Sportful

Sportful started as a sporting dream, a goal, an ambition. Olindo and Irma Cremonese, from Asolo, Italy moved to the foothills of the Dolomites in 1946 to build a business -- initially shearing, carding, and spinning wool yarn. Eventually the business evolved producing quality underwear in the late 1960s under the name Manifattura Valcismon. Sportful’s story really starts in 1972 when their son, Giordano Cremonese, became intrigued by the challenge of the new Marcialonga cross-country ski race taking place near his home. Though he was a keen cross-country skier and athlete in general, he felt that the clothes available at the time were inadequate for such a long race in a cold valley. He set about producing some of his own designs using Acrylic fabrics that were state-of-the-art at the time, the finishing touch on the garments was the ‘Sportful’ logo to highlight their design and purpose. On a cold January morning in Val di Fiemme, Giordano lined up with the hundreds of other skiers and took on the tough course with his bright orange suit designed to keep him warm and comfortable for the 70km race. His unique clothing received many compliments and inquiries -- he realized that there must be a demand for quality clothing designed specifically for the sport. By 1973, Sportful was officially up and running with orders coming in from across the Dolomites for his unique specialist cross-country clothing. In 1985, with a solid reputation for ski wear, the Sportful brand followed Dr. Cremonese’s other sporting passion and began to develop clothing for cycling, using the knowledge gained from designing apparel to perform comfortably in changing conditions. The brand was well received in the cycling community, with teams such as Ceramiche Ariostea and Maglificio Bianchi using Sportful. Within a few years Sportful was in use by possibly the most successful team of all time -- Mapei -- and then later the honor of clothing the Italian National Team who won 6 World Championships and 1 Olympic title. Family has always been the core of the Sportful brand, from its beginnings as Manifattura Valcismon with Olindo and Irma selling their wool to the factories of Veneto, passing their business on to their son Giordano, and now his children, Alberto, Alessio, Dario, and Gioia. The entire family have all had important roles within the business since 1995. It’s an extended family too, some of our staff have been employees for over 40 years and the business is still in the same valley as it started, back in 1946. Sportful has a passion for the mountains around them. Whether ski, cycle, hike or climb, Sportful is extremely lucky to have the spectacular playground of the Dolomites at their doorstep and they take every opportunity to make the most of them. You can see the influence in many of their products, whether it be the name of a jacket or a feature we thought of while half way up a rock face, the mountains are Sportful's inspiration. In 2007 Sportful drew from its love for the mountains, creating the Karpos outdoor clothing line, a range of technical products designed to perform in alpine environments, whether climbing, hiking, or ski mountaineering. Innovation and design has always been key to Sportful products, something clearly demonstrated by the success of their athletes over the past 40 years. Sportful has been the technical supplier of clothing for some of the biggest names in our sports, from Mapei and Team Italia to their current partnership with Tinkoff Saxo. In cross-country, they've sponsored the Italian, French, Czech, Finnish, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan National Teams. In ski mountaineering, they've sponsored the Spanish and Italian Teams. Sportful always strives to make the best products possible to ensure top-level athletes have the leading edge. Some things always remain the same though; Sportful is driven by their love of sports, mountains, and the desire to innovate. We are Sportful.