Kia Kaha Clothing: Expanding the Range
The Kia Kaha label quickly expanded to cover a range of T-shirts, polos, caps, beanies, cargo pants, hooded sweatshirts, polar fleeces, jackets, track pants and 100% New Zealand lambswool jerseys. However, a new direction opened up when golfer Michael Campbell approached the company through his management group with an exciting proposition. At that stage Michael was reviewing his existing sponsorship arrangements with golfing equipment and clothing suppliers and saw an opportunity to develop his own clothing label and to build his own brand.
"He wanted a Māori label – a Māori brand to take his Māori identity to the world – and he saw us as the leading Māori clothing label."
Dan Love
Michael had been a fan of Kia Kaha for years, and had Kia Kaha clothing sent over to him in Europe and the US for his personal wear. But because of his existing sponsorship commitments wasn't able to wear the label on the golf course.
"We offered to come up with a label and design garments in Michael's name, in association with Kia Kaha. So we went with 'Cambo' – which is his nickname, and took it from there."
Dan Love
The Cambo label was launched, appropriately, at the New Zealand Open Golf Championship and the new range of clothing quickly became available in over 300 golf shops in New Zealand. However, Dan says that when Michael Campbell became the first New Zealand golfer to win the US Open Championship, international sales took off. On his final round he wore a Kia Kaha polo featuring a mangopare (hammerhead shark), a symbol of strength and determination. Orders for that shirt skyrocketed.