Exclusive: Interview with Robey Co-Owner Toine van den Berg - The Brand's Values, Expansion Plans & 25-26 Kits

In late 2024, we took a closer look at Robey Sportswear, a Dutch brand rich in football history with some incredible 24-25 kits. Now, Footy Headlines has had the chance to conduct an exclusive interview with Toine van den Berg, Brand Director and Co-Owner of Robey.

Robey's 2024-2025 kits have been with the best on the market, thanks to its lovely custom kits for each club. In the interview, we discuss the company's revival and core values - Robey is all about special treatment for every club, e.g., custom-made designs with high quality.

Toine van den Berg, Brand Director and Co-Owner of Robey

We also look at what is to come from Robey for the 2025-2026 season (which is, of course, still top secret, but we managed to get a first sneak peek).

Read on as we dive deep into Robey’s story and its plans for the future.

Robey has experienced a remarkable resurgence since 2012. What were the key factors that drove this revival, and what was the initial vision for the 'reborn' Robey?

The driving force behind this revival is the unwavering passion and love for football jerseys (and tracksuits). Quality and design are paramount—we simply want to create the most beautiful jerseys seen on European football fields. For us, a jersey is something special; it embodies the DNA of the club, with the crest worn close to the heart, symbolizing the fight put in every weekend on the pitch. It’s something to be proud of.

Personally, I’m a football jersey enthusiast—a walking encyclopedia on the subject. From a young age, I’ve made it a point to visit sports shops worldwide just to check out jerseys. This passion is something I share with many colleagues within our organization, which not only fuels our love for the craft but also sharpens our expertise.

Like many ventures, ours started by addressing an unmet need. With our amateur club, we could only choose from catalogue jerseys provided by major brands, making us look like every other team. To make matters worse, since our club's colors are green and white stripes (like Sporting Clube de Portugal), our choices were even more limited. Every season, we played in a different shade of green, which eroded the club’s identity! I couldn’t accept that custom-made jerseys were only available to the elite clubs of the world.

We spotted a gap in the market—there was no one offering high-quality custom-made jerseys in small quantities back then. So, we decided to do it ourselves. Now, over 13 years later, we have grown into one of the leading sports brands in the Netherlands, partnering with 10 professional clubs and over 400 amateur clubs.

Expanding to Germany with Fortuna Köln is a significant step. Footy Headlines has heard rumors of Robey aiming to sign more teams outside the Netherlands. While you may not be able to confirm specific deals, can you share your general approach to attracting international clubs?

We remain focused on the Netherlands, as our home market is extremely important to us and still offers ample growth opportunities. However, we also have strong ambitions for international expansion. We approach this carefully, step by step, maintaining our principle of organic growth, which has always been our strategy. Focus and passion are the key elements of Robey.

Therefore, we are initially concentrating on neighboring countries, with Belgium as our primary target market since it shares many similarities with the Netherlands. At present, we are in discussions with several professional clubs in the 1st and 2nd divisions. This is crucial for building brand awareness while we are also working on establishing a solid retail network to lay a strong foundation.

Germany, of course, represents a massive market, but it also comes with its own set of risks and challenges. Fortuna Köln is our first flagship partner in Germany, a fantastic cult club that perfectly aligns with our core values. Through partnerships with clubs like these, we aim to continue our organic growth in the German market.

Other countries of interest for us in the near future include Austria, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. We are always open to collaboration, and interested clubs are welcome to reach out—we would be happy to share our story.

Robey emphasizes 'custom' as a core value. Why is customization so important to the brand, and how does it differentiate you from larger competitors?

Because every club deserves special treatment. Each club has its own story, history, and community. One of Robey’s old slogans was “Football has more cult than Opera” for a reason. No matter where you are in the world, football is always present. Start a conversation about the Netherlands in a foreign taxi, and chances are it will quickly shift to names like Cruyff, Gullit, Van Basten, or Van Persie. Football runs deep in the veins of millions of people worldwide.

This is why we believe it’s so important that every club wears a jersey that reflects its identity. But it’s not just about identity—quality matters too. Our jerseys are not fully sublimated like those of our competitors. Instead, they are made with premium fabrics, ribbed collars, and embroidered logos. Moreover, we invest a lot of time in perfecting the fit and comfort of our jerseys. If you take a look at our shirts from past years, you’ll notice that every season is different. It might not be immediately obvious, but when you pay attention to the details, you’ll see that we innovate every year. This is something we value deeply. All our colleagues in the product department have a background in fashion design, and you can see that reflected in our work.

Toine van den Berg, Robey's Co-Owner, in action

Robey's kits are priced significantly lower (65-75 Euro vs 90-100 Euro) than those of Adidas and Nike. How do you manage to keep prices affordable while maintaining quality and offering full customization?

I find it difficult to talk about pricing compared to the competition. We do things our own way. Our goal is to keep the jerseys affordable for everyone while offering a fair price. But to be honest, if you consider the hours (and materials) we put into our jerseys, our price is actually too low. This sometimes makes things harder for us, but our passion for football jerseys always prevails.

For example, we might choose a Jacquard fabric that’s really too expensive and cuts into our margins. But once we see the finished jersey… we’re sold. That’s what it’s all about—making the players and fans happy. We believe that this approach is the best way for us to grow, and clubs can benefit as well through increased merchandise sales. It’s all about partnership; we want to grow together.

That’s the advantage of being a small organization. We’re not a large multinational that has to answer to shareholders about margins, profits, etc. We’re a small, tight-knit team that makes its own decisions. That’s our strength.

Can you tell us where Robey has its kits manufactured?

We produce in China, Turkey, the Netherlands, and Portugal. We’ve been working with these manufacturers for almost 10 years, so they’re part of the Robey family.

How long does it take Robey to design and produce a kit? The big brands usually finish the design process 18 months in advance - what are the lead times for Robey?

Our design and production process for our pro teams takes a total of 18 months. For example, in January 2025, we’re starting the design process for the kits for the 2026-2027 season. One of our key advantages over the larger brands is that we can offer lower minimum order quantities and greater flexibility when it comes to reorders.

For our amateur teams, we can produce a custom-made jersey within 15 weeks, with a minimum order quantity of 21 pieces.

Many Robey kits have received high ratings on Football Kit Archive. What design elements do you believe resonate most with football kit enthusiasts?

First off, thanks to all the fans on Footy Headlines & Football Kit Archive. We see the high marks as a great compliment. The feedback that we often get from fans is that they feel seen and appreciated by our kits in a way that is rarely the case with bigger brands. Before we design a jersey, we spend a lot of time diving into a club’s DNA, heritage and history. This means that throughout our design process, there is a strong sensibility around the elements that define a club’s core identity.

Often times, those elements will find their way into our kits in the form of bigger concepts as well as subtle details and design choices that are truly unique to a club. I think true football fans can sense that our kits are made with a passion that is as authentic as theirs.

Over the past year, I’ve noticed that the trend is shifting more toward subtle designs: simple, clean, and classy, yet still with a story behind them. This naturally ties in with the retro trend, but also reflects the fact that a football jersey is increasingly becoming a fashion item. A brand like Kappa is a great example of this.

Can you give us a hint about any exciting design trends or innovations we can expect from Robey in the upcoming 25-26 kits?

We’re beyond excited to reveal these designs, but we can’t say too much just yet. What I can share is that our inspiration came from diving deep into the archives of early 2000s football. We spent countless hours at places like Classic Football Shirts, absorbing the iconic styles of that era.

Back in the early 2000s, I was in high school, spending my days playing football on the streets and hours playing PES on my PlayStation or PSP with legends like Adriano, Kaka, Henry, Ronaldinho, Beckham, and Zidane. We have an enduring love for that golden period of football, and our new kits are a tribute to that unforgettable era.

Do you like Robey's kits and the brand approach of custom-made designs for every club? Let us know in the comments below.