Member Article

Price comparison site for football gear awarded North East Innovation Award

A Durham-based start-up has been awarded the Innovation Award for Business within the North East of England at the 2020 North East Business Awards.

FOOTY.COM is the UK’s leading price comparison website for football merchandise and sportswear. Having completed a £1.625m round of investment earlier this year, the award comes amidst the first stage of its ambitious expansion strategy and global growth plans.

Established 20 years ago, The North East Business Awards is one of the largest and most respected award ceremonies in the region, aiming to shine a light on the businesses that are creating, innovating and driving the North East forward.

FOOTY.COM’s CEO and former Commercial Director at J2 Global, Paul Lucherini, says: “We’re delighted to have won this award. There was some tough competition within the category, so it’s really great to be recognised amongst such brilliant companies.

“We’re really trying to do something different and there is a lot of ambition around the brand and what it can be.

“Not only have we built some really innovative technology already since the company formed, but we’re in the process of building out some huge enhancements to really take FOOTY.COM to the next level. We feel there will be a lot more awards to come!”

FOOTY.COM’s founding team consists of five serial entrepreneurs who have ties to a number of high-profile companies in the North of England, including SaleCycle and The Leighton Group.

The free-to-use price comparison platform is the first of its kind, finding consumers the best deals on the market for products such as football boots, kits, trainers and equipment.

Backed by NorthStar Ventures, the North East Innovation Fund and a number of angel investors, the company has continued to grow through the pandemic, spending the last several months expanding its team, investing in innovative technologies and growing its brand awareness.

Interestingly, the company has observed a dramatic change in its customer behaviour throughout 2020. With many people working from home, casual clothing and trainers are becoming increasingly popular. A trend which Lucherini says is reflected in FOOTY.COM’s sales data.

Lucherini says: “The last 12 months has been a strange time for everyone. Throughout it all we’ve been in a fortunate position where we’ve been able to grow our understanding of the business and really focus on the areas we’d like to improve in.

“Like many businesses we have faced major difficulties and challenges, but we’ve come a long way in the last 12 months, particularly in terms of growth and customer experience.

“The feedback and data that we’re collecting is showing that once people know about FOOTY.COM, they are returning again and again.”

With the North East under local lockdown and the second wave of COVID-19 fast-approaching, the future is looking uncertain, however Lucherini says the company is well-prepared for 2021.

He adds: “Despite all that is happening at the moment, we’re growing well and we’re confident the service we offer will be something of huge interest in the years to come.

“For the remainder of the year we will be making some exciting improvements to the website’s functionality and we will have a lot of work tied into Black Friday and the Christmas period.

“With such a wide range of retailers out there for trainers, football boots and sports clothing we’re confident that we can help customers get the best price on the item they’re looking for or find the best deal in the market on a day-by-day basis.

“We’re hopeful that Footy.com will soon become a brand the whole of the North East can be proud of.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Jane Roland .