by The Editors on November 28, 2011
The New York Post is saying that things at action mall retailer PacSun aren’t going as well as many at the company would like.
“Dude — if you can front us some dough to help cover the rent now, there will be a sweet payoff later.”
That, in essence, is the deal that surf-and-skate retailer Pacific Sunwear of California has been floating with private-equity investors as it scrambles for cash to pay the punishing leases for its struggling, mall-based shops. . . In addition to shuttering dozens of its more than 800 stores this year and haggling with landlords for lower rents, PacSun recently hired Los Angeles investment bank Guggenheim Partners to raise cash, sources told The Post.
Sadder news still is that it seems few investors are interested in chaining themselves to the PacSun anchor. Looks like it won’t be long now.
[Link: New York Post]
by The Editors on November 25, 2011
When shares of Billabong dropped 12.5 percent on Thanksgiving Day everyone was a bit surprised. In fact, the company has no explanation for it at all, according to a story in the Herald Sun.
The unexpected surge in trading volumes on Thursday prompted the Australian Securities Exchange to write to Billabong, asking the company if it had any undeclared information that could explain the activity. . . Billabong responded yesterday by saying it was not aware of any information significant to the company that had not been announced.
The sell off (which was reportedly the busiest trading day since August) saw 9.26 million shares traded and the Billabong stock to $3.64. Taj Burrow winning a contest didn’t scare people that much did it?
[Link: Herald Sun]
by The Editors on November 25, 2011
Never Summer Snowboards have always been outliers in the snowboard industry. And they’ve always seemed to like that. But in this profile in Entrepreneur Magazine we get the back story how they became one of snowboarding’s biggest little brands and how they reportedly “Shredded The Snowboard Industry With Innovation” while building boards in the USA.
It all started, appropriately enough, in a garage. The brothers, who lived in Fort Collins, launched Swift Snowboards with their friend Scott Rolfs out of their home in 1983, a year after they were introduced to the sport. Tim Canaday, just 14 at the time, and four years Tracey’s junior, built the first snowboard in his wood shop class. “Tracey and Scott were figuring out the business, and I was good at building things, so I gave them advice on how to build a mold that I just learned from my shop teacher,” he says.
Click the link to read the rest.
[Link: Entrepreneur Magazine]
by The Editors on November 17, 2011
On her appearance on one of the last episodes of Fuel TV’s now cancelled show The Daily Habit, Tara Dakides was wearing a shirt that said, “Omatic Not 4 Riders.”
Apparently, she’s not to happy with the way things went down at the snowboard company that she was at one time involved with. Here’s what Dakides said on her Facebook page:
Omatic used to be something I was proud to stand behind because for me it meant Pure Snowboard Love, Fun, Creativity and Rider Owned. We were little but strong until greed walked in the door. I walked away a few years ago with a fight, but that fight has come to an end. I am no longer owner of what Omatic used to be. After a year of Lawyers trying to settle, the fight is over. Good did not win and now Omatic is for Sale. Omatic is owned by an attorney who knows nothing about what true snowboarding is and a lot of good people who believed in Omatic where taken advantage of. . .
Strangely, Tara didn’t mention Todd Richards or Jason Kanes. Or course, it didn’t take long for Richards to add a comment on her post:
hey tara…did you pay hampus tara louie and chenille out of your own pocket ? i did you. . . remember there are two sides to every story and i lost a shitload of cash on omatic. i don’t really remember you putting any hard cash into the company…have a nice day.
It’s rough when a dream dies. But sometimes, “that’s just business.” For the rest, click the link.
[Link: Tara Dakides’ Facebook]
by The Editors on November 16, 2011
Action headphone maker Skullcandy is reportedly suing a company called Skelanimals because their logo is similar to the publicly traded companies skull face, according to a story in the Salt Lake City Tribune.
“The skull logos used by defendants … is likely to cause confusion … or to deceive the consuming public,” according to the trademark-infringement suit filed in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City. . . “We have registered trademarks on that skull across the world, particularly in the headphone category. We are recognized globally for that skull,” said Tom Burton, associate general counsel for Skullcandy. “We try to resolve these issues through friendly negotiations but not everyone respects our intellectual property, and we have to protect it.”
Skelanimals says their design were copyrighted in 2008. Okay, so the eyes, nose and teeth, maybe?
[Link: Salt Lake City Tribune]
by The Editors on November 16, 2011
After six years as Marketing Director of the International Association of Skateboard Companies Laurie Bergthold has announced that she is leaving the skateboarding trade organization to join Tony Hawk’s motion media production company 900 Films. Bergthold said:
Thanks to everyone who has had a hand in such amazing projects as Go Skateboarding Day to creating the Skateboarding Summit. IASC is in great hands with Josh [Friedberg] and while the decision to leave was a difficult one, I can only hope that my nearly 6 years of service has helped pave the way for him to work toward a new and improved trade association for skateboarding.
Bergthold says she will be working on 900 Films new Youtube action sports channel Ride. The channel, part of Youtube’s new content strategy, is set to launch on January 16, 2012.
by The Editors on November 14, 2011
In financials released today (November 14, 2011) Spy Optic has announced that net sales in the quarter ended September 30, 2011 were up 33 percent to $9.2 million, however, the company still lost $3 million on the quarter compared to $900,000 in the same three months in 2010.
“We are very pleased with the growth that we generated this quarter, particularly in our core SPY® products which had nice growth in both goggles and sunglasses, in North America and internationally. This is especially encouraging following the significant decline the Company had in the first quarter of the year,” said Orange 21 President Michael Marckx. “Our new team’s focus on the marketing, product development and sales programs to leverage the core SPY® brand appears to be gaining traction on many fronts.”
Increased sales would suggest that things are definitely moving in the right direction, however profitability would likely be even better. Follow the jump for the official details. [click to continue…]
by The Editors on November 14, 2011
After having a rough time on London’s AIM the ill-named surf clothing brand Hot Tuna is reportedly being sold again, according to a story on Reuters.
“That (the sale) would leave the Plc (public limited company) as a cash shell unencumbered by the brand,” Executive Chairman Francis Ball told Reuters by telephone. . . Ball would leave the company along with Chief Executive Geoff O’Connell and Brand Director Oscar Verden, the company said in a statement on Monday.
The public company formed around the brand will of course continue on (under a different name) because that’s how shells work.. Isn’t it sad when brands continue to stumble on long after they’re dead, isn’t it?
[Link: Reuters]
by The Editors on November 11, 2011
The snow, surf, and skate editorial staffs at Transworld Media have some new office mates in their Carlsbad, California headquarters.
Bonnier Corporation has reportedly partnered with the Ultimate Fighting Championships to produce its UFC Magazine. Transworld will be responsible for the sales and distribution of the magazine and Group Publisher Liam Ferguson couldn’t be happier about it.
“From my first introduction to Dana White and the UFC over two years ago, I was impressed by his passion for their sport and his company’s media prowess,” said TransWorld Media Group Publisher Liam Ferguson. “This partnership will leverage the strengths of our respective organizations to better serve our shared target demographic of young male enthusiasts, aged 16-34. I’m flattered that the UFC has chosen TransWorld, and our parent company Bonnier, as their partner to grow their print and digital magazine subscribers globally.”
With their core product revenue continuing to fall, it was only a matter of time before Bonnier found a way to bring more dollars into their Transworld Media business. It would appear that Transworld Media’s Bonnier ass kicking is going to continue for a while. Follow the jump for the official word from Bonnier. [click to continue…]
by The Editors on November 7, 2011
This three bedroom, two bath Orange County California skateboard charmer has miles of curb appeal, but more importantly it has bowl appeal.
With 3 bedrooms plus a den, a wonderfully remolded kitchen with stainless steel appliances and granite counters, dormer windows and a cozy fireplace, this is a great place to call ‘Home’. Offering an environment that is ideal for outdoor living and entertaining, the 11,000+ square foot lot provides lots of space and privacy. The backyard/patio area will pique your interest with a fully permitted recreational court (an alluring skatepark…gotta see to appreciate!) and an oversized 2-car garage, part of which is currently used as a music studio – complete with sound proofing.
The home is located at 542 E Cumberland Rd, Orange, California and is currently listed for the low, low price of $299,000. Seriously, why rent when you can own a home with a skatepark out back. Click the link for all the details.
[Link: Corliss Reality]
The New York Post is saying that things at action mall retailer PacSun aren’t going as well as many at the company would like. 
