THE Bold MATE
WELCOME TO MY WORLD !
There are people who say...“nah, not gonna work”, and others who say “yeeeaah, it’ll be fine”. But, while they’re all standing there scratching their heads and asking themselves whether they should or shouldn’t... I just go for it. You know why? It’s true it might not work, but that’s the whole point. Following that little voice within you that begs the question... “but what if ?”.
I’ve got a friend who lets indecision paralyze him, but for me it’s a driving force and because of that he knows he can always count on me to have his back, or be there if he needs a helping hand.
Sport for me is a source of adrenaline and permanent discovery, full of adventure and the search for the unknown. Even if we think we’ve already done something a thousand times before, even if the sun always rises in the East, it tints every exploration of a different color. And that’s what makes it so exciting ! Nature is there, reaching out to us with its share of beauty and danger of all kinds and I throw myself into its abyss and always find my way.
MAKE SOMETHING NEW WITH WHAT WAS OLD
Products, you want ‘em- you’ve got ‘em!!!
It’s true we know what we’re doing and we’re not going to argue the contrary ! But it’s time for us to do things a little bit differently in order to be part of the fight to save our playgrounds.
It’s time to recover, repair and recycle. These words have become more than just phraseology, they’ve a part of our design methods. And they’re joined by a trendy little neologism called upcycling ! And for the record, we know how to do that too.
We take used material, add some other ingredients and elements (more natural, more resistant, more recyclable) and with our know-how we turn them into a thing of Value (with a capital ‘V’ !). This process gives us a sense of exploration and propels us into the unknown and beyond !
LA VIRGULE, FROM SUP TO BACKPACKS
dizzy cycles
The Bold Mate loves nature and wants to preserve it. It’s this point of view that gives us a solid base to start questioning ourselves and think about possibilities. We decided to focus on three aspects of a product’s life cycle, so that we can offer something more interesting than sticking a green logo on it. And, well.. as you probably know here at Decathlon, we are fond of the colour blue ! One part of the solution we’ve come up with even comes from the movie “The Big Blue”. Check out our three phases :
Phase 1 : We develop materials that respect the environment. Get out of here plastic ! We came up with a polymer made of 80% seaweed, it is renewable, it is natural, it is impeccable.
Phase 2 : We facilitate the collection of rubbish during the use of our SUP and if it’s too big to be carried on a SUP board, it can be pinned on an app.
Phase 3 : We extend the life of your product, and, hopefully its owner too. We’ve considered the importance of repair, maintenance, and giving products a second life. Is your SUP board dead in the water? Why not make it into a backpack?
AND AFTER
The Bold Mate not only thinks about what happens “After” , they think about but several “Afters”. They’re also concerned with the “Before”. After all they’re concerned with the bigger picture. Once again, they are raising the questions.. How can we reduce our environmental footprint of our playgrounds, our sports fields and our courts? Where can we source renewable products from? How can we move away from making new stuff with dead dinosaurs?
We’re betting on the fact that we can make a difference and bring about positive changes !
Here is what happens when you leave your team alone for too long working in the workshop : They take absolutely everything they can get their hands on and make things that previously seemed impossible..
But hang on there a second... isn't this also what this “Mate” does when he’s on holiday ?
Doesn’t this look awesome! Maybe it’ll be your next SUP board?
Making a SUP board with seaweed.. it looks nice but it’s not nice enough for us. So here are the plans for developing accessories, and what we have thought of for this special kind of “Mate”.
Bold mate story
A bit tired of your work? Feel like your life is missing a sense of direction? Stop that! It’s time for you to wake up! And I'm going to help you, that’s what I’m here for! So, are you ready or not? Call a friend to come with you, tell me when you want to go on an adventure, and I'll take care of the rest and you just have to give your mom a little kiss on the cheek ... You never know ;) We might even accidentally end up helping to save the planet together.
I will send you your package, a bag made of worn-out fabric, as well as a list of items that will be necessary for your survival ... Or for the after-walk drinks!
You will also receive your mission sheet, your local contacts, where to pick up your boarding pass near your departure area. And, don't be afraid to ask them what pitfalls to watch out for, they are very familiar with the murky waters you are about to set a course for.
Of course, if you'd like to impress everyone, take your chances on the rapids...It is possible that we’ll both just end up getting worn out, but no worries we will support each other shoulder to shoulder anyway.
Once night falls, I will get you comfortable enough to make sure that your batteries are fully charged and ready to go bright and early in the morning. But you’re still gonna be the one paddling, right!
C’mon get up ! It's time to make sure our rivers are even cleaner than the way we found them. Find a spot to clean on your smartphone and get stuck in ! If you have any problems, don't be afraid to ask me…
And if in the end, the weather takes a turn for the worst and makes things complicated for you, just sound the alarm, I’ll propel you back to safety.
THAT’S IT.
As you can imagine, our work doesn’t just stop after we’ve made a nice 3D model, even if these renderings are a key part in driving the project forward. We now have to create what we call monsters - sometimes so-called for good reason. These are a type of early prototype we put together in an alpha version, then a beta version, and so on…
So, once all of these ideas are combined, either on screen and in your hands, what do we do with them? We give them to our nimble-fingered prototypists to transform them into something functional.
This is where the magic really starts to happen... I’ll leave you with the Coach Mate who will continue the tour with you.
What the "mate" ?
Don’t waste your time doing useless Facebook surveys to find out what your favourite flower says about your personality, discover your “Mate” right here.
Thanks to your answers, we will be able to draw up a map of the “Mates” ! Ready ? Set ? Go !
