How Athletics designed a brand rooted in place, graft and belonging

Malcolm Buick has trained at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn for over two decades, but his roots remain in Arbroath, a Scottish coastal town where his father serves as President of the local amateur boxing club. When Arbroath Amateur Boxing Club secured a permanent home in a restored church hall – ending years of instability and near-closure following COVID – Buick saw an opportunity to give the volunteer-run club an identity that matched the character it had built over decades. The resulting work, designed through his Brooklyn-based studio Athletics, draws on Arbroath’s heritage. A portcullis symbol adapted from the town’s historic abbey leads the system, typography references old sporting ephemera and civic signage, and the photography was all shot by Buick’s father and the club’s President, Eric. TBI: Malcolm, you’re based in Brooklyn – how did a project for an amateur boxing club in Arbroath, Scotland, find its way to Athletics? MB: I might live in Brooklyn now, but Arbroath’s still home. My dad’s been involved with AABC for years as President, after getting into boxing later in life through a friend and using it as a way to stay fit after retiring. That slowly turned into him becoming a proper part of the club and wider boxing scene, including working as a ringside judge.