Showcasing the Best of Welsh Business

DEFAULT GROUP

Solar Buddies on Par To Expand Into Outdoor Sports Market

SHARE
,

A Cwmbran company has released a sports version of their core product to help sportsmen and women keep a grip on their game this summer.

The Solar Buddies Sunscreen Applicator was originally designed and developed to help apply sunscreen to children whilst minimising mess and waste. The applicator features a unique, patent protected rollerball and sponge combination on a refillable bottle.

Laura Griffin, co-founder of Solar Buddies explains,

“When Kelli (Aspland) and I set up Solar Buddies we were specifically aiming our sunscreen applicator for use on children. We have seen how it’s also proven to be very popular with adults along with the elderly and children with sensory needs. We have now sold over 70,000 units across the UK and have expanded into overseas markets including the US and Australia.”

“Our aim is to develop new markets for Solar Buddies and whilst researching how it could benefit others, one of our customers wrote and told us that her father was using her Solar Buddie on the golf course as it enabled him to keep reapplying sunscreen whilst he played his round without leaving sunscreen on his hands and thereby not affecting his grip on his golf clubs.”

This made perfect sense to Laura and Kelli who then started asking friends and family members who played outdoor sports what they did to protect themselves whilst out in the sun.

Commenting on the feedback they received, Kelli Aspland said,

“The vast majority responded by telling us that they put sunscreen on before playing but didn’t bother after starting because if they were playing a sport that involved using their hands, i.e. golf, cricket, tennis etc they didn’t want to reapply because messy/slippery hands would effect the grip on their equipment.

Whilst this is understandable it is also means that their skin is at risk of being damaged by the harmful rays of the sun especially when you factor in them sweating and wiping themselves down with towels.”

To promote the launch of the sports version, Solar Buddies has teamed up with skin cancer charity The Melanoma Fund to support their Slip! Slap! Swing! campaign by donating 10% from every sale of a Solar Buddie Sport bottle.  The Slip! Slap! Swing! campaign is aimed to help raise awareness to golfers whilst they are out on the course and is widely supporting by the golfing community.

Solar Buddies are also supporting the Melanoma Fund’s Outdoor Kids Sun Safety Code Campaign, the only sun protection initiative designed for children in sport and organised outdoor activities.

Whilst still relatively new to the market, Solar Buddies Sport has already received strong interest from independent sports clubs and associations as well as national sports organisations who are interested in providing the product to their members.

Business News Wales