Gym-focused brand Gymshark has kick-started a hard-hitting initiative to tackle the urgent knife crime epidemic affecting thousands of young people across urban areas around the UK.
Working in partnership with anti-knife crime charity Steel Warriors, the collaboration will see Gymshark taking knives off the street as part of an amnesty which will see the brand melting them down and recycling them to create free outdoor street gyms.
Centred around the slogan ‘Creating communities that are built by steel, not broken by it’, the gym brand’s campaign aims to go beyond the commercial sphere by bedding down concrete legacies in communities that are desperate for support.
It aims to give young people easier access to fitness in the hope of instilling the important concepts of routine and discipline into the minds of at-risk youths.
“Teaming up with Gymshark really is a dream come true,” said Steel Warriors head of marketing, Cristian d’Ippolito.
“We’re simply thrilled at the prospect of having such a relevant partner validate our work and support us through this exciting new chapter.
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“Furthering our reach, growing the community and positively impacting the lives of more young people are our key objectives. The partnership is also testament to what can be achieved through resilience, determination and passion; shared values of ours that ultimately underpin any journey of self-development.”
The work will revolve around three key pillars: ‘put down’, ‘pull up’ and ‘show up’, anchored in the belief that education, opportunity and accessibility are vital tenets in helping young people steer clear of knife crime.
Since its inception in 2017, Steel Warriors has worked tirelessly to reduce the number of knives on the street – and in the last five years has played its part in 100,000 of them being disposed of. Gymshark’s patronage will no doubt help amplify its crucial message further than ever before.
Gymshark CEO Noel Mack added: “As a proud British brand, we’re so inspired by the work that Steel Warriors have done to date in the UK. To have removed so many knives from the streets, to have built gyms from the metal and to have genuinely changed the lives of so many is genuinely extraordinary.
“But they’ll be the first to admit there is still so much more to do. And that’s where we hope Gymshark can come in.
We’ve helped thousands with their fitness journeys and we’ve built a community that is there for others just starting on theirs. If we’re able to help shine a light on Steel Warriors mission, to encourage people to choose fitness over crime, to improve their physical and mental health, then we are absolutely here for it.”