The Interview: Crew Clothing's heads of design and marketing on launching Crew Sport

With a heritage built on British sport and coastal casualwear, Crew Clothing is now making its move into the activewear market. The launch of Crew Sport, a new collection designed to fuse technical performance with the brand’s laid-back aesthetic, has been 18 months in the making.

Crew Clothing was founded in 1993 by Alistair Parker-Swift. At the time, he was training with the England freestyle ski team in the winter while running a windsurfing school in Devon during the rest of the year. In 1993, Alistair created a batch of navy and white rugby shirts using locally sourced materials, which he sold at Cowes Week on the Isle of Wight. The success of these shirts led to the opening of his first store in 1995, and the brand began to take shape. Fast forward 30 years, and Crew Clothing has today launched Crew Sport.

As consumer demand for versatile, lifestyle-driven activewear continues to surge, Crew aims to offer something refreshingly real: a range that feels as relevant on a morning run as it does at a weekend brunch. Backed by decades of sporting partnerships - from Henley Royal Regatta to the England Red Roses - Crew Sport enters the market with a strong foundation in authenticity.

TheIndustry.fashion spoke to Naomi Parry, Head of Marketing, and Jo Miller, Head of Design, about why now is the right time to launch, how British humour is helping shape their campaign messaging and how Crew Sport fits into the wider retail expansion strategy for the beloved British brand.

What made now the right moment for the brand to expand into the competitive activewear market with Crew Sport, and how long has it been in the making?

NP: Crew has always had sport in its DNA - from our first product, a rugby shirt designed by a GB skier, to our longstanding partnerships with the best of British sport - so this move feels like a natural evolution of the brand. Our customers’ lifestyles and sense of fashion have changed, and we want to ensure that we keep up with demand. It has been 18 months in the making, so we’re excited to bring it to market and see the reaction to the collection.

How do you plan to stand out in the competitive sportswear market?

NP: We’re not trying to compete with the performance giants, although the range can hold its own with its performance credentials. Our new sports collection is built for everyone, wherever they are in their fitness journey, combining technical performance with our signature Crew design details. We wanted to build a collection that fits seamlessly back with our core range to truly give our customers versatility, and that reflected the busy, varied and active lifestyles our customers are already living.

UK consumers have come to expect both online and in-store experiences. How will Crew Sport capture attention across both its physical stores and digital platforms?

NP: We’re launching Crew Sport with a full 360 campaign – from store windows to digital storytelling. We believe the campaign truly captures the spirit of the collection, showcasing the sense of team spirit at Crew Sport’s core and the feeling of never taking ourselves too seriously.

We’ll be introducing a Crew Sport hub on the Crew Clothing website, with comprehensive style guides and lookbooks to accompany the collection. We’re proud of the impactful imagery and copy we’ve produced for the campaign and we’re excited to see the customer reaction to this.

Crew has long-standing sporting partnerships from Henley Royal Regatta to England Red Roses rugby, so this new range seems like a natural next step. How will these relationships support Crew Sport’s position in the activewear market?

NP: We’ve built credibility over decades through our partnerships with the best of British sport – from Henley Royal Regatta to the LTA, and most recently the England Red Roses. These relationships give us an authentic platform from which to launch Crew Sport, to move from the sidelines and onto the field.

We’ve had a fantastic reaction from our customers to our sporting partnerships, and this move allows us to flex across lifestyle and performance, so Crew becomes a one-stop shop for modern, active lifestyles.

Can you describe the collection in three words?

JM: Inclusive, Versatile and Tactile.

Inclusive because it was designed for any age, any gender and any performance level.

Versatile because it was designed to be equally as comfortable in a performance environment as it is during leisure. We are playing to our strengths and appealing to our existing loyal customer base, without alienating anyone by only being performance-focused. Our customers lead modern lives, and we want to move with them. No matter your level of movement, you’re welcome to be part of our Crew.

Tactile because we continue to pay attention to hand feel on fabrications, using soft and luxe materials across Crew Sport.

What design features make this activewear collection classically ‘Crew’, and how did you ensure the collection caters to different fitness levels and lifestyle demands?

JM: The inception of extending our range into the sporting sphere started with one of our design classics - the quarter zip. The SuperLuxe range was an obvious place to reimagine styles that have become so iconic for us over the years. Our aim is to ensure that while we are keeping our perennial classics (quarter zips, polos, funnel neck styling), we can reimagine them into more performance-focused or breathable fabrics. This means that as we layer on newer styles, we remain relevant to the customer who relies on us for key shapes, attention to detail and fabrication.

It is a natural synergy for us to take these design pillars and make sure they stay at the heart of all we deliver. Each collection will contain within it capsules that have different end uses. For example, where we focus on sleek, seam-free styles in nylon blends to allow optimal movement and comfort during performance, these pieces are also not  'overdesigned', meaning they work in a leisure environment. We have designs for performance, but we also have more relaxed, drapey pieces. This allows for layering, which can be easily styled back for a leisurely day-to-day wardrobe.

You previously mentioned that the marketing for the new range is focused around British humour, with taglines such as ‘barbells to brunch’. Can you tell us more about this?

NP: It’s important for us not to take ourselves too seriously – we want to appeal to your everyday person. We wanted the marketing to reflect how real people live their lives, so taglines like ‘Your park run and a pint crew’ or ‘Your barbells and brunch crew’ are designed to raise a wry smile and show our customers that, whatever their level or pace, we’re here for them. Crew Sport is about moving your way, knowing not every day will be a personal best, and most importantly, remembering to smile.

Looking ahead, how does Crew Sport fit into Crew Clothing’s broader retail growth plans in the UK?

NP: Crew Sport plays a key role in our ambitious retail expansion strategy. It will help modernise our offer, elevate our in-store experience, and bring in a slightly younger customer. Crew Sport will be offered in 41 of our stores, including all four flagship destinations.

Is there anything up and coming from the design studio you can tease?

JM: I’m personally most excited about two elements that we are already building on for 2026. Firstly, we're putting more focus on the menswear sports range. We’re coming off of the back of a very successful golf collection, but we knew there was an opportunity to be less niche and cater for all of our customers and their interests. We're embracing some exciting growing sports such as padel, Hyrox and reformer pilates.

The second element is leveraging the key strengths we have as a brand. Our non-apparel accessories range is incredibly successful, so expanding the Crew Sport with socks, underwear and bags is a natural progression for us to cater for all of our customers’ needs.

Naomi, you’ve been with Crew Clothing for 11 years! How have you seen the industry evolve during that time? How do you see it shifting over the next 11 years?

NP: Digital has transformed everything – from how people shop to how they discover brands. The rise of influencers and social content has changed how brands connect with their audience – we need to be authentic, honest, and keep evolving with our customers. The world changes at a very rapid pace, and it is important to stay nimble and keep up. I can only see that the need to be adaptable will only increase over the next decade.