10 Years of Gala Performance

Where It All Began

Back in 2016, Gala Tent — the British marquee and gazebo manufacturer — sponsored United Autosports, the team co-owned by Zak Brown and Richard Dean, as it headed into the European Le Mans Series. Behind that deal was a driver's comeback: after thirteen years away from single-seaters, Christian England was back on the grid, and that season ended in an LMP3 championship.

Backing a race team from the inside gave Gala Tent a front-row view of what motorsport paddocks really need — kit that stands up to the weather, the travel and the pressure of a race weekend. Out of that experience, Gala Performance was born: a specialist brand supplying the sport, built by people who had seen it up close. You can read the full story, and watch the film, on our story page.

From One Car to the Whole Paddock

What started with branding on a single endurance car has grown, season by season, into a specialist supplier trusted by teams right across British motorsport.

Today the range covers everything a paddock needs: motorsport tents and heavy-duty awnings, garage flooring, pit garage walling, branded and printed kit, and the accessories that hold it all together. From grassroots club racers setting up their first pit to professional championship outfits running a full compound, we have spent a decade helping teams present themselves like the professionals they are.

Not Just a Brand — a Race Team

Here is the thing that makes Gala Performance different: the people behind it do not just sell paddock kit — they race. It only took a couple of years for Gala Tent's directors to swap the glitz and glamour of VIP hospitality suites for the dirt and oil of the pit garage.

Mark Thompson, Gala Tent's managing director, and Andrew Scott, its procurement director, both earned their race licences and went competing themselves — and Gala Performance Racing was born. The team races a Citroën C1 in the C1 Challenge, the endurance-style club series where every car is near-identical, so results come down to driver skill and pit strategy rather than budget. You will find them on the grid at circuits including Donington Park, Snetterton, Silverstone, Pembrey and Brands Hatch.

Every weekend the team is out there is a weekend spent testing the very kit we sell, in the exact conditions our customers race in. That is the difference between a supplier and a supplier who races.

What We Stand For

Ten years in, the ethos has not changed. Everything we make is built for the paddock and proven on the track — developed from real racing experience, not a spec sheet. It is a brand built on backing talent, taking chances and understanding the sport from the inside, because we live it too.

“Products by racers, for racers” was never meant to be a slogan. It is simply how Gala Performance started, and how it has stayed.

Thank You

A decade is a long time in any business, and we could not have reached it without the teams, drivers, clubs and customers who have trusted us with their paddocks over the years — from first-timers pitching up at a club meeting to championship outfits running a full team compound.

And a special mention to the marshals who give up their weekends to make every race meeting possible. #orangearmy. Thank you, all of you — this milestone is yours as much as ours.

The Next Ten Years

We are not done. As British motorsport grows and evolves, so will we — more products, more support, and the same commitment to helping teams look and perform like professionals, whatever they race. And we will still be out on track ourselves, because that is where it all began, and where the best ideas come from.

Here's to the Next Ten

From a single sponsored race car to paddocks across British motorsport, thank you for being part of the first ten years. Whatever you race, we would be proud to help you set up.