It was pleasing to know that a local kits manufacturer – Mayniak Sports Wear – had been deemed good enough to make jerseys for a topflight side. The launching ceremony was colourful, and it served fans and journalists who were present at the Impact Hub something worth their time.
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As Liberty captain Samuel Sarfo, together with his colleagues, modeled in the club’s new home and away kits, everything looked to be so easily done. But behind the scenes, it was a hectic-journey-turned-haven.
And for Abdul Rashid Zakari it was a dream-turned-reality; a satisfactory end to what he believes is the beginning of more recognition for his works. He explains that it was never a smooth ride, having had to contend with rejections midway through the project.
“I quite remember about three years ago, I was working on a project for Kumasi Asante Kotoko. They asked that they wanted a kit manufacturer so I was working on it. I had to speak to Adidas, Umbro, Puma and a few of them [kit makers].
“With Adidas, the moment we got there they said no. But Puma said you would have to put in some money then, later on, talks begin. Umbro were also quite interested, but with them it had to go through a South African branch which was more like the mother body for the company in Africa.
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“So the jerseys went through them [the South African branch] and when it got to the UK they said no, there are no proper structures and all that. You know with these big sports wear manufacturing companies, even when they want to come on board they are normally looking at profit.
“Under normal circumstances, what normally happens is that they produce for a club in Europe like Manchester United, Chelsea and Co. and afterwards they produce for the fans as well. But it is capital intensive and the Ghanaian and African markets will not be able to cope with that. It was really tough.”
Upon realizing it was difficult to collaborate with foreign sports wear companies, Abdul decided to focus on the African market. As head of projects at Mayniak Sports Wear Limited, he engaged in discussions with some local clubs to negotiate for a partnership. However that also came with a lot of challenges.
“Fast-forward this year I wanted to do something for the [Ghana] Premier League clubs. So I came up with a creative”, Abdul explains.
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“The first club I actually spoke to was Elmina Sharks. Myself, together with my team, we came up with the creative and approached Elmina Sharks for them to come on board for a partnership. Talks went very far; they saw everything we wanted to do for them. But the next thing we heard was that Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom – owner of Elmina Sharks – said the club already had people buying the jerseys for them, and so they couldn’t work with us.
“It was disappointing but we had to move on, and that is exactly what we did.”
Continued perseverance on the part of Abdul and his team meant that their breakthrough was nigh. And although he admits the partnership with Liberty Professionals came as a surprise, he always knew the hard work was going to payoff someday.
Abdul remembers vividly how a surprise phone call from Liberty Professionals’ General Manager, Dr. Godfred Akoto Boafo, started what is now a fruitful partnership between Mayniak Sports Wear and the club.
“One evening I was in the house watching football and the General Manager of club, Dr. Godfred Akoto Boafo called me up and enquired about what we actually do. I told him yes we do kits.
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“Then he told me ‘I want to give you a project. I know you have not done anything like this before but I want to entrust the club’s future into your hands. Just prove to me you can do it’. So he asked for samples of our works. The next day we met and I showed him some samples of our works, and we took it from there.”
Having become the official kit manufacturers for Liberty Professionals, Mayniak Sports Wear is now looking forward to maximizing their brand by producing replica jerseys for the club’s supporters. And although Abdul sees it as a risky venture, he is optimistic that it can be done, giving the favourable responses his outfit has had.
“It [producing replica jerseys for fans] is something that we can look at. But then on top our head it is not really something we have actually considered because Liberty [Professionals] do not have the numbers [when it comes to the fans].
“But already I have had some few orders from some of their fans. Over hundred fans have already ordered for the team’s jerseys and that is actually making us have second thoughts, as in producing something meant specifically meant for the supporters.
“Initially we were not thinking of doing it, but now we are thinking that it’s not [a] bad [idea]. We might, perhaps, change our minds and do something for them.”
Mayniak Sports Wear is now gaining grounds in the country, and Abdul is aware of how difficult it is to continue flourishing on the local market. He maintains that the focus right now is to try and capture the African market.
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“Basically our major target is the African market. And we are looking at working with clubs from Tunisia, Cape Town (South Africa) and Dakar, Senegal.
“We just want to put African clubs on that score. I don’t know, I might be bragging, but I have never seen any club in Ghana do something like this [getting a quality kit from a local manufacturer].
“And I’m not saying clubs cannot do something like this. They can do it, but it’s all down to planning and committing resources to some of these things. And I believe that we are actually in to be able to offer the best of sports wears [for our customers].”
Abdul adds that the decision to focus on the African market means that kits made by Mayniak perfectly suit the weather conditions of the continent. With a unique ultra-dry fabric used in making the kits, he believes it is perfectly suited for players plying their trade on the continent, unlike other foreign manufacturers.
“With the Adidas and Nike jersey, those fabrics are not specifically made for the African market. Neither are they for the African weather. So we are trying to make sure that our products fit in [the African market].
“With our kits, for instance, we use PET bottles type, which is more like an ultra dry fabric. It offers players that sort of inspiration [and] athleticism to be able to aid them to pursue their goals and all that.”
Some notable features on the kits made by Mayniak are similar to that of some foreign manufacturers, and Abdul admits his outfit copied some features, but was quick to add that their jerseys still have unique features.
“So when you look at it you can see we have ventilation holes on the side. I know this [the ventilation holes] is a Nike thing. But you know when you are starting [to manufacture kits] you still have to copy form one or two firms before you are able to get it up there.
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“And so this jersey is so unique and clubs are going to love it. And I have the belief that we can do more better kits for Ghanaian clubs.”
On the future of Mayniak Sports Wear Limited, Abdul said: “We have had some few enquiries – yet to mature into orders – from a few clubs in Cameroon. About three clubs and a few other ones from Nigeria as well have enquired.
“So our next target after Liberty Professionals is to be manufacturing kits for other football clubs. But basically the plan really is to take over Africa. We want to give clubs here options, and something specifically meant for them.”
Abdul Rashid Zakari is the project head of Mayniak Sports Wear Limited – the new kit sponsors of Liberty Professionals.