by The Editors on April 15, 2009
According to a story in the Sydney Morning Herald Billabong is a nightmare brand for ad agencies and television networks because they are playing by their own rules all the way around.
It does not make TV commercials, it does not book space on television. And its magazine ads are produced by its own team. Billabong is not just a surf brand, it is a media company, says the person in charge of producing the hours of surf-related content. . . “This just ups the ante,” says Scott Wallace of the deal announced last week with Sony. “We are turning into a media company as well as a clothing company.”
Wallace, formerly with IMG, and now VP New Media and Strategic Partnerships, appears to be putting Billabong on the right track. As we’ve said several times: if you want to control your message, be the messenger. And it looks like Wallace is doing just that.
[Link: Sydney Morning Herald]
by The Editors on April 15, 2009
It’s the story of a Brigham Young University student who took an idea to the nation. BYU NewsNet writer Kresha Worton tells the story of senior advertising student Chip Neff and how he and his brother Shaun built the Neff brand.
Neff said he and his brother have managed all of the business responsibilities over the past few years, but with their tremendous growth they recently were able to hire seven full-time employees to specialize in different areas. . . He said one of the biggest things that has contributed to their success has been the unique design and colors of the brand. . . “The theme of the brand is very fun and colorful,” Neff said. “We offer all the fun, most colorful and fresh designs.” . . .WGSN, a company that provides trend analysis and news to the fashion industry, had nothing but good things to say about Neff. . . This year WGSN predicted Neff as the biggest trendsetter for the snowboarding industry.
And what if every one of the reportedly 13.5 million Mormons world-wide were to buy just one hat. . . isn’t that the least they could do?
[Link: BYU NewsNet]
by The Editors on April 15, 2009
Roxy announced today that they will be teaming up with home electronics titans JBL, Inc. to produce a new line of headphones.
The new series of multimedia products will combine Roxy’s leading fashion sense for adventuresome young women, with JBL’s award-winning, pro-sound technology. The first products will include a line of co-branded headphones in fashion colors slated for launch in the second quarter of 2009. . . .The special edition line will represent the first time a key fashion has partnered with a premium audio brand to create portable multimedia products that look as great as they sound. Consistent with each brands’ reputation for pro-level performance, the Roxy / JBL suite of products will be marketed with an emphasis on combining a premium, personal music experience with high intensity sports action.
While we don’t exactly think they will be creating “an new market category of branded headphones,” we’re sure Roxy branded headphone will come in colors and patterns that will make the little girls scream.
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by The Editors on April 14, 2009
Much has been written about Patagonia’s Yvon Chouinard, but when he was in Australia for the opening of a Patagonia store in Torquay (opened in partnership with surf legend Wayne Lynch) The Age’s Saturday Editor Michael Gordon got to check in with the businessman that Gordon calls a contrarian.
The contrarian streak is evident soon after our conversation begins, overlooking the surf at Torquay. “I don’t like authority and I always wanted to do it my way,” he says. “I wanted to have a company where I could do things differently and not end up like a grease-ball businessman.”
We’ve always thought Patagonia was a little too cool to be cool, but this profile on the man behind the brand made us like their whole groove a little more than we did before reading it. And that surprised us a little.
[Link: Sydney Morning Herald]
by The Editors on April 9, 2009
Electric Pig “the UK’s fastest growing tech news site” has alerted us to the fact that Skullcandy’s Snoop Dogg Skullcrusher headphones come in “gang colours.” Where you from, g?
What’s got us worried though is the blue bandana design: that’s the colour of infamous LA street gang the Crips, who Snoop Dogg was a proud member of in younger years. So much so that he even rapped about it on one song: “I keep a blue flag hanging out my backside/ But only on the left side, yeah that’s the Crip side.” For real. Watch yourself if you wear these Snoop Dogg headphones on the east side, or just buy the black version.
Yeah, you better watch yo’ self at least until the Bloods version comes out, homie.
[Link: Electric Pig]
by The Editors on April 9, 2009
Yesterday, while strolling the isles of our local Walmart in search of storage bins and Giant Cheetos we noticed some attractive women’s monokinis. They were from some brand called Op and selling for $20.
It got us thinking: what is the difference between a $20 Op bikini and an $78 Roxy suit? Aside from mean girl scorn all we could come up with was marketing. For people who don’t mind wearing a Walmart bikini (and there are millions of them) there is no reason to spend four times as much.
So last night when TransWorld Business and Shop-Eat-Surf were tweeting away about how the La Jolla Group was doing a special Rusty line for J.C. Penney we had to chuckle. Of course they are. And so is Ryan Sheckler and Zoo York. Because if you’re just in the game to get paid there is really is no reason to protect your distribution. If Op is any indicator this could be the biggest sales year ever for all three companies. And what is wrong with that? You know, aside from everything. . .
For the latest on the J.C. Penney action fashion coup follow the jump.
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by The Editors on April 8, 2009
Our bromance with Vans looks to see no soon end as the footwear giant just relaunched their Vans Customs site. This means anyone can start with fresh white pair of Eras, Slip-ons, or Old Skools and then jack them up until their eyes bleed.
After 20 minutes of making all kinds of customs we finally settled on the new Vans x Boardistan Old Skool. We dare you to find a shoe more delicious that this. Seriously. . . impossible.
[Link: Vans Customs]
by The Editors on April 8, 2009
What does the RS stand for? Real Sucky. Okay, couldn’t pass that one up. Sorry. All serious now. Ryan Sheckler, Inc. has teamed up with Wicked Fashions, Inc. to deliver a line of “graphic t-shirts, hoodies, thermals, woven tops and skate-fit denim for both Young Men and Boys, all of which mirror Sheckler’s signature style.”
“Skateboarding is my life and skating in something comfortable and stylish is a must. Ultimately, my goal is to take the clothes that my friends and I enjoy wearing and make them available to a larger audience at an affordable price,” says Sheckler. Retail prices for the line will range from $15 – $55 for Young Men and $12 – $48 for Boys.
RS By Sheckler (which joins Southpole in the Wicked fashion stable) drops just in time for the fall back-to-school buying season and will be available at major, leading retailers in July. Because major, leading retailers is where the mass market shops and the mass market is where the mass money is. Word. [click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 8, 2009
Piper Jaffray has just released the results from their 17th semi-annual survey Taking Stock With Teens and as might be expected the news is not good. Teens are now spending 14 percent less on fashion and in juniors it was down 19 percent. Looks like the bottom of the “discretionary recession” was not hit last summer as Piper Jaffray claimed in their last report.
“After the drop in teen spending stabilized last fall, it is apparent that the continued challenges in the economy are having a dramatic impact on teen spending this spring and the 14 percent decrease is a direct reflection of this,” said senior research analyst Jeff Klinefelter. “The decrease in spending leads us to believe that the economy is forcing parents and teens to cut back on spending across the board. Teens and their parents are still buying new clothes, footwear and accessories, but are more selective and increasingly price conscious. This will force retailers to discount prices and offer unique promotions to keep a steady flow of spending until the economy improves.”
Luckily, for the action sports fashion world the number one “brand” is still what Piper Jaffray calls “West Coast Brands.” Yeah, our category is so small that Piper continues to group PacSun, Volcom, Quik, and Zumiez together in one category, otherwise none of them would likely show up on the list. The rest of the list looks something like this:
Hollister, Nike, Forever 21, and American Eagle. Specifically among brands ranked by young women, Hollister took the “most preferred” position, while West Coast Brands continued to remain a favorite among young men.
For the rest of the highlights including notes on teen video games, digital, music and restaurant spending follow the jump.
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by The Editors on April 5, 2009
It seems that executives who leave the privately held Australian surf giant Rip Curl can pretty much forget about keeping any of the shares they got as part of their employment. Most recently Rip Curl has bought back 150,000 shares from former board chairman James Strong for $1 a piece, according to a story in the Sydney Morning Herald.
It appears that the company has only paid $1 a share for Mr Strong’s stake, as part of an arrangement to buy them back at the price they were issued seven years ago. . . . But Rip Curl’s C-class stock is set at $62 a share, valuing Mr Strong’s 148,412’s shares at a nominal $9.2 million, according to documents filed with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. . . The final amount paid to the former chairman was part of a “confidential settlement agreement” relating to his departure, the company said in ASIC filings on Friday.
You don’t stay “closely held” by letting voting shares get to far from the nest, apparently.
[Link: Sydney Morning Herald]
According to a story in the Sydney Morning Herald Billabong is a nightmare brand for ad agencies and television networks because they are playing by their own rules all the way around.
