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Business & Tech

Local Women Design Sports Apparel

Golf, tennis startup company targets mid-life women.

Professional women tennis players have come a long way, fashion-wise since the days of pleated white skirts and matching polo shirts. 

The Venuses and Serenas of this world no longer feel the need to conform to a traditional model of proper tennis wear and many young athletes have followed suit.

However many mid-life women find those suits too young and revealing.  According to Alyssa Pazdan, one of the founders of Smashing, a new tennis and golf apparel company, the feeling of being inappropriate in clothes meant for world-class athletes isn’t the only problem when dressing for outdoor recreation.

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“We were unhappy with the clothes available to us in the Pro Shop,” Pazdan said. “Our competitors designed for fit 20-something athletes and most of the women we play tennis with are 40 or 45 and had kids.”

Pazdan, along with partners, Kelly Daugherty, and Jayne Drew are new to the design business. 

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“We all come from business backgrounds,” she said.  “But our competitors in the Pro Shop had a background in design and still weren’t addressing what we wanted.”

The women knew exactly what the market was missing for women of their age and began to construct the solution. 

“Our clothing has inner layer of compression which will aid in performance and recovery by keeping the muscles warm and engaging the core and it has the aesthetic benefit of slimming the silhouette and getting rid of the lumps and bumps,” Pazdan said.

Pazdan found that she was more confident and better able to focus on the game when her figure was controlled. 

“I feel great, not only with the compression, which is sewn to the dresses but by picking styles that are flattering for women,” she said.  “When I feel better, I play better.”

The state of athletic design caters to the younger and the older sets, according to Pazdan, and Smashing addresses this as well with dresses and separates that find a home with this demographic. 

“We have everything from tailored to fun and feminine,” Pazdan said. 

Smashing is finding some success just out of the gate, Pazdan said. 

“We are the team provider for Barrington Hills Country Club Tennis Team, for Biltmore Tennis Team and Winstone Tennis Team," she said.

The line’s fabric is made in the United States and designed in Illinois and is available at Barrington Hills Country Club, Biltmore Country Club, Mia Sorella in Barrington, Royal Melbourne Country Club in Long Grove, and online at www.smashingonline.com. as of the first week of March.  The company will also bring the line to customers via trunk shows.

For more information, contact Kelly Daugherty, managing partner, by calling 847-431-4264.

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