New Look founder backs emerging sportswear brand

New Look founder Tom Singh is among a group of private investors backing emerging men's sportswear brand Castore.

Singh remains a non-executive director of the high street chain he founded in 1969 and is also a member of the advisory board of Bridges Fund Management. He is one of a team of five investors to back Castore to the tune of £1.2m, according to City AM.

Castore was founded by former professional athletes Tom and Phil Beahon, who are both in their 20s, and offers performance sportswear for "the most discerning athletes who value the attention to detail and precision performance features that underpin all garments".

The brand is currently sold on its website but there are plans for stores in London's Canary Wharf, Bank and Chelsea and it also has international retail ambitions with stores in Hong Kong, Shanghai and New York in its sights. Prices range from £85 for a vest to £245 for a jacket.

“The premium sportswear market continues to expand rapidly and although currently dominated by a small group of multinational companies, there is undoubtedly appetite for a premium brand committed to superior product quality like Castore," Singh told City AM.

High end British cycling brand Rapha was recently acquired by RZC Investments, a private equity firm run by Steuart and Tom Walton, heirs to the Walmart fortune, for £200m.