Features

Introducing… RMBLR

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Our top mate Fred Royle has been involved in an exciting new project that’s right up our street. Or should I say stream, as RMBLR is on an outdoor kinda tip and shares our passion for bringing the worlds of peaks and precincts together. We decided to have a chat with Fred to find out more…..

So Fred, what is RMBLR all about then?

RMBLR is a new British made outdoor lifestyle brand specializing in accessories.

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Why no vowels?

I was in Portland last year and saw this licence plate and it just stuck with me, the PNW is a huge influence on the modern outdoor, “hikerdelic” movement and this modern spelling spoke to me, that and the fact I’m dyslexic.

Also from a practical point of view in this day and age to get a trademark and URL that is not taken gets harder so this spelling worked on a couple of levels.

We hear that RMBLR is in part inspired by the Mass trespass of Kinder Scout of 1932, how did that momentous occasion influence you and are you a communist?

I am a proud citizen of the peoples republic of Manchester and have always be interested in the history and attitude behind the many “firsts” the city can claim. I think there is a spirit that things like the Mass trespass, building the ship canal and factory records all share, I think it’s in our DNA.

I aspire to be a champagne socialist.

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What other inspirations have influenced the brand?

During the creation of the brand and developing the products we got a bit obsessed with William Blake. Especially Jerusalem in particular the green and pleasant land / dark satanic mills thing resonated also the fact he was all about universal peace and free love.

We dropped in on the RMBLR photo-shoot recently and there was a lot of ‘peace and love’ in the room (and the smell of joss sticks) what made you go for a Sixties bed-in theme?

Our “ Bed-in” shoot came about for a couple of reasons firstly it felt right to pay homage to that iconic event that made people think about peace and protest in a new way and tied in with our slightly acid rambler view of the world. Secondly if you sell socks hats and bags how do you do a shoot where the products are not overpowered by the shoes or clothing chosen. We did not want to pigeon hole ourselves by showing the sock in brand X trainer or boot Y, so a couple in bed seemed like an interesting solution.

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What does the current collection consist of?

We are launching with 2 styles of socks, a cotton ragg wool look in 3 colours and a Wool in 2 colours knitted in Leicester, a small beanie collection with 3 main styles in various options and colours knitted in Manchester, Oldham and Nottingham. Last but not least a tote and roll top bag made on the banks of the Irwell in Salford.

With your love of the outdoors, do you get to test out the products yourself?

I try and get out as often as possible, this summer I did the North Coast 500 on my bike, in the winter I snowboard as often as I can. I try and skive off and get up a hill regularly it’s good for the soul.

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What are your top three outdoor brands of all time?

I respect Patagonia and what they stand for.

I was a fan of Sprayway back in the day when they had a mill on Chester St in manchester and made everything here.

Currently I think brands like Manastash and Snow Peak are strong.

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If you could go rambling anywhere for a day, where would you go and who would it be with and what would you wear?

I dragged my wife and Son up Snowden recently that’s a great day out. If memory serves I wore an Arc’teryx and Fjallraven combo with RMBLR socks and beanie.

What can we expect to see from RMBLR in the future?

In the short term I think we will focus on British made accessories, I think there is plenty of scope within the socks, hats and bag categories.

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