Review of the Year 2009

Very brief review of 2009 at WarbyGK, including the development of the Legend goalkeeper gloves, and James Bittner's SMU's http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

Picture courtesy of www.BoroPics.co.uk

28 December 2009

Mess, mess and more mess! Read all about it....... http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

Picture courtesy of www.BoroPics.co.uk

Ooh, you tease!

For very brief information of the 2010 range of WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves please visit: http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

21 December 2009

Updated blog, news of a potential distributor in the States and a thank you to all our Facebook group members....... http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

Nearly Here!

Latest WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves blog, including last posting date for Christmas......... http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

14 December 2009

New blog, and news of the new training section added to the website: http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

RIP Kings Lynn FC

Updated the blog at warbyGK goalkeeper Gloves: http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

07 December 2009

Please follow the link to read the weekly update from WarbyGK goalkeeper gloves: http://www.warbygk.com/warbygkblog.htm

Bah Humbug!

Tuesday 01 December 2009, make a note of it in your diary as it was the first time that I have voluntarily walked out of the office! We each have a list of jobs or tasks to perform, and these are carefully written up on the Friday ready for Monday morning (my list always seems to be the longest though!) but NOWHERE on these lists were "Put up the Christmas Decorations"! As soon as I saw the christmas tree coming through the door that was it.....I was off, ring me when you're finished!!

We have been busy with our business plan this last few weeks, and armed with some comments from this thread we have been out at the weekends to speak to some grass roots goalkeepers to gain their feedback also. It was a great exercise to do because as I've said before goalkeepers are just SO passionate about the position and chatting to them in their natural habitat provides wonderful unbiased feedback that is absolutely priceless for any business. This feedback is helping to cement our original thoughts on how to organically grow WarbyGK and provides us with a clear vision of how to move forward and I think that people from the outside looking in will inevitably have their own opinions, but I have always been BIG on staying loyal to your beliefs and am extremely confident that we are doing things the right way. I am lucky in that I am surrounded by contacts with enough business experience to turn to for re-assurance and advice, and as easy as it would have been to jump straight in at the deep end (my normal habit!) with raising finance, investment etc to immediately challenge the established brands but I feel that the way that we have established ourselves in a very crowded market will give us the necessary platform to grow. "Any man can buy a field of corn to feed his family once, but the real winner is the man that can grow his own corn and feed his family forever" - Bob Warby 2009 (I'm now a philosophist too! I'm adding that to my CV!)

30 November 2009

Fresh back from walking the dogs down the river (it doesn't half hurt my knee still but that's another story!), here we go with another weekly update on the WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves blog. Last week saw the delivery of more samples from our 2010 gloves range, infact the delivery driver was the parent of a lad I used to coach for Boston United FC, and I am absolutely bowled over by the quality and strength of design of these beauties! I spent last night in the office packaging some up for our contracted goalkeepers to trial, and hopefully we will gather sufficient feedback to make any alterations necessary to exceed the current Portiere Pro range. I'm sure that some pictures will start to pop up fairly soon........

Saturday night was spent watching Adam Collin's Carlisle United destroy Norwich City in the FA Cup at a fog bound Brunton Park, and although he had very little to do the cameras on the live streaming at FATV really showed the gloves off well. It is such a buzz to see the gloves in action, especially on the close up shots etc, and an even greater buzz when my little girls shout out "Daddys Gloves!" in unison every time Adam was on the screen! It just makes me realise just how strong a design the Portiere Pro actually is and focus our attentions on creating stronger designs for the future. We did actually try to sponsor Northwich Victoria's Curtis Aspden in time for his televised clash with Lincoln City, but we wouldn't even try to compete with the amount of free goalkeeping gloves and clothing offered by the winning brand as the ROI was too minimal, win some lose some and all that eh?!

Finally a massive thanks to all members who have joined our FaceBook group (currently stands at 578 members), it's really re-assuring to have generated that volume of public support and maybe we'll be able to find a way to reward our members? Any suggestions please feel free to let us know what you would like (discount, competition etc).

Never Give Up....

As much as this blog should be about WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves, I'm too vain to not write a little about me!! As you may be aware I had an operation back in June for repairs to my torn ACL, PCL and cartilidges in my knee sustained in a car accident nearly 4 years ago now. I visited the Physio as usual last week who told me that I'll "never play again", and as much as I was expecting it I still didn't want to hear it! Sadly the operation wasn't quite as successful as indicated pre-op and I'm still in a lot of ridiculous pain with simple every day activities however...... I hate losing. Full Stop. And so on Saturday I went down to the local park on my own and started pinging some footballs into the net. I regretted this on Sunday as my knee blew up like a balloon and I could only hobble everywhere again, but that feeling of striking a ball for the first time in 5 months was FANTASTIC! I even popped one in the top corner from 20 yards (tried to repeat and had to fetch the ball out of the car park!) however I am now thinking the Physio was right as since the operation I can't jog for longer than 5 minutes before my knee say "no that's enough", I can't get in my car without falling in and more importantly I can't even kneel down to fasten my kids shoes up! Persta et Obdura (latin for Never Give Up, don't you know!!), and I won't but why does it have to hurt so much?!

Speaking of Never Giving Up (see, I don't just throw this blog together!), WarbyGK endorsee Adam Collin finally made his Football League debut on Tuesday night away at MK Dons. Adam was released by Newcastle United as a youngster and subsequentially spent time playing semi pro whilst working as a landscape gardner before Carlisle United offered him a deal this summer. His story epitomises the attitude to Never Give Up and that is one of the reasons why we were attracted to offering him a deal in the first place, now all I've got to do is send him some more goalie gloves!

23 November 2009

I have just posted on Twitter that we are expecting some more samples of our 2010 range to be delivered this week, and I have to give my unbiased opinion that we are taking a massive step forward design wise. This range will compliment the existing Portiere Pro range to allow us to create a more comprehensive range of goalkeeper gloves, and we are also trialling new latex foams that we have sourced from our business trips overseas which will be great to actually see how they perform (the suppliers always give great claims about the performance but the proof will be during game wear). I have spoken to a couple of our Professional Goalkeepers to let them know to expect a parcel or two and to give us any feedback or changes that they would like to see, from there we can either go back to the drawing board or move into full production.

Speaking of production, our receptionist took a phone call on Wednesday evening from someone's Mum to say that our factory had provided our details as their reference and that her Son had ordered 50 pairs of gloves so can they be trusted? I wish that I'd taken the call as I would have probed a little deeper to find out who they were and how long they'd expect 50 pairs to last! I think this is indicative of the current market place with a new brand popping up nearly every week, and having spoken to Glen about it know that we are actually flattered to have spearheaded this entrepreneurialism, but wish sincerely that people realise the amount of time and money that we have spent to get to the stage that we are now. It's a hell of a lot more than just draw a picture and get it made, there's unseen elements like non disclosure contracts, patent licencing, insurance etc that all need to be factored for, perhaps this Mum and Son partnership will become the next Reusch or Uhlsport, though starting with 50 pairs doesn't shout confidence to me........

Finally I have a HUGE decision to make, both on a personal and professional level. So, what do you suggest - Yes or No?

Pig Courier?

Hmm, just what is this picture.....?

Straight up, no messing, this is one of the longtail terms used by the google search engine to bring up http://www.warbygk.com/ - "Pig Couriers Darlington!". I didn't even know such a thing existed until I was checking to see the search terms used to find our website, even scarier as I didn't even know that Pigs could drive let alone deliver parcels!!

I have had another article published online, http://ezinearticles.com/?Introduction-to-Goalkeeper-Coaching&id=3123399 , this is actually the first chapter from my book which I'm hoping to publish in the very near future. There are points which may be agreeable and others not so, but they are my opinions about coaching the position of which I am deeply passionate about and I'm hoping to find a few minutes to add some more articles on goalkeeper coaching, gloves and the position in general. In addition it is also my intention to overhaul http://www.pilgrimgoalkeepercoaching.co.uk/ to create a free online facility for goalkeeper coaches but time is the factor that is currently against me! I will be looking for guest writers also so get your thinking hats on now..........

I have also had one of my students upload a brief video of our first session earlier this year. This video was just 2 weeks before my knee operation and I'm a long way off striking a ball like that again........ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zO6TIoXWC4o (I'm the good looking one in Red, and also ingnore his Selsport gloves, this was our first meeting remember!).

16 November 2009

I'm back fresh from spending a few days in Disney land with my beautiful wife and kids, and apologise for the absence of the Thursday blog but I was otherwise occupied taking my girls to see Stitch Live for the 132nd time!! I popped into the office on Sunday just to make sure everything's ok only to find a collage of Post It notes all over my desk, and scribbled messages for me to wade through and prioritise, I then turn on the computer and respond to a few of the emails before deciding to leave the rest for today and a huge caffeine boost!

It is great however to see the Legend goalkeeper gloves popping up all over the place, several of our endorsees have now selected to wear them and we are preparing for another delivery of 2010 samples which will be despatched for their feedback, so just a soon as we launch one style of glove there may well be others popping up! I went to watch some park football the other week and 3 out of the 4 goalkeepers were wearing the Legends! Yes, I know it's a bit anoraky to study what gloves the goalies are wearing but I love doing it and have tried out several brands just by introducing myself to the wearer. It's a great way to get unbiased feedback from what goalkeepers want and to also find out where sells goalkeeeper gloves.

I started my trek back to fitness this morning with a gentle jog with the dogs before calling into the office, even though it hurt like hell I'm hopeful to be able to be knocking a few balls around soon, though I am at the Physio's shortly and she may well stop me! I'm a long way of where I want to be and the pain is ridiculous at times but I keep being re-assured that it will be worth it so we'll see! I have to admit that I am desperately missing that addictive sound of the ball smacking the gloves in a perfect catch, I even sit in the office with the gloves on just handling a football, throwing it against the wall irritating the people in the adjacent room (that's also because I don't like them much!). Yes, don't worry...I will get help for my addiction one day, just not yet!

I cannot write this weeks blog without paying tribute to Robert Enke, and sending our condolences to his family. I was in the hotel room in Disney Land when I flicked over to BBC News 24 just as they announced the tragedy in their headlines, he will truly be a great loss to our unique community.

Welcome to the start of another week, and that means it's even closer to Christmas and there's just over 6 weeks left for all us blokes to still NOT do any shopping - that's what Chritsmas Eve's for right?!!

Fistly I want to say a huge congratulations to our endorsee Paul Farman of Gateshead FC as he has won the Blue Square Premier Player of the Month for October, a thoroughly well deserved accolade for one of our young goalkeepers.

FA Cup weekend always brings back happy memories fro me as it's always a huge buzz to have played in the competition (I was even a named substitute last year when the club I was coaching for had a goalkeeper shortage! Our keeper got floored in the 85th and I thought that I was going to make my final bow in the historic competition, but he only went and got up! How selfish was that?!). This years competition saw a few of our endorsees debut the Portiere Pro range in the cup - even the Legends made an appearance on ITV's highlights on Saturday night, being worn by Nick Liversedge in Darlington's defeat against Barnet FC at Underhill. The sight that made me chuckle was Gatesheads's goalkeeper Paul Farman sprinting to celebrate with his team mates after they scored the equaliser late on against Brentford - he rugby tackled the scorer on the half way line, floored him then left him there! The other tie featured WarbyGK gloves at both ends as Ian Dunbavin's Accrington Stanley beat James Bittners Salisbury City 2-1 leaving the Lancashire club in the hat for the next round.

Finally I am away now for a few days, and am spending today tidying up a few things before taking my girls to Disney Land. I have my fingers crossed for an announcement imminently on an issue we've mentioned several times recently but the matter is now in the hands of Agents and Solicitors so we may hit a stumbling block or indeed brick wall which could kill it stone dead! If it happens today, rest assured that I'll be shouting about it!

.........and relax!

After what has felt like the most hectic week ever in the WarbyGK office it is time to relax things a little bit, and re-focus on the ambitions before the launch of the Legend goalie gloves. I am hopeful that most of you have now viewed the Legend pages on the WarbyGK site, and I have to say that I have lost hours so far just spinning and zooming.......it can't be just me that finds them ridiculously addictive, surely?!

As a business in an ever growing competitive market we are always looking for wys to be unique, though not for the sake of it, but to evolve - both as a brand but also as individuals. A lot of our growth and progression happens away from the public eye, as we create new ideas or systems within the office which are all designed to facilitate our organic growth, and organically is the key to our business plan. There is little point in growing too fast, too soon and seeing it all crumble around us, so we are extremely conscious of our development and this has meant that at times we've all had to learn new things to acomodate the expansion and in all honest, it's great! I've gone from a life of getting muddy on the training pitch to understanding terms like ROI, SEO, Due Diligence amongst others in a matter of months, and I personally feel better for it! I smiled when I heard about Kenny applying to BBC's Dragons Den business programme as we toyed with the idea for the last series before deciding that I may be too "head strong" for the inquisitive Dragons! It could have made a great programme though as my mouth often kicks in LONG before my brain, and I regularly receive "that look" from the wife when we're in public situations so perhaps it's best that we decided not to!

We can again now focus on the boxes of samples we've received, and head towards making a decision for 10/11's range. So as not to give too much away I'm happy to upload just ONE picture of a design (blank, uncoloured, undeveloped sample) just so that you can see the early workings of glove creation. There is every chance at this stage that we'll not be using this design but for all you goalkeeper glove freaks there's a small preview at the top of this article......

02 November 2009

Wow, how many emails can you get in one weekend?! In amongst the regulation Spam (no, I don't want any Viagra thank you!) are some real gems, and often these gems are printed out and left on desks for the following morning. Everyone loves a compliment, and it is a great motivational tool when someone says "Thank you", we honestly care about our customers and we really care about our products so when we get an email thanking us for the service, the answers to their questions, the delivery speed and above all, how our gloves helped them on Saturday afternoon it means a LOT to us in the office, it's very much a proverbial pat on the back and as much as we concentrate on the Professional Football game, we are heavily involved at Grass Roots so these "Thank You's" are the biggest compliment that we could receive.

There has been some strange goings on recently, and not just because it was Halloween! For instance last night our Twitter account was suspended, and I'm still waiting for an explanation, yet this morning it was back up and running again! The single most strangest thing though is that my personal Facebook friends list now has 82 mutual friends with a new Glove Brand's owner! I've no problem with this per say, but some of these "mutual friends" have never played football in their life and most aren't even goalkeepers!! "Do not piggy back off the success of others" as my Dad would say!

Speaking of Facebook we now have over 800 members in our Fan and Group pages and that is phenomenal! We will still message the URL of the Legend Goalkeeper Gloves every couple of days until they are officially released, so all new members can still get the chance to buy pre-release. We have despatched the Legends to our endorsees that had outstanding gloves owed so fingers crossed many will be in appearance soon across the country! If you spot any feel free to email them to us, we do love seeing our gloves in action!

For those interested.....I won!!

That's right, I won the race to the Legends! Admittedly it took a bit of doing but the end result is what matters....the courier dropped them off, I took the call from reception, "I'm gonna go and put the kettle on!"...job done! Childish me? Of course, but winning matters!

The response from our Facebook group members has been nothing short of fantastic and ol' Postman Pats back will be aching this morning after the last couple of collections! The Legends will go on general sale in a few weeks, but for the time being will remain exclusive to our Facebook members - there's still time to join the groups as we will continue to message all members periodically so you haven't missed out on getting them before your mates!!

I have scheduled later on today a MASSIVE phone call, not just for WarbyGK but also for me personally........I'll keep you posted as soon as I contractually can, though it relates to the "Legend in the Legends" idea a few weeks back. I'm so excited it's ridiculous, but that's what being involved in goalkeeper gloves does to you, the people that you network with is mind blowing at times!

Finally I've been a busy little bee this morning and have added several files to the media section of our group on The Glove Bag.....enjoy!! (http://theglovebag.com/groups/warby_gk/default.aspx)

26 October 2009

Morning all, and welcome to potentially one of the most exciting weeks ever in the WarbyGK office.....I'll try not to give too much away just incase things don't work out the way they were leading before the weekend. Firstly and potentially the most exciting (as I can't let slip the other news just yet) is that the Legends are officially in the UK!! I took a call on Saturday afternoon from our handling agent to say that the consignment is ready to be loaded onto our courier's van and will be making it's merry way to our office imminently...............and I swear that everyone's moved their desks closer to the door for when the delivery comes in - these extra seconds closer means they may get to the gloves first!! (though please don't tell them that I've asked reception to specifically call my extension first - I hate losing!!). As promised, as soon as we have the gloves and everything is OK with them, then we will message all Facebook group and fan page members to give them a chance to buy first, before the official release!

Second exciting issue is the progression of a "Legend in the Legends", but this is still a long, long way off and I promise to update as soon as we have it all confirmed. I have confided in a few trusted lads indirectly involved with WarbyGK, but just incase talks break down I'll keep it a secret for the time being I'm afraid!

Just as a final shameless plug, WarbyGK also have a YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/WarbyGK?gl=AU&hl=en-GB) which has videos of not just WarbyGK goalkeeper gloves but also some coaching bloopers from a few seasons ago.....they still make me laugh now so hence the shameless plug! Finally I've uploaded a picture of Joe Welch in training for England last month into our media section on the Glove Bag forum: http://theglovebag.com/groups/warby_gk/media/default.aspx

Cough, Cough, Expert Author?

I have been awarded "Expert Author" status via EzineArticles.com, granted they maybe award this status to everyone who submits an article, but I don't care as it sounds bloody good! Here's a link to my first article and there are more on the way: http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Birth-of-a-Goalkeeper-Coach&id=3076983 . I have always been passionate about goalkeeping and the articles to follow this one will hopefully explain my ways of working and developing goalkeepers. I acknowledge that these articles aren't overly relevant to WarbyGK, but they are relevant to the man behind the gloves so it all kinda links up in my little world!

Back to the office of WarbyGK, we are simply waiting on the delivery now of the Legends and stock replenishment to arrive. This is akin to the eye of the storm whereby once the courier wheels the boxes into our reception, all hell will break loose with us all fighting over which boxes contain the Legends and which ones have the top up stock! In the meantime we have received yet more samples of the 2010 designs (with more to come also) and we have tried something completely different this time around, though whether we will run with it is a different matter - all depends on the feedback you see! You honestly wouldn't believe the choice in Latex we have to wade through, we literally have drawers full of sample sheets etc but the only real way to test it's properties is by wearing them, and that's where our network of goalkeepers come into the equation. Alongside our professional channels we also utilise the experience of grass roots goalkeepers, and this time around we are going to use our Facebook Fan page to select a few goalkeepers to provide feedback when we finally agree to which ones to despatch! We are also intending to offer limited time pre-launch sales of the WarbyGK Portiere Pro Legend through Facebook too, so make sure that you, your missus, mum, kids and dog join the group to increase your chances! Join now: http://www.facebook.com/pages/WarbyGK-Goalkeeper-Gloves/121104875958

19 October 2009

"Hello Bob,
We'll despatch your total gloves on Monday direct to your address by courier service"

You know what that means don't you? That's right....more cardboard boxes to recycle!! No, obviously it means that our Legend Goalkeeper Gloves are coming and we've been hyper in the WarbyGK office since we received that email last week, but as nothing is ever straight forward then predicting an actual date of arrival is complex...........our first ever batch of gloves (the Goleiro Pro-T) were sat at customs incurring horrendous storage charges before they were released, the Goleiro Pro Legend Rolls were desptached to our business partners address but he was away for two weeks, our Goleiro Pro Escuros arrived safely as promised but Customs had opened the box and "inspected" the contents (with a knife!!) - so as you can see, we take nothing for granted until we can get our hands on the gloves, but rest assured we'll be shouting their arrival from the rooftops via this blog and also http://www.warbygk.com/

On a seperate note, I would like to use this blog to say a massive thank you to Darlington FC goalkeeper and WarbyGK endorsee Nick Liversedge for attending a training session held by PGC coach, Lee Barrass. Lee is the goalkeeper coach for Swalwell Juniors and holds weekly sessions for the club and I asked Nick if he'd like to attend on behalf of WarbyGK. There are further photos from the day at http://www.pilgrimgoalkeepercoaching.co.uk/leebarasscoaching.htm and the feedback from both Nick and Lee has been tremendous, and I am really grateful for the pair of them for their support of both WarbyGK and also Pilgrim Goalkeeper Coaching.

Peter Shilton?!

Honest! We took a phone call on Tuesday from a firm called Champions Agency, who represent the great goalkeeping legend Peter Shilton. They were asking whether we would like to use Mr Shilton and they expressed an interest in advertising WarbyGK by using one of my boyhood heroes! I was bowled over and we are in discussions, however as with everything the price will inevitably be the deciding factor as we always have to monitor the ROI (return on investment) whenever we venture into this form of media. I'm keeping my fingers crossed though but can you imagine the buzz in our office after the phone call - Englands inspirational goalkeeper for two decades wearing WarbyGK? Wow!

As we await the imminent delivery of the new Legend goalkeeper glove, it seems our customers are buying the current Portiere Pro gloves in their droves. We are temporarily sold out of many sizes for which we can only apologise. It is incredibly hard to predict sales, and especially with the support that has been generated has lead to the sales of WarbyGK far exceeding our predictions for this stage in our business and please rest assured that we are in constant contact with our factory to get the stock here as soon as humanly possible! Please check http://www.warbygk.com/shop.htm to see what we have left for you to buy!

Tweet Tweet!

Just to let you know that we are now on Twitter. Please click on the Link to follow us......

http://twitter.com/WarbyGK_com

12 October 2009

We've just had a very interesting week in our office, lot's of discussions and certainly plenty of emails regarding both the past and also the future for WarbyGK and it got us thinking of all the competition currently within the goalkeeper gloves market. When I joined TGB the only other brand in the community was Nico's D-Flekt, but now there seems to be one cropping up every week and we at WarbyGK welcome all the competition as the people who will benefit from this are the most important people - all of you in the goalkeepers union!

"When you soar like an eagle, you attract the hunters" Milton S. Gould

As stated in previous blogs, there is definately enough room for every brand and we will generate followers of all diversities as we can all offer different products. As with the conception of many of sports major brands, we see it as our duty to constantly develop and improve to maintain the momentum that we have generated over the past three years and there are exciting times ahead for WarbyGK (as I'm sure there are for all the "new boys"). We have gained supporters, we have inevitably lost supporters and we also have a huge untapped market of people that haven't heard of WarbyGK but rest assured, with the help of the blueprint that we have developed this last week we are working on this, starting with the Legend........ http://www.facebook.com/pages/WarbyGK-Goalkeeper-Gloves/121104875958

We have a busy week planned with meetings coming out of our ears and lots and lots of mileage to cover. These are an evil necessity and although inconvenient at times, we really need them to assist our growth. We don't just hold meetings "in-house" we also have a network of people with an interest in http://www.warbygk.com/ who all have extensive experience in either business, professional football or both and these meetings offer us fresh perspectives on the samples and the new designs and ideas that we've been playing with recently. Anyways the kettles just boiled and that's my cue.........

We've done it again!!

Following on from our post on September 07 2009 "How to REALLY" save Penalties...!" http://warbygk.blogspot.com/2009/09/how-to-really-save-penalties.html We can proudly announce that we have only gone and done it yet again!

Ian Dunbavin from Accrington Stanley FC wore our Portiere Pro Annata Adesivo for the first time on Saturday against Chesterfield FC and promptly lived upto the our tradition of saving a penalty on their WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves debut. Admittedly Bavs was the one that caused the Penalty in the 85th minute, but maybe he'd already read the Blog and knew that he'd be safe and fancied grabbing the headlines! Sadly Chesterfield scored in the 91st minute to ruin his day, but watching his reaction to the save both on The Football League Show on BBC1 and also on the BBC iPlayer shows just how much it meant to him, and I embarrassingly admit to jumping up and down (well more hopping - bad knee and all that!) with him in my living room.

More of our goalkeepers were on show on Tuesday night in the Johnstones Paint Trophy. Adam Collin came out victorious in Carlisle United's 4-2 win over Macclesfield to maintain his good run in the JPT, and Darlington's Nick Liversedge put in a great performance in their 2-1 defeat to Leeds United at Elland Road, although he received a debateable Red Card in the 94th minute to prematurely end his debut leaving midfielder Jeff Smith to wear then wear WarbyGK - two debuts in one game! Luckily for Leeds though the contact was outside the box as obviously Jeff Smith would have inevitably saved the penalty anyway!

05 October 2009

Welcome to the start of yet another week - they're flying by at the minute and we've all got enough work on to last us for another year! Life is great at WarbyGK currently, we're fast running out of stock though and can't wait for the delivery to reach us, we've not many of the Portiere Pro Protezione (fingersave goalkeeper gloves) left so I'd suggest that you buy now as we'll be out until late November and we'd hate to disappoint you! Get your order in now via http://www.warbygk.com/ as all gloves are despatched the same day and there's not many places that sells goalkeeper gloves can boast the service we aim to provide to all goalies.

I spent Saturday at Alton Towers with my beautiful family (though some of the kiddies rides absolutely crippled my knee - they just don't build them for fully grown men, and boy, am I suffering today!), and I called into the office once we'd put the girls to bed - much to my wife's annoyance! She says that I'm always in the office, and she has a point but I believe that the boss should set the example, even though the office is closed at the weekend you'll always generally find me there at some point during the day (or night, or early morning!). Anyway, long story short (ish!) much to my delight I discovered that our gloves were being worn by a goalkeeper in the Football League who we'd yet to sign! Complementary or what? I duly went home and watched MOTD and the following Football League Show and nearly woke the house up shouting "There's our gloves!". Yesterday was spent holding discussions with the as yet un-named keeper and we have agreed on a glove deal and are now waiting for the ink to dry on the contract before we'll officially announce him (though he has chosen to wear the Portiere Pro Annata Adesivo which are instantly recognisable on the telly!). There are still outstanding discussions with other goalkeepers though, but we are in a competitive market and you just never know......!

Buzzing!

As the title suggests, this is our office this morning! We have received artwork of some proposed designs for 10/11 through this morning, and as I'm in the office at half six every day then I have been flying for the past 3 hours! I can't wait now for the delivery of both the stock and the Legends as we will be in receipt of these samples too.....life can't get much better. Speaking of the delivery - would you believe that we are having to top up the re-stock order as the last couple of weeks we've been spectacularly busy and are being cleared out on many sizes! Don't get me wrong it's fantastic on the one hand, but unfortunate on the other as we are struggling to fulfil our larger orders, but, hey, what a great situation to be in! For your chance to buy our fantastic goalkeeper gloves please visit http://www.warbygk.com/

Also, much thanks to Bitts at Salisbury City FC for sorting this, but we have signed his number Two, Grant Porter, to wear our gloves. Again Grant is a young goalkeeper with great potential and we are delighted that he has chosen us over the other companies he's been talking to. There are further discussions with Football League goalkeepers so watch this space, though things are never straight forward - generally the second that agents get involved, but we have a very strong business plan that has the structure in place to allow WarbyGK to organically grow as opposed to too fast too soon. My partners are very experienced in business and manage to keep me under reins - just! They know the markets extremely well and are aware that the retail market for any products is rife with preconceived prejudice but each manufacturer has conquered their own slice of sales and we at WarbyGK goalkeeper gloves feel that we are developing amazing support by offering fantastic products and service at great prices, and although we will inevitably attract critics, we will keep working hard to maintain the support and sales we are generating and with our new designs that we've had a preview of this morning know that the hard work is really worth it!

28 September 2009

Start of another week, and still mountains of paperwork sitting on my desk! I'm far too easily distracted and admittedly have the attention span of a goldfish, if it isn't a challenge then I'm gone...thinking of and doing anythine else! Me and offices have never gone together in all honesty but I'm getting there, it's just a killer when the suns shining as for the last couple of decades I've been outside in it with a football, now I'm stuck indoors with a mountain of goalkeeper gloves! Once the physio has OK'd my knee then I'll be straight back outside, guaranteed, and can maybe attack the paperwork with vigour on my return, though they're suggesting a minimum of 3 months before I'll be at that stage and in all honesty it's killing me!

On the plus side, we have had our endorsee Paul Farman (www.warbygk.com/goalkeepers.htm), debut his gloves in the Blue Square Premier this last week. He started last Tuesday against Rushden and Diamonds FC and again played on Saturday against Oxford United FC, he's got positive reactions from both games so fingers crossed Paul will now claim the Number One spot at Gateshead FC, and as he's still only 19 he is a massive prospect for a succesful career and joins the WarbyGK stable of promising young goalkeepers.

Another plus side is some of the new packaging has arrived, though I was in the shower at the time and met the delivery man wearing nothing but a smile and my toothbrush sticking out of my mouth (sorry mate!), and I am absolutely chuffed to bits with them. We're working hard to move the brand on and simple little changes like these help with this ambition. Everything we do has to be better than we've done before and certainly with the designs we've got coming in as samples I am very happy with the direction that my team and I are taking WarbyGK in. Watch this space and form your own opinion, WarbyGK are moving on (although not as quick as the delivery man after I'd signed his machine - has he never seen a naked man before?!).

Red or Orange?

Cryptic eh? This is the kind of question that floats around the office from time to time and these sorts of choices are always guaranteed to split us firmly down the middle! What can be tricky about the question? Though it's certainly an inevitability that at least one of us will storm out the office, flailing our arms and slamming the door on the way out...............before creeping back in with head bowed before finally agreeing that the other option was correct after all! (and if all else fails we'll have a democratic arm wrestle!!)

We gather feedback and opinions from our goalkeepers (professional, grass roots and juniors) and act upon this but ultimately we, as directors, have the casting vote and this is what can create World War Three within WarbyGK, and in truth, this is the facinating thing about our line of business..............everybody, and I mean literally everybody, has opinions (though mine are the only right ones!). For example I swear by Puma Kings but others wouldn't swap their Copa Mundials, I love Flat Palms but others will only wear Roll Fingers, I have a preference for Jessica Simpson (after the beautiful Mrs Warby of course) others may prefer Megan Fox - everybody is different and everybody believes they're right! It is our job to try and provide for the majority and this is never an easy quest, certainly in the world of goalkeeper gloves as goalkeepers are very picky about what they wear. I can remember when I was about 12 buying a brand new pair of Sondico's for a school game, I lasted in them for about 15 minutes before opting to play the rest of the game bare handed as I just didn't like them and couldn't get on with them. My team mates ripped me for several weeks after but they wouldn't understand the psychology of a goalkeeper in that everything has to be just so. My socks were always pulled as high as they can go and then folded over (fold over reaching nearly my ankles!), I couldn't have my sleeves tucked into my wrist strap and my shorts had to be tied up so tight I often broke the string! Any slight change to this preperation would guarantee a non focussed performance and this is the market I chose to make my business because we at WarbyGK understand you..........we know these little quirks that we all have, and by having these heated arguments means that we can continue to develop our range and to be able to offer you the best products available (online at http://www.warbygk.com/ hint hint!).

21 September 2009

I'm writing this blog, fresh back from spending yesterday in North Wales at a Coaching Conference that I'm required to do in order to update my goalkeeper coaching licences. It was good in the fact that I did my licences with Alan Kelly (Blackburn Rovers) - now the Republic of Ireland goalkeeper coach, Steve Book - Bristol Rovers goalkeeper coach and Wrexhams (now Neath FC) Anthony Williams. Also there was Alan Fettis (Northern Ireland International) - now Sunderland's goalkeeper coach, and to just even be able to listen to their conversations is an experience in itself and I am too humble to tag along with them, though it was an honour to speak with them - even if I struggled with their accents at times! Sorry boys!

We have to attend so many hours of these conferences in order for our UEFA licences to remain current and we attended a Goalkeeper Conference earlier in the year, which was fascinating to see how other coaches do things and why and there is a special unity amongst the goalkeepers that yesterdays conference lacked. Goalkeepers have a special way to take the mickey and get some banter going that, frankly, outfield coaches cannot emulate. It was nice at the goalkeeper conference to loan the gloves out and get some feedback (and sales) from the goalkeepers present. I have to state publically that if you want to do any coaching course (particular goalkeeping) then take a look at the Welsh FA before anywhere else http://www.welshfootballtrust.org.uk/coaching

We have revamped the homepage at http://www.warbygk.com/ to feature the new Legend and also give a direct link to our online shop where we despatch the same day (before 1300 hours) to make buying your goalkeepers gloves from us even easier!

WarbyGK International Debut

Great news came out of Hungary on Tuesday night. WarbyGK endorsee Joe Wech was awarded his first England cap for England C against Hungary in Budapest. We believe that Joe is quality which is one of the reasons we specifically sponsored him. I'm desperately trying to find pictures from the game (Joe is sending me some), but if anyone else beats me to them then feel free to share...!

With all of our endorsee goalkeepers they have to fit in with our specific criteria before we'd even consider any approach or offer, and as a brand always looking to the future we do the same with our keepers. What potential have they got?...well in Joe's case massive, but also some of our younger keepers on the books. Take Grimsby's Leigh Overton and Boston's Aaron Butcher for example, both of these lads possess HUGE potential and could, with the right opportunities, go very far in the game and we'd be very proud to have helped in our own little way. We are very proud of all the lads that have signed contracts with us for this season and quality over quantity works well for the WarbyGK brand ethos.

I have ordered the packaging for the Legends today, and I'm really proud of the way the brand is going considering we are only in our second season, the strides that the company has taken recently is more than enough to stick a big cheesy grin on my face! ! I feel we have created a strong following, and the many emails we receive from converts of Uhlsport, Sells etc is more than enough to encourage us further, so at this point in our growth I, on behalf of all at WarbyGK, would just like to thank you all for the support and input that we have received to date....Thank you!

14 September 2009

I've gotta admit I'm really getting into this blogging "malarky", I never thought that there's be as much to write about as I'm finding, though I did briefly try Twitter..........couldn't get my head round that so swiftly deleted the account!! I'm used to being on the training pitch every day but these past few months I've been restrained to the office as I'm recovering from my Cruciate surgery (finally!) and it's opening my eyes to a whole new world! It has come as abit of a blessing as I can now devote more time to WarbyGK as opposed to spreading myself thin and relying on the others involved to "carry" me to some extent, though I am desperately missing the banter and can't wait to get back to work (although I may have to reduce my hours accordingly!).

We placed the order for the Legends last week, and also have created some more designs for the 10/11 season which we should receive at the same time (DECEMBER by the way for all those repeatedly asking), and if these designs work then I am confident that we have taken another step forwards in our evolution and to achieving our ambition. I have to just take a second to congratulate Glen after David Stockdale gave Pro-GK their debut in the Premier League yesterday for Fulham. I know how big a buzz it is to see the fruits of your labour on the screen and they have become the first of the "new boys" to reach that platform so well done to Glen and his team!

We have received some Legend samples this morning from a different manufacturer vying for business which I'm toying with the idea of running a competition with, and I think we'll promote it via our Facebook Fan Page so join up and keep your eyes peeled!

That's the very best pic I can find of Simon Rayner in the Legends (honest, I've looked for hours!)

Both sides of the coin......

Firstly I need to start this blog with a moan, sorry!

ROYAL MAIL STRIKES!! We despatch our goalkeeper gloves using Royal Mail First Class Delivery, and in the majority of cases they are fantastic, we post before 1600 hours and they generally are delivered the very next day (UK). We are proud of the speed of delivery generally but because of these strikes items are just not reaching their destination on time - or at all! So please be aware of the possibilty of delay if you order online, not just with WarbyGK, but also any retailer that uses Royal Mail. We are looking at alternatives though so rest assured that we are doing our best!

Anyways, the Legends are now officially on order! Hooray and about time I hear you cry!! You know I'll keep you all posted though so stop worrying.....not long to wait now!

We had an interview for a Norweigan Football Site recently and one of the questions was "Why did you move into the goalkeeping gloves market?", there is a simple answer to this and one which I'm sure that every one of our competitors will understand. Me personally, and I'm not talking on behalf of my partners, is because I want to be the best at whatever I do. I wanted to be the best goalkeeper I could be (got nowhere near what I should've but tha's another blog!), I want to be the best coach that I can be and most importantly I want to be the best Daddy I can and I moved into the gloves because I firmly believe that WarbyGK CAN be the best, and as long as there is that chance to achieve this then we will keep working these ridiculously long shifts to reach this recognition. If I can't win at something then I won't play (ask the missus because I'll never play her at ten pin bowling ever again!) but with this venture I believe that we can win, albeit with a massive challenge with the strong competition we've got (thanks Glen, Greg, Kenny etc!) but as I've said before there is space for all of us, and if I wasn't involved in the business then I'd be truly spoiled for choice!

Finally: Two Lions walk through the market place on a saturday lunchtime, one turns to the other and says "It's a bit quiet for a market day isn't it?".

07 September 2009

Morning/Afternoon/Evening all (delete where applicable)!! And on with our weekly update from WarbyGK towers (well, office really but I've always wanted to say that! In fact I wanted to call our house Warby Manor but the wife thougt it was too egotistical so I left it!!)

First up, we are delighted to announce the signing of Joe Welch to WarbyGK. Joe is Danny Naisbitt's understudy at Histon FC and has put in competent performances whan Nezzy was banned earlier in the season (see Gutted! blog). Joe has also recently been called into the England C squad for the game against Hungary in Budapest on September 15th which demonstrates the potential that Joe has to progess up the Football Pyramid, wearing his Warby's of course!

I am writing this update to give me relief from the heated debate we're having about the new Legend and Top Up order we're placing in the next few days. Several key features we can agree on, but getting the size quantity ratio right is always a challenge: we need a formula that can predict the stock levels to hold, or a crystal ball - either way it'll help my headaches as looking at numbers and making predictions isn't my cup of tea...............speaking of which, is that the kettle I can hear? Nothings ever as straight forward as imagined and our calculators are taking a bashing, as is our poor accountant! Scrub the poor bit, I've seen his invoices...he certainly isn't poor!!

The light at the end of this number cruching tunnel is that the Legend's are officially on their way and are therefore the next installment in the WarbyGK journey, hope you're on-board?!

How to REALLY save Penalties...!

I've finally cracked it! All my years as both a goalkeeper and coach wondering how to deal with the dreaded penalty kick, well here is THE definitive answer which is virtually fool proof.................buy some WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves from www.WarbyGK.com!
No kidding, I'm serious and I'll take you through the proof: The first time that these goalkeepers wore their Warby's in a game resulted in a penalty save:
Danny Naisbitt: Histon v West Bromwich Albion, 2 penalties saved!
Adam Collin: Carlisle United v Morecambe, 2 penalties saved!
Lee Hook: Havant v Dover, 1 penalty saved!
Right, now I'm off to talk to the FA in preparation for the 2010 World Cup Final when England take Germany all the way to a penalty shoot out...........wish me luck!

Don't say we don't give you anything!

We have been working falt out to be able to offer everybody the opportunity to have the glove they've always wanted. Please see http://theglovebag.com/forums/t/17474.aspx for more details. We are hugely proud to be able to offer this, and along with the delivery of Legend means that Christmas 2009 could be very exciting for some goalkeepers!

We know that some keepers buy gloves to match their kit (most of us at WarbyGK have at some point!), and that most have an idea of exactly what cut will suit us best, so we have negotiated with our factory to provide this amazing opportunity! WarbyGK isn't just about goalkeeper gloves, we are about the goalkeepers themselves...what makes them tick and what can be done to improve their game. Goalkeeping isn't a position, it's a passion and everyone that's lasted more than a season in goal knows that it's in their blood, they have a special desire to be the odd one out in the team, they want to win more than any other team member, they choose to be special.............................. Welcome to the magical world of WarbyGK!

Landscaper to Penalty Hero!

Following on from this thread http://theglovebag.com/forums/p/14730/60521.aspx#60521, Adam Collin was the hero for Carlisle United in last nights Johnstones Paint Trophy tie against Morecambe FC. Adam saved the fourth and fifth penalty in the shoot out after the sides were tied at 2-2 after full time, forcing the game into the dreaded penalty gamble.

Even more of a relief was that I was in touch with Ads at 1620 hours and he told me that his batch of gloves hadn't arrived (posted them last Monday 24th!), followed by a text at 1630 to say that the office staff have found them!! Maybe he's now found a new pair of "lucky goalkeeper gloves" - come on, we all have a pair stashed in the wardrobe, don't we?!! Oh, just me then!

31st August 2009

Not much to report today with it being a bank holiday (for some!) but as it's the end of the month I'll use the quiet for the end of month accounts and paperwork ready for tomorrow when the office is open again, and the gilrs will tell me that everything I've done is wrong and will have to be re-done!!

I'll use the time to look at how we can move the brand forward and where to go next as we have (yet another) meeting pencilled in for tomorrow, although the growth that we have experienced has surpassed expectations, we still need to keep focussed on what happens next.......... It's a great time to be a keeper currently, and the selection of kit available means that no-one should be without anymore, and as much as we aim to cater for every goalkeeper at every level, we know that we can't please everyone. In as much as I would never buy certain brands of car, people still do and are very happy with them, it's the same with goalkeeper gloves i.e personal preference. What is fantastic though (and I'm sure that Glen etc will agree) is the emails and telephone calls that say "I used to only wear Uhlsport / Reusch / Selsport etc, but have now converted to your brand and will not wear anything else". This feedback makes everything worthwhile, the endless meetings, sleepless nights, development expense etc all pails into insignificance when the public believe in your product as passionately as what we do. Sure the big brands have a head start BUT I am confident in my prediction that you will see us "small fry brands" in the Top Flights and International Stages in the future , and you can take great pride from being on board at the very start!

Now's your chance!

Very hectic day (Friday) culminated with a visit to the accountant, and I tell you what, these boys know their stuff! I played football with the lad I'm using and he's a great help with budgets etc, it's nice when you can find someone you can trust! "Always trust the company whose named after the owner" was a piece of advice I received years ago in a totally unrelated matter, and I must have remembered it when I ventured into the world of Goalkeeper Gloves with WarbyGK, and now the same with the accountants and other business we associate with.

I have to say thank you for all the feedback we receive both via forums and also direct emails etc, especially pleasing for an egotist like me is the personal feedback. I have to modestly acknowldge that WarbyGK is more than just me and without the help of the staff then we maybe wouldn't have grown to where we are currently, although being the humble, shy and retiring character I will take all the praise I can get! I am old fashioned in many ways, and encourage those involved in WarbyGK to share the same ideals; customer service is and will always remain our priority and we aim to treat customers how we'd expect to be treated.

The launch of the Legend is getting closer, and the developments that we have planned for the future range is very exciting, however now's your chance to have your say. We invited any input for the development of the Legends via our Facebook group, and are opening the floor to your ideas, please contact me via http://www.warbygk.com/form.htm and share your ideas!!
Don't forget to join the Facebook group if you haven't already done so and once again thanks for all your feedback!

No rest for the wicked (or bald!)

I did it again, although not the business' fault this time! No sleep Tuesday night due because my youngest had one of those "moments" where once she's awake, she wasn't going back to bed! I'm sure all parents know what I mean at some stage? My girls are usually fantastic at bedtimes and this was a rareity so I gallantly volunteered to sleep with her on the sofa to give Mummy and Big Sis some peace. I turned on a fascinating documentary about reading chairman John Madejski on BBC Three and she soon fell asleep, so I cracked out the laptop to do some more research!
There's something invigorating about using tinternet forums at silly o clock, bit like shopping in Tesco at night time, where you actually feel as though you have the place (or forum) to yourself! Bizarrely I get almost double the work done than what I generally manage in daylight, with my little girl now soundly snoring next to me, so much so that I'm thinking of changing the office hours (though can't see the others agreeing with that!).

On top of WarbyGK I also run Pilgrim Goalkeeper Coaching (PGC), where I supply goalkeeper coaches to Football Clubs and Individuals. Got a phone call at 8 yesterday morning from one of my coaches to say that he's now out for two months with a broken ankle! He was making his long awaited club debut, pulled off some worldies (his words) and then in the 2nd minute of injury time......snap! That's taking injury time a bit too literally! So as well as staying on top of the goalkeeper gloves I've now got to re-assign his sessions amongst my other coaches, jeez no wonder I'm not sleeping...there's not enough hours left in the day!!

Final thought "Why do round pizzas come in square boxes?"

24th August 2009

Busy week planned as ever, started by the despatching of several bundles of endorsee gloves. I'm sure the Post Office love me, wandering in with parcels galore tucked under my arms, delicately balanced so that they fall to the floor just as I reach the counter! I couldn't hold on to much as a keeper, so I'm bound to struggle now!! In these bundles are a few more Legends to gather feedback from before we place the order, best to be sure!

My morning has been deployed by reading up on terminology used in web design - well I say morning I mean all weekend also. I had an hours sleep Friday night as I had things playing on my mind so spent the early hours of Saturday working (reading blogs, wiki etc) before I took my dogs out for their walk down the river at 0500 hours. Much as I try, WarbyGK never sleeps and it's often there's a text or email flying between the staff at ungodly hours as to how to move forward. Certainly not complaining though, I wouldn't change a thing! I need to know about websites so that any discussions with designers and developers etc mean that we won't get taken for a ride. If I don't understand then I will find out, or certainly get someone that does understand. My background is football, football, football so business is a new chapter and I'm loving the ride but spare a thought for an ageing goalkeeper currently recovering from knee surgery that's walking his dogs at 5 in the morning, toying with business ideas and terminology!!

Gutted

There I am, all set for a day out Saturday at Histon v Salisbury in the Blue Square Premier. It's my little girls birthday on Friday so I thought I'll have a great day Friday followed by a day out at footy on Saturday. Firstly, Danny Naisbitt gets a Red against Oxford last Saturday, that rules him out of this weekend, OK fair enough, at least Bitts (James Bittner) will still be playing for Salisbury...................what happens? He's flashed a Red on Tuesday night against AFC Wimbledon and now they're both ruled out of Saturdays clash! What are the chances eh?!

Don't tell the missus though as she still has plans for her friends coming round on Saturday....no way am I going to be in the house for that! Football anyone?

17 August 2009

As promised, my best effort at updating the happenings in our office (minus the endless coffee breaks!):

Designs for the 10/11 range have been received via email this morning, the intention is for the new design to compliment the existing Portierre range. Some designs work and some clearly don't (sorry designers, but we're paying you enough!). I can see we'll be busy with tweaks on these for a few days. We have recently also received samples of some designs and, much as it shouldn't, but work in the office stops whilst we play with the new gloves! The excitement the DHL driver causes when he brings that cardboard box into the office is unreal! My kids don't get this excited at Christmas! (Well, OK they do...but we're adults and they're 3 and 4!)

My business partner is in discussions with a couple more Pro's, they may come off, they may not - that's the nature of our business though to be honest we're happy with the lads we've recruited currently and each give us the feedback we need to grow and develop. All of our endorsees get the opportunity to have input into the features etc and we are just collating the feedback for the Legend samples we despatched late last month. Feedback is encouraging, as is early consumer interest but sadly we are going to make you all wait!

I'm going to have to crack on now, I've got glove bundles on my desk to be despatched to Canada, Germany and Austria in the morning so can't leave the office until I'm all FedExed out! Hmmmm, is that the kettle boiling...............?!

Welcome

We will endeavour to keep everyone updated on the happenings at WarbyGK as and when we can, or when we have things to announce! The work that our team does behind the scenes is fantastic and non-stop but more often than not there are few end products to announce as the majority of our work is involved with developing and negotiating - all of which is hardly a rivetting read!

Yes, we are trialling a new Legend but trialling and ordering are two very different things and until our boys on the training pitches provide positive feedback we can only carry on tweaking until we're all happy. Anticipated release is December 2009 for those that want to pre-warn Santa or by the Wife some nice jewellery to soften the blow!

Finally, something that's been bothering me: In a snowstorm, how does the bloke who drives the snowplough get to work?

Welcome to the world of WarbyGK

First Blog post, and I will endeavour to update as regularly as possible the activities of WarbyGK Goalkeeper Gloves. Our office is always busy at the minute as it is the start of the football season here in the UK, and we have recruited several professional goalkeepers to wear our gloves in both the Football League and also the Blue Square leagues.

We have a comprehensive range of goalkeeper gloves available to buy online, with features such as Finger Protection, Roll Finger, Negative Cuts, Aqua latex and Contact (Adesivo) Latex we cater for as many goalkeepers as possible.

This is the background to what we do, and future posts may make more sense when armed with this information!