Mongoose Bites Back: Consortium Purchases Iconic Cricket Brand

Iconic cricket brand Mongoose has been purchased by a consortium headed by London based entrepreneur Raj Tulsiani

• The Lord Patel of Bradford OBE, Senior Independent Director Board of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB): “It is fantastic to see the Mongoose brand rise like a phoenix, with a focus on promoting community engagement through sport.”
• Mongoose Inclusive Cricket will invest a minimum of 20% of profits into community projects

Professional players who have sported the Mongoose logo include James Anderson, Matthew Hayden, Andrew Symonds, Marcus Trescothick and Dwayne Smith

London, 9^th March 2018, Mongoose the world-famous sporting brand, has been purchased by a consortium, Mongoose Inclusive Cricket, headed by London based entrepreneur Raj Tulsiani.  The sale includes full intellectual property rights and ownership of existing stock.   The brand trademark covers the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia.  Mongoose’s cricket collection includes designs for bats, gloves, pads, protective equipment and cricket bags.

The purchasers of Mongoose are committed to boosting community participation through sport, especially amongst women and minority groups.  Mongoose Inclusive Cricket will invest a minimum of 20% of profits into community projects, because the owners believe cricket can inspire and bring people together.  The company is also donating sporting equipment to youth programmes in Luton and Birmingham that support the disenfranchised.  Mongoose’s new owners hope to work within schools and the wider community, using cricket as a tool to tackle exclusion and to build resilience in young people against extremism and radicalisation.

The Mongoose brand was launched in 2009 and is famous for its technological innovations in the design of cricket equipment.  Radical designs included a bat with holes drilled in it to reduce weight and a bat with a blade 33% shorter and handle 43% longer than the normal cricket bat.  Mongoose’s equipment has been used by leading international players in tournaments across the globe including the Ashes and Indian Premier League IPL. 

Professional players who have sported the Mongoose logo include James Anderson, Matthew Hayden, Andrew Symonds, Marcus Trescothick and Dwayne Smith. In 2010 Matthew Hayden used the Mongoose range for Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, wielding the unique MMi3 bat he smashed 93 off only 43 balls.

Raj Tulsiani, heading up the consortium that has purchased Mongoose, is now the Co-Founder and CEO of executive search and interim management firm Green Park; one of the UK’s most trusted and respected senior talent consultancy suppliers across the Private, Public and Third sectors. Raj Tulsiani, who plays for Dulwich Cricket Club, attributes his own social mobility journey to his involvement in cricket as a teen.

Raj Tulsiani, CEO of Green Park, said: “Mongoose is an iconic sporting brand, renowned for challenging convention and delivering excellence. We have extremely ambitious plans and have already engaged with leading figures in the sport about new product designs, building on the brand’s history of innovation. 

"We want to make Mongoose more than just a sporting goods brand and want to effect social change by working with communities to boost participation in cricket, especially amongst disenfranchised groups. Sport can be a powerful cohesive force used to bring together fractured communities. Increased participation brings significant societal benefits and we are committed to investing time and resource to ensuring Mongoose is at the vanguard of promoting change through sport."

The new website for Mongoose has been launched at https://www.mongoosecricket.com/.  The website includes an online shop to allow customers to buy direct.  

The Lord Patel of Bradford OBE, Senior Independent Director Board of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB):  commented on the purchase: “It is fantastic to see the Mongoose brand rise like a phoenix, with a focus on promoting community engagement through sport.  Cricket transcends ethnicity, faith, gender and age bringing people with shared values together.  Under the leadership of Raj Tulsiani I expect Mongoose to go from strength to strength as an iconic cricketing brand renowned across the globe.  It is brilliant we have business leaders in the UK investing in sport, supporting innovation and most importantly combining this with a clear community mission.”     

One of the recipients of a donation of sporting equipment is Luton Tigers, a unique charitable organisation created by the people of Luton, who work to protect children from radicalisation, extremism and racism.

 Khalid Ali, Chair of The Board of Trustees said Luton Tigers, said: “We are delighted to be a recipient of Mongoose’s generosity and accept invaluable cricketing kit.  Mongoose’s stated community commitment reflects our own as we work to protect children from the increasing fissures of society.  Cricket is a fantastic sport to unify our diverse communities, bringing people together through sport to develop the shared values of team work, discipline and integrity.  The kit supplied helps us continue our community mission and has inspired us to start a whole new adventure using cricket to bring children from segregated communities together.”