After 18 months of hard work on my first business, The Knockout is finally a reality: I have an e-shop, an Instagram account… and even better, a warehouse full of clothes to sell! As many of you can be very curious about entrepreneurship, I have set out to share my experiences in a five parts series.

Let’s rewind to March 2020 when I left LVMH and moved to the UK hoping to land a new job. Just when Covid-19 happened. Recruitments got frozen until the world could figure out what was happening, but I was determined not to wait for an answer. Entrepreneurship had always been in the back of my mind, so I started brainstorming business ideas.

Sports made the top of my list. I’m no pro-athlete but have practiced sport since I was a little kid. This goes beyond a passion to push myself forward: I’ve always enjoyed sweat, it plays a massive role in my mental health. Also, I am ridiculously excited by activewear. Textures, fabrics, technicity, comfort, innovations… I just find it all so exciting.

A few years ago, I fell in love with Thai boxing and practiced in France and Australia. I even travelled to Thailand to train 4 hours a day with real Thai boxers. This made me realize how much I love this sport, its people and culture. Boxing taught me a lot about my physical and mental boundaries, about controlling my emotions, reading situations and holding myself together when facing an opponent.

You can guess what comes next. I have created an activewear brand for women fuelled by the spirit of boxing – untamed, fierce, and strong. Fact is more and more women practice the ‘noble art’, from cardio-boxing in the gym to stepping on a ring. But despite this overwhelming trend, there are no cool brands dedicated to female boxing. I had long been looking myself for nice feminine gear to practice in, but often ended up boxing in poorly adapted leggings originally intended for yoga or running. I just couldn’t find what I needed, so decided to create it myself, capturing the spirit of women who love sweat and performance. The explosive, the sassy, the fierce. The resilient, determined, ambitious. The kind of women I have always been surrounded by in my family. They are my biggest inspiration.

I know many women would say “no” if they were offered to try out boxing. It has a hard time overcoming clichés and can feel intimidating. That’s why my ultimate goal is to create an inspiring and inclusive boxing brand. Boxing gear you feel like wearing even if you are not a pro-boxer. This comes back to my first motivation: sharing the mental and physical benefits of boxing with as many women as possible. Supporting them to step on the ring, far from the clichés of broken arches and muscular women. That is why The Knockout has this fresh, fierce, and feminine image. To show girls that we can all punch, and it’s even better with great performance-wear matching our combative state of mind.

Thank you for reading. Leave a comment below! And if you liked this article, please share it as much as possible :-) That would help me a lot.
Speak soon!

Barbara