Abjari - 1st Georgian Compression Wear for Combat Sport
The startup Abjari was inspired by the author's lifestyle. Valerian Datukishvili has been involved in sports, in particular, judo for years. He decided to stay in this field in some capacity after he had to leave the sport.
"My girlfriend and I, who is already helping me with marketing in the company, thought together to start a Georgian compression garment company. I was inspired by big brands like Nike, Adidas, and others that create compression garments for athletes.
We started researching the market and found that this business was not widespread in Georgia. Moreover, now we also make some of the clothes in Georgia, and some of them are made outsourced because not all the necessary technologies have been fully installed. The idea came in 2019, but before we solved all the issues, we needed time, and finally, in 2021, we were formed as a brand ", - Valerian Datukishvili, founder of Abjari said at Marketer.
The name ''Abjari'' (Eng: armor) comes from an old Georgian word. Georgian warriors wore armor before the battle, and Valerian tells Marketer that since his business is mainly related to martial arts, the name is very relevant.
What are the advantages of compression garments?
It's very comfortable and antibacterial. In addition, it compresses the muscles, which slows down the release of lactic acid.
Even though we are a small brand, but our maximum effort is not to fall behind the quality of the above-mentioned Adidas and Nike or other names who work on this type of sportswear. Very strong professionals work on our technical package. We have specially invited a person who knows this topic very well, has a huge experience in the world market, and can guarantee that our product will be of high quality,-said Valerian Datukashvili.
Like all startups, Abjari also had to overcome obstacles. However, the team does not stop working on its own development and tries to always find a way out of difficulties.
The main difficulty for the startup was the finances to start the business.
"When we started developing the idea, we had a certain amount of money, but it was not enough to fulfill all the plans. We started looking for financing and I would like to thank the Bank of Georgia for supporting us very much and I still feel their support today, ”said Valerian Datukishvili, Founder.
Valerian tells Marketer that in the future he wants to reach such heights as his favorite sports brands. He adds that he understands how difficult the road he's chosen is, but his company slogan is Beyond The Limits, Without Borders, and he believes that if you want, you can really do and achieve everything.