The turning point in the world of Italian sports merchandising took place in the late 1970’s and was initiated by one person. A man with the apparently foreign name: Maurizio Pouchain. He created the brand that was born in the late 1970s.

During a trip to the United States the Italian entrepreneur Maurizio Pouchain became aware of the heavy influence of sports on fashion. Many Americans enjoyed displaying their favorite sports team or game and chose to do so by wearing clothing that represents it. Pouchain had seen first hand how far American sports franchises had monetised their uniforms and set out to do the same in Serie A. Back in Italy Pouchain opened a sportswear factory in Borgorose, in the Abruzzo region. To succesfully start the new factory, Pouchain knew that the items produced in the newly purchased knitwear shop had to be special and attractive.

 

One day a friend involved me in the purchase of a knitwear factory. I was fascinated by those machines that could turn a thread into a stocking. But things didn’t go well. Until I made a trip to America and I realized that everyone was walking around in tracksuits and that baseball teams were selling everything, from caps to key rings. Not just the ticket of the game. So I proposed to Anzalone, at that time the Roma president, to try a similar operation in Italy.

Maurizio Pouchain

Pouchain became the first company to realize the power of merchandising in football and was the original pioneer in the Italian football apparel market, with AS Roma’s so-called “lollipop” shirt as the biggest example. The famous stylized “P” of the Pouchain brand didn’t only appear on the Roma jersey. Pouchain also sponsored Palermo, Udinese, Bari, Pescara, Cesena and Lazio.

Pouchain prides itself on being the first Italian heritage brand to successfully blend the love for football with streetwear.  Today, the brand is focused on two key areas – retro inspired sports fashion and casual sports inspired fashion.