GAA FANS UP and down the country will be out in their county colours this weekend, as the senior inter-county football and hurling championships begin.
It’s three years since David Morrissey had an idea to marry supporters’ John Mullane levels of pride for where they’re from, with their unwavering sense of nostalgia.
The civil servant from Mullinahone in Tipperary admits he has always had a keen interest in the 1970s and ’80s, and recalls accidentally coming across an old tweet from Ciaran Murphy of Second Captains in the ’74 All-Ireland final jersey worn by Galway’s Joe Waldron.
“That planted the initial seed in my mind, albeit on a subconscious level,” Morrissey explains. “The jersey really appealed to me.”
After toying with the concept for some time, he decided to post in a Tipperary supporters’ Facebook group to ask the other members if they would be interested in him producing a line of retro style shirts.
He received positive feedback and Órga Retrowear was born. The name means ‘golden’ in Irish and felt appropriate as it “is a term often used to describe something old and classic”.
Mainly using each county’s original coat of arms as the crest, the company has recreated some of the GAA’s most iconic designs.
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Wexford and Cork are two of the best sellers. Órga Retrowear
Órga Retrowear
Today, they have more than 55 products, and that number will rise to 60 over the coming months. Reasonably priced, all 32 counties are represented at least once and a New York jersey is even available. There’s also an Ireland shirt to commemorate the FAI’s centenary.
Retro sportswear has become increasingly fashionable in recent years, and the major manufacturers such as Nike, Adidas and Umbro are all tapping into the demand by re-releasing beloved gear from previous decades.
“There’s a great appetite for them,” says Morrissey.
The main target market would be lads my own age, mid to late 30s, who would remember legends like Pat Fox, Vinny Murphy or whoever. It conjures up nice memories of games from the past.
“Our best selling jersey would be Wexford ’96. That flew out the gap and there was huge demand for it. The Cork Barry’s Tea one is really popular too.”
Two different Kilkenny styles from their range.
New additions to the range are coming soon and Morrissey mentions Offaly ’94, Cavan ‘97, Clare ‘97 and Donegal early ’90s, before adding that pre-ordering is available on their website.
Looking ahead, his aim is to increase Órga’s offering and to reach more GAA fans with his products.
“I think there’s a lot of scope for growth,” he adds. “There are endless possibilities in terms of the amount of jerseys and we get a lot of different suggestions through the mailbox everyday.
“Each jersey means something to someone. I feel there’s huge potential for expanding in the market.”
To order your favourite classic GAA jersey today, visit orgaretro.com.
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'There's a great appetite for them': The Tipperary-based company making classic GAA jerseys
GAA FANS UP and down the country will be out in their county colours this weekend, as the senior inter-county football and hurling championships begin.
It’s three years since David Morrissey had an idea to marry supporters’ John Mullane levels of pride for where they’re from, with their unwavering sense of nostalgia.
The civil servant from Mullinahone in Tipperary admits he has always had a keen interest in the 1970s and ’80s, and recalls accidentally coming across an old tweet from Ciaran Murphy of Second Captains in the ’74 All-Ireland final jersey worn by Galway’s Joe Waldron.
“That planted the initial seed in my mind, albeit on a subconscious level,” Morrissey explains. “The jersey really appealed to me.”
After toying with the concept for some time, he decided to post in a Tipperary supporters’ Facebook group to ask the other members if they would be interested in him producing a line of retro style shirts.
He received positive feedback and Órga Retrowear was born. The name means ‘golden’ in Irish and felt appropriate as it “is a term often used to describe something old and classic”.
Mainly using each county’s original coat of arms as the crest, the company has recreated some of the GAA’s most iconic designs.
Today, they have more than 55 products, and that number will rise to 60 over the coming months. Reasonably priced, all 32 counties are represented at least once and a New York jersey is even available. There’s also an Ireland shirt to commemorate the FAI’s centenary.
Retro sportswear has become increasingly fashionable in recent years, and the major manufacturers such as Nike, Adidas and Umbro are all tapping into the demand by re-releasing beloved gear from previous decades.
“There’s a great appetite for them,” says Morrissey.
“Our best selling jersey would be Wexford ’96. That flew out the gap and there was huge demand for it. The Cork Barry’s Tea one is really popular too.”
New additions to the range are coming soon and Morrissey mentions Offaly ’94, Cavan ‘97, Clare ‘97 and Donegal early ’90s, before adding that pre-ordering is available on their website.
Looking ahead, his aim is to increase Órga’s offering and to reach more GAA fans with his products.
“I think there’s a lot of scope for growth,” he adds. “There are endless possibilities in terms of the amount of jerseys and we get a lot of different suggestions through the mailbox everyday.
“Each jersey means something to someone. I feel there’s huge potential for expanding in the market.”
To order your favourite classic GAA jersey today, visit orgaretro.com.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
David Morrissey GAA Jerseys old school Orga retro Sponsored By Ogra