by The Editors on October 20, 2009
We know at least a few people (some competitors) who will be happy to hear that Ricky Irons is leaving the publishing world and moving over to the fashion industry as global brand manager of Dragon Alliance. With the state of action media in general it seems like a pretty smart move on Iron’s part.
Irons is leaving Surfer Magazine after 15 years as publisher. The only person to hold that job longer was Steve Pezman (1970-1991). His last issue as publisher will be the 50th Anniversary Issue. Not a bad way to exit, really.
“Dragon is a great fit for me because they are the real deal,” said Irons. “They have always been true to their roots and have supported the core athletes, retailers, and customers since day one. Their team of athletes is unmatched, the product is better than ever, and they have a great vision for the future of the brand. They are also an independently owned brand, which in this day and age is a beautiful thing. It helps them be creative, innovative, and agile in this ever changing market.”
What does this mean for Surfer and ASG? We’re guessing it means one less mouth to feed.
[Link: Global Surf News]
by The Editors on October 20, 2009
While we’ve never, ever heard anyone say, “Portland could use a few more good coffee roasters” we’re still hyped for Wille Yli Luoma on today’s official grand opening of Heart Roasters on 2211 E. Burnside St, in Portland, Oregon.
All the hipsters were out for the opening party on Saturday, October 17, 2009, but today, at 6 AM the doors opened for the rest of us.
Check it out next you’re in the City of Roses Roasters.
[Link: Heart Roasters via Yobeat]
by The Editors on October 8, 2009
Word was flowing late last week, but now it’s official. Anon optics is the latest Burton brand to pull up its SoCal stakes and get sucked back to the mothership in Burlington, Vermont.
Under the leadership of anon Vice President of Product, Jeff Gilberti, the transition will be complete by early November and will allow anon to strengthen its focus on its goggle business and invest more in developing and marketing great winter products. anon plans to expand its staff in Vermont with the addition of brand and sales management positions.
Apparently, everything is cheaper in Vermont. . . Follow the jump for the entire press release.
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by The Editors on October 1, 2009
Employees of Source Interlink Media, the parent company of Action Sports Group (Surfer, Surfing, Snowboarder, and Skateboarder magazines) are reportedly being required to take 10 non-paid vacation days between September 2009 and February 2010 in what amounts to a four percent cut in annual pay.
We can’t imagine the employees are happy about this. Then again, they still have their jobs. . .
by The Editors on September 30, 2009
When Warren Miller the man appeared in a new ski movie called Refresh from Level 1 Productions, someone at Warren Miller Entertainment didn’t like it, according to a story in the Aspen Daily News.
Last week, Warren Miller Entertainment, a Delaware corporation that is a division of Bonnier Corporation, filed the lawsuit claiming trademark infringement as it owns the rights to the name “Warren Miller,” “Warren Miller Entertainment” and other terms associated with Miller.
For his part Warren, who says his non-compete expired in 1999, says the trademarks that Warren Miller Entertainment owns “do not prevent him from ‘using his fame and status to identify himself and to participate in Level 1’s Refresh ski film.’
It gets much messier and funnier, but we’re guessing this lawsuit is the best thing that could ever happened to Refresh.
[Link: Aspen Daily News]
by The Editors on September 29, 2009
Most everyone is flying to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico today to party with the surf industry at the 12th Annual SIMA Surf Summit which runs September 30 through October 3, 2009. Speakers this fall reportedly include VF Corp’s Steve Murray, Volcom’s Richard Woolcott, Andrew Zolli of Pop!Tech, and The Intelligence Group’s Jane Buckingham.
We’re just hoping there is some good surf, because it makes all the nob polishing so much more palatable.
[Link: SIMA]
by The Editors on September 29, 2009
Hey, computer nerds. Check out this big news from Burton. The company has reduced server costs by over 80 percent according to Novell.
Burton migrated all of its mission-critical systems to Dell* servers running SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, including SAP* ERP, Business Intelligence, CRM, Enterprise Portal, as well as its Oracle* applications. The company plans to use the built-in Xen* virtualization to reduce its number of physical servers and adapt quickly to changing workloads. The ability to quickly deploy virtual servers will greatly improve the IT staff’s ability to add new applications as needed. Virtual servers will also help the team create better development and testing environments on existing hardware.
Take that AT&T. For more of this scintillating info, follow the jump.
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by The Editors on September 28, 2009
The bargain lift-ticket seller Liftopia.com has added Whistler/Blackcomb, Killington, Mammoth Mountain, Winter Park, Copper Mountain, and Stowe, to its list of discounter resorts this season, and rounded up $1 million more in funding, according to a story on TechCrunch.
Liftopia allows ski resorts to offer variable pricing for tickets based on much how traffic they anticipate seeing on the slopes — in other words, resorts can lower their prices if they think they’re going to have a slow day the same way an airline does if a flight might not fill up. Some resorts have been able to do this to a limited extent with ‘peak season’ tickets (a ticket for Christmas time would cost more than one a month or two later), but up until now they haven’t had a good way to adjust their pricing on a daily basis. Liftopia gives them this option.
Definitely something worth checking out this season. . .
[Link: TechCrunch]
by The Editors on September 23, 2009
GE Capital sent out a press release yesterday explaining how happy they are to act “as collateral agent on a $200 million asset-based credit facility” for Quiksilver. Yes, that General Electric. Founded by Thomas Edison, owners of NBC Universal (Dew Tour, Alliance of Action Sports), makers of large jet engines.
“GE’s ability to commit a significant amount of capital helped to provide us with the liquidity we desired”, said Joe Scirocco, CFO for Quiksilver. “Also, their in-depth retail finance knowledge enabled us to quickly complete this transaction, which was integral to our ability to simultaneously execute other financing transactions both in the U.S. and in Europe.”
It doesn’t get much bigger than GE.
[Link: Lessors.com]
by The Editors on September 22, 2009
After viewing some marketing material describing 70 styles of The North Face footwear as “antimicrobial” the US Environmental Protection Agency has reportedly filed suit against The North Face’s parent company VF Corp. for making “unsubstantiated public health claims regarding unregistered products,” according to a story on Sports One Source.
The suit centers around shoes featuring The North Face’s “AgION antimicrobial silver agent” which reportedly “inhibits the growth of disease-causing bacteria.” By the EPA’s definition that constitutes a pesticide.
Products that kill or repel bacteria or germs are considered pesticides, and must be registered with the EPA prior to distribution or sale. The Agency will not register a pesticide until it has been tested to show that it will not pose an unreasonable risk when used according to the directions. Consumers should be careful to look for the EPA registration number printed on product labels, and to follow the directions for proper use.
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We know at least a few people (some competitors) who will be happy to hear that Ricky Irons is leaving the publishing world and moving over to the fashion industry as global brand manager of Dragon Alliance. With the state of action media in general it seems like a pretty smart move on Iron’s part.
