Morten Frost and Flemming Quach met in 2005 in a badminton bubble hall. Morten was responsible for the training at Team Aarhus Badminton and Team Denmark Elitecenter in Aarhus, Denmark.
Flemming played at the club and later joined the elite center. The years in the halls evolved into a strong friendship and a special understanding between them. The foundation of Basic Feather.

Inflow into entrepreneurship

It's been in the air that the pair were going to do something together after 2016. The year Flemming had to throw in the towel and give up his elite career - due to constant problems with the Achilles tendons. A zero point but also a new beginning. Flemming has had several incursion into life as an entrepreneur with Morten as sparring partner from the back seat.

The pieces comes together

With Basic Feather, it all comes together.

"Who else would I do a badminton brand with other than Morten?" says Flemming. The idea of linking the heart blood from badminton with a company that contributes to the quality and well-being of the many players out in the badminton halls was underway for a few years.

In a way, it goes back even further: "I always thought it was hard as a player to find a racket, apparel  or a pair of shoes that just suited me. Scandinavian minimalism, quietly, and in top quality, of course. Now we make it ourselves", says Flemming Quach.

Rackets in the apartment

The first rackets hit Flemming's apartment in Copenhagen in April 2019. So far, the apartment is also the company's warehouse - with the blessing of Flemming's girlfriend.

She also helps to make Basic Feather's training videos - you will find them here.

MORTEN FROST'S UNFORGETTABLE MOMENTS WITH BADMINTON

Came in on the local train and met the world

To come in by local train from Nykøbing Zealand (small city in Denmark)  to the capital with my badminton bag to train with great players as Svend Pri and Steen Fladberg and then shortly after get the whole world as my backyard. It was big!

Thought it was all over after the career

I thought it was all over and I never had to feel the adrenaline pumping again when I shelved the racket in 1991. But badminton life has since taught me how amazing it is to work with players and talent as a sports manager and coach. Helping to fulfil the players' dreams and ambitions also develops me. We laugh and cry along the way with the highs and lows. It's great to be able to give young people something to build on and experience when they succeed.

Friendships and experiences around the world

I have gained many experiences from all over the world, across religions, races and cultures and made many friendships. Today, I would be able to call people I know in a lot of countries, and get a meal and a bed to sleep. I can mention two unforgettable travel moments:

Announced national fight from truck

Denmark was going to play a national match against Indonesia, and we were driven around in a truck with megaphones through the city of Semarang on Java, while the megaphones announced "There is a national match tonight!!". It was with flags and a police escort. It was crazy to sit up there and wave.

On elephants entering the jungle

I was in India visiting my friend Prakash Padukone. We went on a trip to Mysore Palace in Karnataka and drove jeeps for hours facing the jungle. The cars were supposed to be the best of the best, but of course ours broke down. The driver fixed it and we ended up spending the night on bare wooden boards in a military camp. After a few hours of sleep we went out into the jungle on elephant's back. I think to places where no human being had been before. It was an experience! 

I remember one day I met Anders Antonsen in Aarhus Badmintonklub's cafeteria, which his father Tonny has been running for many years. Anders was 6 or 7 years old and had just played a tournament. I said, "Well, how'd it go?" "I won," replied the little boy, and continued, "Now all I have to do is beat the Copenhageners and the Chinese". I laughed a lot there. (Anders is currently ranked no. 3 in the men's singles world ranking)

FLEMMING'S UNFORGETTABLE MOMENTS WITH BADMINTON

When I was at the Youth Olympics in Singapore. It was my first "Olympics" and the first official Youth Olympics ever held. We stayed in a real sports village with athletes from all over the world as neighbours and opening ceremony with tabs. It was a very great experience.

I won bronze with Aarhus Badminton Club in the Badminton League the first year we were in it, a team effort where we spent several years fighting all the way from 2nd division to the League.

In addition, I remember the daily training when at 15, I was allowed to train with the seniors and meet people who were just as passionate to develop and push each other and took a lot of responsibility for their badminton career. These are the kind of people who also help shape you as a person.

I also remember vividly when I was allowed to train with Lee Chong Wei, an obviously huge experience, and I was pushed around that court. In intervals sometimes of 20 - 30 minutes at a time!

When I stopped my career, it was in the air that maybe something else should happen between Morten and me, I remember calling him in 2016 and having to tell him that now my career was finished because of the Achilles tendans.

It was an emotional call, but it was by no means an experience of our friendship ending, more that it was open for something else to happen.

The roles between the founders

"We have a special chemistry, we are from the same planet. When I was Flemming's coach, I had to be extra tough to him so that the outside world could not complain that I favored him," says Morten.

Driven to entrepreneurial life

Flemming has had an interest in doing business for a number of years. In addition to playing elite badminton and attending national team training in Brøndby, he worked for the online auction house Lauritz.com with customer service, later at a furniture store.

After his playing career, he came up with the idea for a clothing brand, based on sports for everyday use with Morten as his sparring partner.

Flemming also spent some time and energy, along with others in the badminton environment, exploring the possibilities of an app aimed at athletes and their interests.
The ideas did not become companies, but provided insights and inspiration.

He uses them in Basic Feather.

Good about the web and on the internet

That's why Morten Frost says:

"Flemming can do what I can, but I can't do what Flemming can do! He acquires knowledge, analyzes and builds on. He's very serious and he's moving things forward. Not unlike his approach as a player."

Morten is more into accounting, PR and coaching and coaching players. Flemming takes care of production, sales, service and marketing. It doesn't hurt that he can speak Chinese too. Morten is sharp on the web, but Flemming was born to the Internet. 

The age difference is an advantage

The founders concede that they have is a kind of father-son relationship. They do not always have the same approaches but work with respect and understanding. The age difference is important. Morten Frost comes with the great experience and the young entrepreneur with fire, imagination and digital sense. Both with the service gene and the desire to make a difference.

"Morten is famous, but it's no worse than him being humble and well knows that you don't get sleeping to success," Flemming says.

The passion for badminton

Morten and Flemming are shaped by life with badminton. It is both the lifeblood, the personal development, the togetherness and the fundamental joy of the game.

Desire to promote badminton to a sport for everyone

Basic Feather would like to promote badminton to becoming a sport for everyone; All around the world. For example In Denmark the members run the clubs and create the relaxed and positive atmosphere you meet in the badminton halls. But also the will to win. Badminton should be fun, but of course you fight for victory. What a great environment to be in!

Bringing us together across

Age, gender, race and sexuality don't matter on the badminton courts. There we can get together, it's fun and healthy and hard to get adept at. Badminton is an individual game, but you have to be able to collaborate and then it is good for the body.

Badminton is particularly healthy 

You really get it all going. English research has shown that badminton is particularly healthy, partly because it strengthens your bones and makes you last longer.

Badminton is a deeply brilliant game

Morten Frost has a simple explanation of the badminton game's qualities:

For example, if you are a 100-meter runner, all your focus and physique is on a repetition of movements in one direction. With badminton, a number of physical and mental stakes must go up.

You must have fast, hot-tempered legs, the arm, on the other hand, must be completely calm and be able to hit areas of the court with reasonable precision. At the same time, keep cool mentally while the game flows in all directions. It's hard to be cool when the pulse is racing out there. You can't serve yourself to success like tennis. That's where the tactic comes in. To bring all that together is really difficult. That's why badminton is a great game!

Although badminton is immediately quite individually oriented, it is no good without social skills. You need to be able to function in a training environment where everyone is in battle with each other, but training to make each other better. 

What you didn't know about the founders 

Morten Frost wanted to be a forester when he was young. 
He just has something about trees that he's fascinated by and loves being out in the woods and by the sea. There are plenty of trees near his residence in Aarhus. In his spare time you can encounter him in Moesgård Forest, either walking, running or cycling. 
(Morten is allergic to grass and pollen...)

Flemming Quach himself is surprised at how many books he has started reading. These are books about business and biographies. He has never been crazy about studying, but now he is inspired by the stories and knowledge from the literary works.

I am deeply fascinated by the universe Nike has built. Their visual identity, their communication and audacity. They are a huge inspiration, also for Basic Feather. I highly recommend the book "Shoe Dog" by Nike founder Phil Knight, in which he talks about the journey and how Nike has become what it is today. 
Disclaimer: He didn't just start it, and then it became successful.
Another book I would recommend is "Sticky Branding" by Jeremy Miller. A tangible book about what it's like to build a brand and how to do it.  

Other facts

Flemming Quach grew up in Aarhus Badmintonklub and has played singles in the Badminton League. He has been to the Youth Olympics and from 2013 joined the national team training in Brøndby.

Three years later, he had to give up the goal of the world summit because of injuries.

But Flemming has stayed in the badminton world, today he is associated with the same role for KMB2010. Previously, he has been a playing coach at Denmark's largest senior club, SAIF. 

Flemming is educated in sales and marketing. He was born in 1992. 

Morten Frost is internationally nicknamed "Mr. Badminton". Famous and notorious for being a player who with an unusually strong ground game always fought to the very end. But also with elegant style of play, cool overview and tactical skills. Morten never gave up, he shows merits so clearly. A Danish sports journalist has said that Morten Frost was our first bulwark against the Chinese. It's so true. He was a badminton bulwark for over 10 years. As an unknown 19-year-old, he beat both Svend Pri and Steen Fladberg at the Danish Championships in 1978 and became Danish champion - the next day he was no longer unknown in the duck pond. 

Eight All England finals

Throughout the 1980s Morten played in eight All England finals in a row and won four of them. He was number one in the world rankings for seven years. Some would say that being at the top of the world for over 10 years requires you to be made of a special substance. An interesting detail is that Morten has never had an outright coach.  Morten was inducted into the Danish Sport Hall of Fame in 1997 and the International Badminton Federation's Hall of Fame in 1998.

Over the years he has been national coach in Denmark, Malaysia and South Africa and has been head of sport several times, including in Team Aarhus Badminton with both Peter Gade, Jan Ø. Jørgensen, Lene Frier Kristiansen and many others.

 As a rule, most Danes over the age of 30 know about Morten. The TV offering in the 1980s was that almost all Danes watched DR TV. That's why we share many memories of his All England finals.
For example, when he beat Indonesian Liem Swie King in the final 1984.

Morten Frost was born in April 1958

Morten's results list (in general)

All England winner: 1982, 1984, 1986 and 1987
2nd place at All England: 1983, 1985, 1988 and 1989

Winner of the Danish Singles Championship: 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1990 and 1991

Winner of the Danish Championship in doubles: 1980, 1982 and 1984

Winner of the Danish Championship in mix: 1984

Silver medal at the World Championships: 1985 and 1987

European Championship winner: 1984 and 1986

Winner of the Danish Open: 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1989

Grand Prix Final Winner: 1984
2nd place at the Grand Prix finals: 1983 and 1986