The work with UAE Team Emirates was the step in which Gobik had been working on for some time
It's been two months now, dressing the stars of UAE Team Emirates and we travel to the heart of Gobik to find out about the day-to-day life and the challenges posed by a partnership of this caliber, because being in one of the best teams in the world involves a mobilization of resources and energies of which we are sometimes unaware.
Join us on this little journey, Alberto García, co-founder and Product Manager atGobikWorking on the World Tour was the next step, as we were present in all areas of competitive cycling, MTB, road, track... and among many user profiles. The road to UAE Team Emirates went through several phases, little by little, climbing and learning. First with the junior and amateur teams, until taking the step to the professionalism of the team. EoloKometa, sponsored by the Alberto Contador Foundation, and also with Caja Rural, with whom we completed a beautiful 2-year project, always contributing and asking questions".
"Professional cycling is the test bench par excellence," he stresses.
Why the World Tour?Why UAE Team Emirates?
On this road Gobik has armed itself with arguments to tackle the project, knowing the requirements and the human, technical and material resources involved.
For Alberto García "being in the World Tour was an objective, but not just any squad, we wanted one that had weight and presence and that, at the same time, would allow us to develop. With UAE Team Emirates everything came together. We had an excellent relationship with Matxin for years, the flirtation has been going on for a long time, but the signature was made when we were sure we were ready.
Before taking this step, we even had to postpone it: "The growth we had been experiencing in recent years seemed to lead us to enter the top level, but it was not so easy, in fact two years ago we could have taken this step, but we considered it too soon".
Personalization taken to the extreme
Now Gobik you have the security of having the resources to "supply everything necessary when and where it is requested, and the certainty that the product is the right one, being aware that the sizing was not the usual - continues Alberto -. We are talking about professional cyclists of the highest level, cyclists in many cases already trained, with a great morphological diversity. Riders weighing 66 kilos and weighing 5'6" or 5'8" and weighing 78 kilos, this implies total customization if we want to achieve a perfect fit".
The amount of material necessary to move a World Tour team is very important, more than 10,000 garments in a season, but not only that, "there is a list of special fittings, per rider, with perfect body and sleeve adjustments according to the preferences of each rider. There is also the development of specific pieces such as the time trial suit or the customized bib shorts," continues Alberto.
The best test bench in the world
A World Tour team puts the greatest possible wear and tear on a garment, taking it through pure and simple mistreatment, we could say. "We take note of all the impressions to pass these improvements on to the end user," says Alberto, who goes on to say that "there's a lot of concern, for example, about the weight of the jersey and making it as light as possible. The best feeling for the runner is that he/she doesn't notice that he/she is wearing it.”.
As simple and complicated at the same time, as it is to achieve a good chamois "Although the professional, unlike the user, is more made to spend hours and hours on the bike. In the end it's like a good stew, getting each of the ingredients to combine perfectly," Alberto sums up.
"When Tadej Pogačar won the Tour, the deal was already in place. That was a shot of motivation, mixed with no small responsibility, we had a commitment to be up to par with the best in the world. We know that by dressing them we are in the spotlight, everyone is following them and watching them, that we have the chance to win races from the very first moment, as we have seen in the UAE Tour. They are our showcase.
Three goals in one
The link with the team is maintained through two people from Gobik who talk to the "service course UAE Team Emirates on each of the needs that arise in the development of the season.
"We do on-demand manufacturing and and the clothing shipments go to any destination, Emirates, Belgium or the riders' home," he says.. With this collaboration we achieve three objectives: we are in the races to win, our international position is greatly strengthened, people are showing interest in what we do, and we are able to offer our customers the best possible service. we fulfill the dream of being part of cycling.the sport that we love and that moves us," concludes Alberto García.
It is worth remembering that all this work has been done with a complication that exceeds us all, the pandemic. The prohibitions on travel have made it difficult to take measurements of the riders, which could not be done in person in a large majority, everything has been through a manual and your help. This, added to certain complications in the supply, made for a picture to be proud of.
Now that the wheel does not stop...
PhotosBettiniPhoto / Fizza Photo
