Man sailing on an Optimist - a small, single-handed sailing dinghy

UK-headquartered sail cloth and hardware manufacturer,Bainbridge International, has been announced as the exclusive distributor of Zhik branded apparel for the UK and Ireland. 

Bainbridge will assume the distribution role in September 2024 and will have product in stock to fulfill dealer orders through the rest of 2024. The Bainbridge team will work with Zhik to ensure product for spring 2025 is on order and will be ready to ship. 

Tristan Hutt, who has been managing the Zhik brand in the UK, will join Bainbridge as brand and sales manager, while also retaining a role with Zhik International, focused on product development. Zhik is one of the world’s leading marine apparel companies and is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.

Mat Belcher, CEO of Zhik, says: “As our brand continues to grow around the world the opportunity to work with Bainbridge as our exclusive distributor in the UK and Ireland will bring more focus to an important market. I’ve known Laurence Mead through Etchells sailing for several years, and we are excited about growing our brand in the UK and Ireland with the Bainbridge team. Being able to maintain Tristan as part of our joint team is also good news for stability and growth going forward.”

Bainbridge International is a leading distributor of marine products in the UK with a history of prestigious brands within its portfolio. The Bainbridge team says that as their directors and staff have been long time users and advocates of the Zhik brand and already have knowledge of the products, the synergy with this appointment is an even better fit. 

Laurence Mead, chairman of Bainbridge International UK, says: “The leisure marine market is changing quite quickly and at Bainbridge we’re focused on delivering great product into the market, where we can work with UK retailers to develop the brand on a step-by-step basis. Zhik has industry-leading product as well as a very strong brand name, particularly with young sailors, and we are looking forward to working with Mat and his team as exclusive distributors. We will focus on customer service with stock held in our warehouse just off the M27 near Southampton airport.”

Zhik’s high performing products are in use across the marine industry, from Optimists to the top SailGP teams, ocean sailors to rowers and foilers.

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