By Sam Murray
A7 was not started by a desire to sell t-shirts. Although A7 Bar Grip shirts are one of the most iconic designs in the powerlifting world, the company actually started in 2013 with a Facebook and YouTube page dedicated to inspiring and sharing information to help others live a more healthy and happy life. They produced various content from “how to cook 10lbs of chicken in 7 minutes,” meet footage, product reviews and more.
Now, almost a decade later, A7 collateral can be found in almost every powerlifting-friendly gym in North America and beyond (indeed, I actually saw one the morning of writing this article).
Jasen, the Founder of A7 and Lift4Life Uplifter, created the company from an injury he sustained while working out at a hot, sweaty gym; this injury has still obstructed him from moving his elbow correctly today. From this injury birthed A7’s first innovative product - “Bar Grip”, a patented product designed with silicone grip applied to the upper back area to keep the bar in place during squats or your body in place while benching. Through this design process, Jasen fell in love with innovation and applying logic and reasoning to the development of all the great products that A7 now offers. The A7 team continues to push themselves to develop products and opportunities to help others and improve the world around us.
“A7 filled a void in my life where I wanted to do more for the world around me. That is what keeps me excited for each day.” said Jasen when asked about why he chose to create A7.
Jasen sat down with Lift4Life to tell us about A7 and how lifters in Zimbabwe came to be involved in the creation of a special release of Bar Grip shirts.
Q; How did you find out about Lift4Life and why did you choose to partner?
A: Great question, we first learned about Lift4Life early on after we connected with its Founder, John Downing in 2016/2017. We were inspired by John's selfless dedication and drive to help others in Zimbabwe. It was an echo of what we were trying to pursue. I feel in most western cultures we forget how the rest of the world is not doing as well as we are and how a little help can go such a long way. We had our first collaboration with Lift4Life in 2017 and we are so proud to see all the growth of Lift4Life since then. We are very excited to have this opportunity to give back to the community again with Lift4Life and help empower the lifters in Zimbabwe.
Q: Lift4Life has never had a partnership like this before - tell us about the shirts that will be released soon and the process behind creating them.
A: We are very excited about this design. We took on this collaboration pro-bono and started the initial work in the spring/ summer of 2020. With the COVID restrictions globally we had some extra time to really make something special. We actually include a nice booklet with each shirt to showcase the supporters of this movement and the great work Lift4Life is doing. I can say one person who deserves special recognition is our Co-Founder Tatyana who is also my wife. She has been working endlessly to revise things to be just right for the design and booklets. We were able to even capture some of the awesome lifters in Zimbabwe lifting to show those supporting the design and movement how they help.
Q: Lift4Life has never had a partnership like this before - tell us about the shirts that will be released soon and the process behind creating them.
A: We are very excited about this design. We took on this collaboration pro-bono and started the initial work in the spring/ summer of 2020. With the COVID restrictions globally we had some extra time to really make something special. We actually include a nice booklet with each shirt to showcase the supporters of this movement and the great work Lift4Life is doing. I can say one person who deserves special recognition is our Co-Founder Tatyana who is also my wife. She has been working endlessly to revise things to be just right for the design and booklets. We were able to even capture some of the awesome lifters in Zimbabwe lifting to show those supporting the design and movement how they help.
“I always tell people I do not run an apparel or equipment company but instead, I run a company focused on helping others. I feel with our focus on others and our definition of success on their improvement we can think outside the corporate view of profits but instead keep our mind and focus on helping others reach their full potential.”
Is there something that you'd like for other donors and partners of Lift4Life to know about us?
I would say to anyone looking to make the world a better place they should start that mission today. In our chaotic world, the one energy that will stay true and be sought after is compassion. When you see someone you can help just do it. This doesn't have to be financial support; you can go knock on your neighbor's doors and ask them if they need help with anything. You can help someone with their groceries at the market. We often forget how the moments that meant the most to us are attached to compassion, caring, and help we received when we needed it most. Just be a good person. Give and help unconditionally and watch the world become better and a world you love to be part of. It all starts with you and your actions.
Lastly, I just want to say Thank you to the community or anyone reading this. It shows you are inspired to help others and giving back to those in need. I believe we can help these great lifters and we look forward to finding new ways to give back to the community.
Thank you so much to Jasen and the entire A7 team for the significant support of Lift4Life Worldwide. Aside from their generous financial contributions, it has been fantastic to be able to collaborate with lifters in Zimbabwe and to see this really cool partnership come to life. You can get your Lift4Life collaboration shirts now, at www.A7.co (not.com). There are limited supplies, so we would encourage all those interested to hop on and grab your shirts as soon as you can!
If you are interested in learning more about becoming an Uplifter, please visit our Uplifters page, or email Sam Murray, Canadian Director at Lift4Life at sam@lift4life-worldwide.org.