by The Editors on August 12, 2022
Surfer Imogen Caldwell just dropped her latest capsule collection of sunglasses in collaboration with OTIS Eyewear. Made from certified biodegradable Eco-Acetate frames, the Decades Collection pays tribute to the iconic looks of the 70s, 80s and 90s.
“In this collection we bring you my three favourite frames to date,” says Caldwell about the release. “The Vera, Goldie and Felix represent bold colourways, flattering shapes and a nod to classic style.”
For all the official details, follow the jump.
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by The Editors on July 25, 2022
Walmart, the massive, big box, retailer, and obesity promoter, is a hulking bag of putrescence for so many reasons that it’s not worth listing any of them. But here’s one anyway. Back in February 2022 we mentioned a story about Vans filing a lawsuit against the monster retailer for knocking off most of Vans shoes.
Vans won an injunction against the company in March 2022 that required Walmart to stop selling the infringing shoes. But did Walmart follow that injunction? Of course not, according to a story on Reuters.
Vans told the court Friday that Walmart was “doubling down” with new shoes that are “even more similar” to its designs. It also said that Walmart was still selling other shoes that had been banned by the order. . . Vans’ court filing said Walmart has told the company it would stop selling the infringing shoes but “has not shown that it is actually putting its words into action.”
Vans wants Walmart to be fined $3,000 a day until they stop selling the shoes. But that probably won’t even stop the retail whale from continuing to plow ahead through the waters of copyright infringement, because why should they stop? They’re making boatloads of money. And they do the same thing in almost every category they sell in.
[Link: Reuters]
by Sir Ben Marcus on June 10, 2022
A different surf shop experience is now open for business in West Malibu, close to Westward and Zuma Beach. SeaNSoul Surf Shop is an extension of the SeaNSoul website, which is fast becoming the place for surfers, bikers, skiers and outdoor people to buy and sell used equipment: Surfboards, wetsuits, snowboards, skateboards – everything.
SeaNSoul founder John Kozlowski is originally from Missouri and Texas, growing up playing football in rural towns far from the ocean. Living and working in New York City for many decades as an executive for Ralph Lauren, Kozlowski fell in love with all things surfing and ocean: “We had a weekend house in the Springs, the bohemian part of East Hampton and close to Montauk where I would surf literally every weeknd year round.”
After 20 years of bright lights, big city, Kozlowski and his wife Erica heard the call of the surf and sun and moved with their two children to Malibu. (Please follow the jump for the rest of the story.)
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by The Editors on May 16, 2022
By clicking the “continue” link at the bottom of this blurb, you will encounter a list of headlines that refer to our topics, namely, skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding, fashion, and finally, business. Many of these stories have been read by “The Editors,” and many have not.
The list of headlines style is evidence of the slow evolution of this site and The Editors themselves. Snark has been annoying for nearly a decade (deja vu from last month), and The Editors realized there is no longer any reason to restate what other people have written to make it funnier. Few have time for witty nor funny when it slows the speed of information consumption.
Nothing is getting in the way here. Follow the jump and read the list. If there are brands, people, or topics that interest you, please use the search function in your browser and jump to it straight away. Enjoy.
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by The Editors on March 24, 2022
In an effort to help out the people whose lives have been devastated by the historic flooding on the East Coast of Australia, Roark has designed their “Help a Mate” T-shirt (graphic above) that you can purchase. The profits from the shirt will go to help those who were affected. Here’s what Roark says:
In recent weeks, our friends down under have experienced devastation floods that have left the East Coast of Astralia virtually unrecognizable, forcing thousands to evacuate and sadly claiming over 20 lives so far. It’s been called a once-in-a-lifetime event, and comes right on the heels of the deadly wildfires they experienced not too long ago. With so many of our friends, families and coworkers rooted in the affected areas, we’ve come together to offer up this Relief Fund Tee, donation all profits to GIVIT, an Australia-based non-profit that is providing an immense amount of support to the flood victims in both QLD and NSW zones.
To pre-order the shirt, please click the link and help the cause and get a rad shirt all at once.
[Link: Roark]
by The Editors on March 22, 2022
We’ve got no backstory on this one. We left the controls for a few days to catch the tail end of the winter that wasn’t and celebrate Holi while avoiding the St. Pats day madness only to return to news that VF Corp chose March 17, 2022 to announce that the company had named long-time Vans (and former Vans president) Kevin Bailey as the new global brand president for Vans.
This appointment marks Bailey’s return to the Vans brand after holding several enterprise leadership roles at VF. Bailey was Vice President of Retail for Vans when the brand was acquired by VF in 2004. He was later appointed as President of Vans, a role he held from 2009 to 2016. Under Bailey’s leadership, revenue for the brand more than doubled to $2.2 billion.
As for Vans comment on former president Doug Palladini (pictured right)? Well, they thanked him for his dedication and passionate service for the past 18 years and wished him “all the best” in his next chapter. Wish we had more info. If you see something, say something. Please. For the official word from VF click the link.
[Link: Business Wire]
by The Editors on February 24, 2022
Merge4 has released a rad new collection of three crew socks from skateboarding legend Tony Alva.
Along with the classic Alva logo, each pair of Tony Alva socks is constructed with textile technology that supports an action based lifestyle, including moisture wicking soles, light compression to encourage circulation, and elastic arch support to cushion every movement. “Tony Alva gives us old men hope,” joked Santa Cruz Bicycles Founder and MERGE4 Board Member since the sock brand’s inception, Rob Roskopp.
The MERGE4 X Tony Alva collection socks are available to purchase at www.MERGE4.com and through select retailers. For all the details, please follow the jump.
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by The Editors on February 14, 2022
It’s newsies time. Obviously, this list is overloaded with Olympic content since that’s what snowboarding is up to right now. And Shaun White is the biggest news from Chinaland. Shaun, and the terrible judging. But, oddly, few outlets wrote about that. Censorship? Probably not, but you know the journalists who are visiting China and hope to stay and/or return to the country don’t want to upset the PRC media watchers. Click the link for the list. And get going. This is enough to make it look like you’re working for the rest of the afternoon!
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by The Editors on February 9, 2022
Vans is not letting Walmart off the hook in their blatant copying of Vans shoes (see the images above), according to a story on The Fashion Law. Vans filed a suit last year against Walmart’s rather obvious design borrowing, however, Walmart apparently complained that Vans “waited too long” to file suit. Vans believes “a preliminary injunction to block Walmart from continuing to sell “copycat” versions of “virtually all of [its] bestselling shoes” is necessary.” Can’t really blame them.
Vans has since lodged its reply to Walmart’s memo in opposition, taking issue with Walmart’s arguments, including the retailer’s claims that Vans lacks robust trademark rights, primarily for its OLD SKOOL sneaker. Looking specifically to the OLD SKOOL mark, Vans states that “based on longstanding use dating back more than 40 years, substantial sales and advertising, unsolicited media references, popular culture usage, and intentional copying by Walmart, Vans is likely to succeed in demonstrating that the OLD SKOOL trade dress has acquired secondary meaning.” In terms of sales, Vans says that it has generated “$10 billion in lifetime sales and current revenue of over $1 billion each year in U.S. sales of shoes bearing the OLD SKOOL trade dress.”
This entire case is just another example of how suspect Walmart’s entire business model really is. And we’re stoked that Vans is taking it to them full press. Click the link for the rest of the story.
[Link: The Fashion Law]
by The Editors on February 9, 2022
Selema Masekela tells the story behind the Afrosurf book project and work on the afrocentric surf brand Mami Wata with Danny Agnew at Inside Hook.
It’s interesting to have a passion for a thing like surfing or snowboarding that affects you, and it’s your place to express yourself and to find peace, and also have to constantly be dealing with people looking at you strangely or wanting to comment that you’re even there in the room. Or dealing with the micro and less micro aggressions towards you even being there in the first place. And then nothing to back up your presence in any of the storytelling around the thing that you love the most. So I always dreamt of being able to build a brand that story told it from another perspective.
It’s a great look into the interface between action sports, culture, and following your heart. Click the link for the rest of the interview.
[Link: Inside Hook]
