Behind the Design - our New ELITE #532

Every good swimming wetsuit begins with a clear purpose. At its core, a wetsuit must deliver three essential qualities that define the swimming experience: buoyancy, flexibility, and comfort.

Buoyancy helps swimmers maintain an efficient body position in the water. Flexibility allows for natural, unrestricted movement. Comfort brings it all together, ensuring the wetsuit works with the swimmer rather than against them.

In recent years, a fourth essential has become impossible to ignore: durability. High-end swimming wetsuits are a serious investment, and today’s swimmers rightly expect more than a single season of use.

When designing the #532, we took these principles a step further by asking a simple question: What stroke do people swim when they want to go fast?
The answer is freestyle. And when swimming freestyle, around 99% of the time one arm is fully extended overhead.

That single insight shaped the entire design. The #532 was built from the ground up as a purpose-built, freestyle-specific wetsuit, designed for sustained speed and efficiency in the water.

We don’t claim the #532 alone will make you faster. Yes, it’s highly buoyant and completely unrestricted through the shoulders, but what truly sets it apart is its intent. The #532 is specifically engineered to support and enhance good freestyle technique, working in harmony with the swimmer rather than masking inefficiencies. When strong technique meets purposeful design, meaningful performance gains follow.

This philosophy is reflected in every design detail. Vertical panelling aligns with the natural flow of water. A 5mm Aerodrome Hydrolift centre panel provides exceptional centre-line and core buoyancy, helping maintain a stable, efficient body position. Tapered side panels facilitate rotation and contour to the body at full stretch. Buoyant 5mm thigh panels keep the waist and thighs as high as possible in the water, while underarm and arm panels remain completely unrestricted even at full extension. These are just some of the principles that defined the original design brief.

We also believe in a degree of controlled rigidity in a wetsuit. Look at rowing shells or racing kayaks: they move efficiently in a straight line and rely on consistent, unbroken forward momentum. A swimmer should be no different. Holding a strong, straight body line—kept as high as possible in the water—while allowing the arms and legs to do their work is the foundation of sustained forward momentum and faster distance swimming.

That’s why we’ve never subscribed to marketing claims suggesting that reducing buoyancy in certain areas of the body creates a better position in the water. The logic simply doesn’t hold. Would a rowing shell or racing kayak ever be designed to sit lower in the water? We think not. Our philosophy is simple: stay high, stay aligned, move forward efficiently.

Which brings us back to the fourth must-have feature we believe every premium wetsuit should deliver: durability. Not only because wetsuits aren’t particularly environmentally friendly—and frequent replacement sends more to landfill—but because when you pay a premium price, longevity should be part of the deal.

In recent years, many manufacturers have pursued flexibility by using extremely thin, soft neoprene in key movement areas. Often marketed as “higher grade” neoprene, this is simply another way of saying softer. While softer neoprene is more flexible, it is also significantly more fragile.

Our approach is different. Through thoughtful design and intelligent panelling, it isn’t necessary to rely on ultra-soft neoprene to achieve exceptional flexibility. A more durable neoprene, with ample stretch and placed correctly, can deliver all the freedom of movement a swimmer needs—without the constant fear of tearing the suit every time you put it on.

In conclusion, when it comes to the #532, we want you to invest first in your technique—and then invest in an elite wetsuit that enhances that technique and continues to deliver performance, confidence, and durability for the long haul.