The largest and strategically most important product areas, underwear and sports and performance apparel, are owned and managed by the Group. Design and product development of sports and performance apparel were moved from the Netherlands to Sweden in 2014, and since 2015 have been managed from the Swedish head office.
Product development in other areas – footwear, eyewear and other – is licensed externally.
Every product company, whether Group-owned or licensed, is responsible for design, development and sourcing of collections for all markets, and for positioning products based on Björn Borg’s guidelines. The collections are shown and sold to distributors in various geographical markets for resale to retailers. The product development companies also play a supporting role for distributors and retailers in the network.
All design and product development are done internally by the companies, while production is mostly outsourced to Asia – primarily China – but in recent years to Europe as well, mainly to Turkey, which means shorter lead times.
High demands are placed on quality and deliverability relative to price, and supplier performance is continuously monitored. In production and logistics, Björn Borg is focused on increased flexibility and efficiency, two factors that have taken on greater importance in recent years in pace with the growing need for a responsive supply chain that can adapt to changing fashions. The company also stresses that suppliers follow Björn Borg’s guidelines on working conditions and the environment. For more information on Björn Borg’s corporate social responsibility, see page 30 in the Annual Report for 2020 and on the sustainability section.
