Slazenger (/'sl�z?nd??

r/) is an English sporting goods manufacturer which

concentrates on racket sports including tennis, golf, cricket and hockey. Founded
in 1881,[1] it is one of the oldest surviving sporting brand names. It has the
longest sporting sponsorship in world history, thanks to its association with the
Wimbledon Tennis Championship, providing balls for the tournament since 1902.

Contents
1 History
1.1 War years (1939�1945)
1.2 At its peak
2 Selling a brand
2.1 Globa rights and licensing
3 Sponsorships
4 References
5 External links
History
Slazenger was founded in 1881 by a pair of brothers,[1] Ralph and Albert Slazenger.
[2] In 1881 Ralph Slazenger left his native Manchester, and opened a shop on
London's Cannon Street selling rubber sporting goods.[1] Slazenger quickly became a
leading manufacturer of sporting equipment for golf and tennis.[1] Four years after
the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club held its first ever championships,
Slazengers produced 'The New Game of Lawn Tennis' complete in a box.

Their plant in Barnsley manufactured tennis balls and exported them round the
world.[3] The plant closed in 2002, and production is now based in the Philippines.
[3]

In 1902, Slazengers were appointed as the official tennis ball supplier to The
Championships, Wimbledon, and it remains one of the longest unbroken sporting
sponsorships in history.[3]

In 1910, a public company was incorporated to acquire Slazenger and Sons,

"manufacturers of sports equipment, india rubber, gutta percha and waterproof
goods, leather merchants and dealers",[4] which floated on the stock market.[1] In
1931 Slazengers acquired H. Gradidge and Sons.[5]

War years (1939�1945)

Slazenger, like most nonessential manufacturing in the UK, redirected its
production to manufacture a wide variety of items for military purposes, utilising
Slazenger's expertise in wood and rubber manufacturing.

On 15 September 1940, during The Blitz on London, incendiary bombs fell on the
Slazenger factory[citation needed]. The Gradidge factory in Woolwich similarly
suffered. The competing William Sykes Ltd factory at Horbury was undamaged by the
bombings. Slazenger and Gradidge were able to continue production at other
facilities but began a series of mergers with competing companies. In 1942 it
acquired William Sykes Ltd [6] to broaden its wartime production facilities.[7]
Around 1943 Slazenger acquired F. H. Ayres. Founded in the year of 1810 by Edward
Ayres, the firm manufactured a range of sporting equipment . It was best known as a
quality manufacturing of equipment for archery, in particular the bow (or longbow
as it is more commonly known). Before man-made fibres became the standard for which
bows are made, Ayres manufactured bows principally from Yew (Taxus baccata), made
to the standard measurements of the time - 6 ft for men and 5 1/2 ft for women.
Thereafter the company was known as Slazengers Sykes Gradidge and Ayres.

The following lists a snapshot of some