Need suggestions for Badminton Polo-Shirt Design

Discussion in 'Clothing & Footwear' started by firefish, Jun 13, 2003.

  1. firefish

    firefish New Member

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    Hi all,

    Firstly, I am not a badminton player but I am a designer
    and I am thinking of designing a range of polo-shirts
    specially catered for badminton players for a brand...

    I believe in designing products that meet the
    requirements of the users and not the marketeers,
    company, boss etc.

    You are and hopefully, will be the users.
    So, I really need all your help and suggestions!

    first, one burning question that is bugging me:

    Why do you all wear polo-shirts at tournaments?
    Is there some unwritten rule or is it in the books???
    Doesn't the collar thingy hamper movement of the neck?
    I mean it is another weight resting on the collar bone...
    Is this polo-shirt thingy a pass-it-down from Britain i.e. Gloucester
    where badminton comes into existence?


    Ok, now, to the aspects of the shirt:
    Are all these aspects important or even relevant?
    Add on or tear apart freely ; )

    1. Material
    Polyester or Cotton?
    Breathe-bility?
    Sweat Absorption?
    Able to dry quickly?
    What do you like to wear?

    2. Design
    Flashy, colourful patterns like those national shirts?
    Stripes, simple colours aka yonex?
    Something totally different > maybe an irreverant shirt
    that says "CAN YOU SMASH?"?
    Is there a difference in attire during tournament and game?

    3. Cut
    Special cut where you can stretch your arm without tearing the sleeve apart?
    Back shirt longer (for not exposing your back when stretching)?
    Special cut for ladies?
    I notice the sleeves are quite long compared to other sports?
    Anymore?

    4. Collar
    Is it a requirement?
    Why is it always pointed/squarish at its ends?
    Why not round, or if zig-zag?

    5. Brand
    Is brand a consideration at all?
    Everybody seems to want a Yonex shirt...
    because of the brand or its quality??
    What about other brands?

    6. Cost
    Is cost a factor?
    How much is too expensive?
    more than USD 50?

    7. Any other suggestions.

    There's one thing you can do actually...
    maybe during play, you never usually take note
    of what you are wearing is affecting your performance.
    At your next game, notice how the shirt or any other
    attire affects or aids your ability to perform,
    then come back here and share with me!

    I really want to design a shirt that you all will like
    to wear and that can help you to perform to your best!

    thanks!

    Arnold
    FiREFiSH DESIGN
     
  2. trapped-never

    trapped-never Regular Member

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    Hi Arnold,

    Material - polyester, sweat absorbing
    Design - stripes, simple colors, I do like your idea "CAN YOU SMASH?". I would buy the shirt immediately if it is in the market.
    Cut - it should not restrict movements
    Collar - no need for collar
    Brand - very slight preference to Babolat
    Cost - 40 USD is expensive

    Good luck! I hope that I will see Firefish shirts in Czech market soon.
     
  3. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    cool

    I play in HK. At the moment, we are experiencing high humidity (>90%) and temperatures of 26-28 degrees c. I play in a hall with NO airconditioning. My clothes quickly get wet with sweat.

    sometimes, if really bad, I take a shower in the middle of the session to cool, and changes clothes.

    1. sweat absorption is a must. Usually, I have cotton shirts because they are cheap, easy to wring dry, lightweight and do not take up much space in my bag. (important because I take 3 shirts to my session). Yonex have this thing in their most expensive shirts. Not sure what material it is but it is very comfortable and absorbs the perspiration well for my extreme conditions. However, I still need to change shirts mid session.

    2. I quite like Mizuno designs. Usually, plain with a statement. That's fine for me. People have different preferences. I have one Nike shirt with a good slogan - 'learn to drive'. On the front has a basketball player:(!

    3. Important to have wide cut at the shoulders for free movement. Ladies will have different requirements for sleeves as badminton involves a lot of shots where an arm is raised above the shoulders.

    4. Not a requirement as far as I know. BUT since Yonex is the major sponsor of the top players, we will see Yonex designs more, therefore that's why you see more collars

    5. I like Mizuno or Nike because of their simple logos. Indifferent to Yonex brand for clothes

    6. USD? cheaper the better:) None of my T-shirts are over 20USD except the ones given as gifts. I believe in the player rather than the look. I'm not out there to make a fashion statement. Rather play good badminton instead:)

    7. Finding suitable shorts are a real problem. I have small waist with muscular legs of wide girth. I have one Yonex pair of shorts (the ones international players wear) given as a gift. They stretch very well with my movment. Other ordinary similar design shorts I avoid due to fears of accidental and inappropriate exposure of body parts. (ie ripping when lunging) :rolleyes:
     
  4. valourarc

    valourarc Regular Member

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    Collar
    Personally, I find the collar adds class. Kinda like why tennis players wear collars.

    1. Material
    Breathe-ability is #1. I don't like sweat absorportion though because it makes the shirt wet and heavy.

    2. Design
    I prefer simple colours plus a distinctive design. I don't like a single pattern throughout the shirt.

    3. Cut
    As long as it doesn't hinder movement, I'm happy.

    4. Collar
    Collar looks good to me.

    5. Brand
    Don't care about brand. Quality is #1.

    6. Cost
    Cost is a factor. I normally wear free tournament shirts but would be willing to pay more to look good (probably $20USD range)
     
  5. cooler

    cooler Regular Member

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  6. Winex West Can

    Winex West Can Regular Member

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  7. firefish

    firefish New Member

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    So, the collar is for people who require extra power
    by folding it upwards... cool...
    but really, the million dollar question is
    what is it with the collar?

    So, I gather that simplicity still reigns,
    rather than complicated or quirky designs.

    hmm... another question is
    would you wear your badminton shirt to orchard road?
    like those footballers/football fans wearing
    those jerseys walking around town...
    how about a series of badminton shirts that promote
    badminton in a very cool manner like nike with foolsball?


    Thanks for all the comments!
    Keep it coming!

    ;)
     
  8. TOmike

    TOmike Regular Member

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    i just like how a collar works, i think it is just a tradition of the sport.

    i would rather have cotton over poly, because i have a nike soccer shirt which is poly and when i sweat, and it drys, it smells wretched. (outdoor conditions, haven't tried indoor yet but i imagine the same thing). cotton is good at absorbing sweat and i dont' really mind changing clothes.

    as for designs, some tournaments (school tournaments i go to) require a dress code, that being solid colours or 90% white, and i think badminton related brands.

    price = i have yet to spend anything close to 50 USD for a badminton shirt. :D
     
  9. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    yeah, tradition is the word here. there is really no reason for collar or not. just like baseball players wears those funny looking jersey with button down the middle but no collar. i mean, what's up with those?

    badminton shirts back in the 80s to early 90s aren't particularly well designed. but beginning in the late 90s, Yonex has been working hard on the aesthetic appeal of the badminton fashion, and the current generations of the badminton apparel from Yonex i think are very nice looking.

    as for wearing badminton shirts and roam around Orchard road, probably not. but hey, singapore is so hot, may not be a bad idea. ;)

    if you do come up with something badminton related and nice looking, sure, i will be the first one to wear it outside....
     
  10. TOmike

    TOmike Regular Member

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    lol on a side note i wear my football jerseys to school... no collars though, or else i would wear them up... Liverpool!
     
  11. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    That would be extremely cool.

    "Learn to jump" with a person doing a jumpsmash.

    Remember a tennis picture with Pete Sampras doing a jumpsmash at Wimbledon? I was thinking, that happens ALL the time in badminton. Why can't badminton use it more in promotions?
     
  12. RedDog

    RedDog Regular Member

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    collar

    I almost always wear Yonex polo shirt to play badminton, not because I'm rich, nor do I play better then most people, but because I could get them for a cheaper price, and I do think a lot of them are more suitable for playing badminton then T-shirts (especially the ones made in JP). So I've gotten so use to it. Sadly, I think I own more Yonex polo shirts more then any other kindsa clothes (ok, maybe not that extreme, but I do have a lot). So I guess people are used to seeing me in polo shirts while playing badminton.

    Once, I just finised working out in my local health club, and my coach convinced me to go play some badminton in the health club gym. I don't usually play there, since the people there are not serious badminton players, they're just there to discover what badminton is, while my coach is trying to intorduce the sport in the health club. I would normally change into my normal badminton gear if I knew I was going to play badminton, but that was a last minute notice, and I did not think too much of what I was wearing. I went in to the gym with my workout T-shirt and tights, as soon as I walked in, and my coach and his wife looked at me as if I was not wearing anything. He walked up to me and joked "what? You suddenly lost the respects for badminton?". :p
     
  13. QWJr

    QWJr Regular Member

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  14. odjn

    odjn Regular Member

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    I sweat a lot in badminton, and when it gets absorbed by my shirt, it starts weighing me down a lot, so I'm not as fast as I usually am. I don't really mind sweating, as long as it doesn't weigh me down.

    Maybe these t-shirts can come with a free hand towel or something? :D

    For designs, I think some indoor colors would work good, like black with red logo or maybe blue with a red logo. Well I'm sure watching basketball will help some how.
     
  15. Pecheur

    Pecheur Regular Member

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    Re: cool

    Actually I have the same problem with my shorts constraining me, not because I have particularly large thighs, just that I'm really flexible. Now the normal solution is to wear really short shorts, which I'm not a fan of on guys, but on the weekend I saw the solution! (Big fanfare ;))

    I was watching one of our top young female players in action and I noticed that on her racquet leg, where the seam is on the side, the split seemed to be much higher than the standard split, this was at least two inches. I was wondernig whether it was the design of the shorts, but when I looked closer I saw a loose thread. Did she cut it or did it tear?

    Anyway had a chat to her after the game, apparently it had torn, she'd tried to fix it herself but it ripped again and she found it much better for movement. She used to be in the same situation as I am in serious matches (luckily I don't play many ;P), getting in the habit of hiking up the short legs a little to allow full movement.

    I was thinking of splitting the seam on one of my pairs of shorts, but I'd have to reinforce the part just above the split to avoid excessive exposure of body parts ;P Somehow her rip didn't seem to be getting any bigger as the day went on though she didn't play that many matches so hard to tell (this was the second day so the serious part of the tournament). I really should've taken a picture but to get enough detail it'd look really suss if I had a camera just aimed at her legs, though probably worth it ;P

    So as opposed to the Shane Warne thing (I wonder how many people know who he is? ;)) where he has one sleeve higher than the other, badminton shorts can have the split in the shorts much higher on one side than the other ;)
     

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