Aquasphere announced it has created an R&D Hub to develop its swim product. Launching in partnership with CN Antibes, the French swim club led by four-time Olympic gold medalist Alain Bernard, the R&D Hub is planned to expand to North America and the Asia Pacific to support its product offerings in these regions.
“Our Partnership with CN Antibes completes Aquasphere’s unmatched R&D ecosystem composed of our newly established global headquarters in Sophia Antipolis, France in which we plan and create the next generation of swim products; our owned manufacturing plant located in Genoa, Italy and now a world-class swim facility offering direct contact with over 1500 swimmers of all levels to test and develop the most innovative and best quality swim products in the market,” said Aqualung Group CEO Matthieu Bazil, the parent company of Aquasphere.
The R&D Hub is intended to complement its in-house R&D department and manufacturing in Italy.
“If we are going to continue to provide high-quality, unique technologies to swimmers and bring to market the strong innovations we have in development, we need to invest into R&D,” said Jess Fitzsimon, global brand director, Aquasphere. “It is an important step to establish R&D Hubs where we can test our product developments with swimmers, from the elite level to fitness swimmers, to ensure the products we develop are insightful and intelligent.”
Swimmers will be encouraged to give their perspective on trends and issues related to the sport and participate in video and photo shoots for social media and traditional marketing campaigns through the Hub.
“CN Antibes is thrilled to partner with Aquasphere and becomes the first swim club in the world to play a role in the development and marketing of swimming gear and equipment through the participation of our members,” said Alain Bernard, vice president, CN Antibes. “This collaboration is the result of a common ambition—to excel and promote the sport of swimming to everyone.”
The R&D Hub also offers a global platform for Aquasphere to showcase its brand, including building upon its presence in open water swimming and triathlon to the pool with competitive swimming. The company said new products and global athlete ambassadors, including elite competitive swimmers, would be announced in the coming months.
Photo courtesy Aquasphere
