About us
WHAT DO WE DO ?
We help everyday athletes to find brands that are committed to being sustainable.
WHO ARE WE ?
My name is Akeem Bundu – Kamara and I am the Founder and Owner of the business.
WHERE CAN YOU FIND US ?
London, England.
Where are you based?
We are based in London and cater to the UK, but we are looking to branch out further.
When did you launch?
Lockr Space officially launched in mid-December 2020.
How and why did you come up with the idea?
I was frustrated with both the shopping experience for sportswear and also the real lack of options. In the UK, when you shop for sportswear, you go to either Sports Direct or the individual retailers such as Nike, Adidas or Puma. If you can’t find what you want from there, options are limited. I once bought a base layer top from Amazon that encompassed all the aspects of bad sportswear a few years ago: cheap, fast fashion and low quality. Last summer, I decided to embark on a journey to create a platform that solved these issues by showcasing the incredible brands that had started popping up on my social media feeds who were trying to plug the gaps in a very fragmented market dominated by huge brands. If I could provide a great ecommerce experience on top of that, consumers would have another website that they can browse for all their sporting needs.
‘I was frustrated with both the shopping experience for sportswear and also the real lack of options.’
What barriers / obstacles did you have to overcome and how did you do it?
My self-confidence was probably the first barrier I needed to conquer. I grew up with a stammer which has always made public speaking and expressing myself harder when I was younger. This in turn has led to me taking less risks and opportunities until today. Additionally, being a non-technical person has led to me having to learn a whole new range of skills to build not only an ecommerce website but one that has functionality to enable other brands to be able to sell their products with their own access.
What is different about your product and brand?
Lockr Space works with brands who are committed to providing functional, premium and sustainable sportswear. We showcase each brands level of sustainability with informative icons that explain if their products are vegan, containing natural fibres, organic cotton, recycled fabrics and recyclable material, to fight against fast fashion and to leverage sports to change the world positively. Additionally, our sportswear is made for the ‘everyday athlete’. When we say ‘everyday athlete’ we mean anyone who is on a journey with any sport at any level. This can be a semi-professional basketball player looking to improve their performance or someone who has recently taken up Yoga once a week. We want to support them with the apparel for all their needs – whether it’s at home, on the street, on the pitch or at the gym- but also empower and provide them with content to help aid them with the knowledge to reach their physical and mental goals.
‘Our vision is to transform sports commerce entirely.’
What are your plans for the future?
Our vision is to transform sports commerce entirely. We want to expand our suppliers and be able to cater to even more different types of sports and also work with external organisations to help develop their policies and processes associated with sustainability alongside using the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Are you looking for funding / investment?
I am currently part of the Barclays Black Accelerator Programme. The programme has been incredibly helpful so far and I’ve been able to have really thoughtful business advice as well as network with other people starting out. I’d recommend it to anyone who’s starting their business. We’re hoping to raise funding down the line once we have scaled to a good level and fleshed out our founding team.