INTERVIEW: We are Clawgear.

SPARTANAT: Thomas, Clawgear and SPARTANAT are somehow connected from the beginning. We started almost at the same time. However, your history is more complicated. How did Clawgear come about? What is it today?

CLAWGEAR: Indeed, we have quickly gotten to know each other personally and have since stayed in regular contact. To tell the complete Clawgear story would probably exceed the scope of this here.

We were asked by the former owner to take over the brand and completely rebuild it. We already knew the brand at that time and were convinced of its potential, which is why we quickly became enthusiastic about it. Unfortunately, at that time we did not know all the background information and so we were initially busy with many problems that we were not even remotely aware of. This was quite exhausting and sometimes very demotivating. Also, it quickly became clear to us that the product range needed a complete overhaul, and not least, we made some mistakes, which we could certainly have avoided. I would say that it can be shortened in that it was a very instructive time, which also cost us a lot of nerves and in which we paid a lot of tuition.

We now see the whole thing from a completely different perspective and we are no longer the naive newcomers from back then who did not know what they were getting into. In general, I think that nobody can really imagine how much work is put into the products and how many stumbling blocks lie along the way.

SPARTANAT: Clawgear has positioned itself as an international brand. What does Clawgear have to offer?

CLAWGEAR: Over the years, we have continued to develop our products and have focused in particular on military special forces. We are especially known for our combat clothing, as well as softshell jackets and fleece jackets. In addition to clothing, we also offer very interesting products in the area of weapon accessories (especially AUG) and nylon equipment. In this area, we have worked closely with various authorities and weapon manufacturers lately and have been able to realize some very exciting projects, which have been successfully introduced.

"We have an extremely creative team that now implements all products in-house from the initial idea through the first draft to the finished product."

Our core is clearly our development department with its own prototype workshop. We have an extremely creative team that now implements all products in-house from the initial idea through the first draft to the finished product. By drawing our products ourselves and manufacturing the prototypes ourselves, we receive very important insights at an early stage, which we can incorporate. We can also react better to emerging problems and also respond better to feedback from testing or users.

What many do not know: in addition to our regular product range and our special projects, we also handle many tenders in which we produce relatively simple equipment according to the technical specifications of the respective authorities.

SPARTANAT: Crye Precision was there at the beginning and they have influenced many. How important is it for Clawgear to have found its own path?

CLAWGEAR: Crye Precision has undoubtedly inspired and shaped the entire industry. If someone from this industry stands up and claims that Crye Precision had no influence on their products, then this statement is simply wrong. Many products always contain something of Crye Precision, as is the case with us. Crye Precision understood very well at that time how to collect feedback from users and develop solutions from it. Many of the things implemented were revolutionary at the time of their introduction. With operational clothing, the focus had always been on costs first and functionality completely disregarded. Crye Precision changed this and created a completely new industry. Since then, a uniform must fit well, look good, and above all be practical. The bar has been raised higher and higher since then, and new requirements are constantly being added.

"For us, it is very important that we have found our own path and that we have developed our own concepts and solutions."

For us, it is very important that we have found our own path and that we have developed our own concepts and solutions. It is important to us that we do not imitate what others dictate, but that we can lead the way ourselves and create new solutions and concepts. This comes out better for us.

SPARTANAT: Like many others, you produce in Asia. How important is quality to you? What are your control mechanisms?

CLAWGEAR: This basically has two main reasons. On the one hand, many products can no longer be sensibly produced in Europe, as much manufacturing know-how has been lost in Europe or has been further developed in Asia. It must also be recognized without envy that Asian factories are generally very well organized and have incredible productivity. However, it must also be clearly stated that there is a wide range of factories in Asia that bring completely different conditions. From very cheap and poor to very expensive and very good, everything is included, and the respective producers must be assessed individually. Our experience has shown us that we prefer to pay a higher price and know exactly what we will get. This costs a lot of money but saves a lot of fuss.

On the other hand, the price also plays a certain role, as this is an important criterion for many customers and it can make a big difference whether a pair of pants costs 30 euros more or less. Whenever it is economically viable, we produce in Europe, even if this means that we have to calculate more tightly. For example, the Audax and Rapax softshell jackets were produced in Ukraine and Latvia, our nylon equipment is manufactured in Poland, and our weapon accessories have so far been exclusively produced in Austria. Almost all government projects are also produced in Europe. However, a Raider Mk.IV trouser is so complex and demanding that we have not yet found a textile producer in Europe who did not have furrows on his forehead after taking a closer look at the pants. We would very much like to produce more products in Europe.

"Quality is an extremely important factor for us, we invest so much time and money in the development of our products that it would not be justifiable to neglect this point."

Quality is an extremely important factor for us, we invest so much time and money in the development of our products that it would not be justifiable to neglect this point. Those who have followed our development will quickly see that we have always tried to implement better solutions and also increase the quality. This is a process that will continue to be driven forward in the future - there is always room for improvement and we are far from completely satisfied.

When it comes to control mechanisms, it is very important to us to work with producers who have their own mechanisms and consistently implement them. However, it has unfortunately been shown that it is not possible without our own controls, no matter how good a producer is and no matter how good their system is. Every time you think that nothing can go wrong anymore, it goes really wrong. Therefore, our focus is on recognizing problems as early as possible and not only when the products arrive with us. We also try to identify and modify potential problems during the development process. In this respect, the experience of our prototype seamstresses also helps us enormously.

SPARTANAT: Clawgear is also breaking into the world of weapon accessories - from AUG to AK to AR-15. What can be expected from you there?

CLAWGEAR: Even in this area, we had to gain our experiences first and paid a lot of tuition. But I think we have already hinted that we have many good ideas in this area. We will first focus on the mentioned weapon systems and also implement some more complex ideas and projects. There are also many synergies between the equipment and accessory areas that we want to use more in the future.

SPARTANAT: Looking to the future: what is your perspective?

CLAWGEAR: We want to continue on our path with Clawgear and convince with innovative and good products. We have many products in the pipeline that we want to implement in production accordingly. In addition, we have countless ideas that we are working on. It is very important to us to further improve our availability and to bring more consistency and structure to the range.

CLAWGEAR on the Internet: www.clawgear.com