of more NOK 1 billion. The market outside Norway now represents half of the company’s sales. Ferd, which bought Swix in 1978, remains the group’s parent company.
“This is our natural next step,” said Brav CEO Tomas Holmestad. “We now have a diverse portfolio of brands—all deeply rooted in our Scandinavian heritage in the outdoors—and it made sense that the group name shouldn’t be the same as one of our brands.”
For more than 70 years, Swix has been one of the strongest and most recognized names in the skiing industry. In the years following Ferd’s purchase of Swix, several additional companies were acquired by Swix, and Swix ultimately became Swix Sport Group. Today Brav owns the brands Swix, Lundhags, Toko, Ulvang, Helsport, Hard Rocx, Skisporet and Original. The group has subsidiaries in eight countries, and the brands are distributed in more than 30 countries.
“Swix and the other brands will remain unchanged and continue to grow and inspire our customers around the world,” Holmestad said. “The new group name Brav won’t be consumer-facing, but will align our brands with common values and goals—and unite us across all operations.”
Steve Poulin, Swix USA CEO and naming committee member, is exhilarated with the direction and growth initiatives of the newly formed Brav group. “Swix is part of a strong, growing group of brands, and the U.S. market is rife with potential to bring other brands here in the coming years—exciting consumers with exceptional products they haven’t seen before.”
Over 300 employees worldwide participated through digital involvement, and a dedicated group was formed to process all suggestions and input. Ferd’s owner and board member Johan H. Andresen was one of the participants.
“We received more than 100 name suggestions, resulting in Brav,” said Poulin.
The Norwegian word “brav” means courageous, just and valiant. The word is about courage—but with more than a hint of desire for adventure. The Danish dictionary describes it as “Typified by decisive action, courage, stamina and integrity.”
