Current Students and Staff

// University News

Alumni Mari Thomas' sports bra brand

13 Apr 2018

Graduate needs your vote to pitch sports bras to Sir Richard Branson

Alumna Mari Thomas needs your support for the chance to pitch her range of sports bras to Sir Richard Branson.

Mari, who graduated from the University in 2012 with a degree in Sports Technology, is taking part in Virgin’s VOOM 2018 competition.

The entrepreneur has entered with two bra designs she has created for high and medium impact sports under her brand MAAREE.

The business was born after Mari found herself continually finding ill-fitting sportswear.

Mari - who has worked for a number of organisations and Loughborough University’s Sports Technology Institute developing and testing bras for top brands – also noted from her own experiences and previous research that many women lack confidence when taking part in sport, partially due to a lack of available supportive and stylish sportswear.

Through MAAREE, Mari aims to provide a range of sports bras for women across the world that provides both comfort and superior performance and it is hoped the VOOM 2018 will help her on her mission. 

The competition is currently calling on members of the public to vote for their favourite product ideas.

The top 80 entrants with the most public votes will go before a panel of judges. Six entrepreneurs will then be picked to take part in the live semi-final where Sir Richard Branson will select two winners.

You can help Mari by voting for her here. The public vote closes on 15 May at midnight.

The MAAREE sports bras are expected to be available from October 2018. They are available to pre-order now as part of Mari’s Crowdfunding campaign for the Virgin competition.