by The Editors on November 7, 2008
When we occasionally talk about the “old media” not getting it, this is what we’re talking about.
On Wednesday we got a press release from ASA Entertainment letting us know that CBS would be airing four shows from the LG Action Sports Tour starting tomorrow November 8, 2008, followed by three more each weekend in December.
Most of the events being covered in these shows are at least three months old and the event last weekend in Seattle, Washington, The LG Actions Sports World Championships probably won’t air until December 20, 2008.
To put it clearly: everyone who cares about these events (we’re not sure who those people are exactly) will already have checked out the results, photos, and video online. That makes these four shows really old news to the people who care and completely untimely and irrelevant to those who happen to accidentally stumble on to the broadcasts while trying to find something to watch.
So what is the point of airing them at all? Well, this will be CBS’s fourth year airing the shows and we’re guessing some of ASA Entertainment’s sponsors still believe people are watching old action sports events on TV. And CBS probably thinks this will help them be down with the kids.
Apparently, a little self-delusion goes a long way in action sports marketing.
by The Editors on November 7, 2008
Say what you will about Adrenalina CEO Jeffrey Geller, but by blending bi-lingual marketing, in-store FlowRiders, and sideshow carnival showmanship Geller is creating the Cabela’s of boardsports stores.
The new 12,000 square foot store, which is having its grand opening tomorrow November 8, 2008, is in the International Plaza Mall in Tampa, Florida and features both the FlowRider and a juice bar.
As we continue with our retail expansion strategy, we are thrilled to bring the Adrenalina experience to the Tampa area,” commented President and COO Jeffrey Geller. “In addition to the FlowRider, the larger retail space allows us to add an even greater selection of top brands, such as Billabong, Volcom, Quiksilver, Zoo York, O’Neil, and Ed Hardy, giving the consumer the ultimate extreme sports experience.”
All the PacSun posing aside, something must be working.
[Link: MarketWatch]
by The Editors on November 6, 2008
Don’t really know how to take this one. On the one hand the skateboard is obviously not a “toy,” yet, it seems if the Strong National Museum of Play is handing out honors for stuff kids use, the skateboard should have been inducted years ago. This year it’s in with the “baby doll” and “the stick.” The stick? Wow.
The three toys beat out the board games Clue, Yahtzee and the Game of Life, the dollhouse, the Flexible Flyer sled, Hot Wheels, Magic 8 Ball, Rubik’s Cube, Thomas the Tank Engine and the whiffle ball.
Guess that makes it all okay.
[Link: Democrat and Chronicle]
by The Editors on November 6, 2008
A misguided inventor from Valencia, California has just solved a problem that no one really has. He’s designed a skateboard that breaks down into five smaller pieces for transport. Apparently a 32-inch skateboard is just too much for some kids.
Almost four years ago, company CEO, Brett Gregory, set out to solve a problem: “Many kids can’t bring their skateboards to school, the mall or while traveling due to space restrictions”. “How do you fit a full sized skateboard in a very small compartment in a kids backpack?” The answer is the Port-A-Board. It’s currently available in nine eye catching colors, allows kids to bring their boards anywhere, and has a “cool factor” that is simply off the charts.
Off the charts? The question Gregory apparently missed asking: why would a kid carry around a board in pieces that they’d be embarrassed to ride assembled? That’s right. They won’t.
[Link: Port-a-Board]
by The Editors on November 6, 2008
Matthew Polianites, the 19-year-old owner of the Boardwalk Skate Shop in Boston’s Burlington Mall has a optimistic take on the current economic downturn, according to a story in the Boston Globe.
“The recession isn’t stopping people from skateboarding,” Polianites, a sophomore at Suffolk University Sawyer Business School, said.
Polianites, who opened the shop after the skateboard mall kiosk he worked in closed, decided he didn’t want to be poor college student. He wanted to “graduate with a store franchise, not a heap of credit-card debt.”
“You try a trick, you fall, you get back up,” Polianites said. “With skateboarding, everything you do is a risk. Same as in the business world.”
[Link: Boston.com]
by The Editors on November 5, 2008
The street is not so happy with Zumiez after the company released a same-store sales drop of 13.1 percent in October. Not that it was surprising. It was just lower than expected.
That compares with a same-store sales gain 5.1 percent for the comparable period last year. . . . Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected same-store sales to fall 6.5 percent for the four weeks ended Nov. 1.
Net sales were up 1 percent, but with the economy and a “highly promotion retail atmosphere” we really can’t fault them. The stoked closed down 76 cents at $8.59.
[Link: Forbes]
by The Editors on November 5, 2008
Tony Hawk and DJ Jason Bentley go over some of Tony’s favorite songs while Tony gives the background behind why he likes them so much. We swear we’ve heard this show before, but maybe it’s just because we have the same taste in music. Sad, we know.
1.) Devo- Gut Feeling
2.) Dead Kennedys – Police Truck
3.) Frank Black – If it Takes All Night
4.) The Clash – Safe European Home
5.) Nine Inch Nails – 1,000,000
[Link: KCRW Quest DJ]
by The Editors on November 5, 2008
by The Editors on November 3, 2008
We’ve been getting unconfirmed word today regarding recent lay-offs at some of the industry’s biggest brands. Podium Distribution reportedly laid off approximately 20 people on Friday, October 31, 2008. Similar lay-offs were also rumored at Black Box, Osiris, and Sole Tech.
As one action sports worker said, “Retailers can’t sell their stuff. They can’t get credit to buy more product. Companies can’t get credit to produce. . . and the tower tumbles.”
Another worker just toured the California retail scene and said that the story is the same everywhere. “It was really bad during that first weeks of the financial panic,” he said. “I’m pretty sure no one bought anything during those two weeks. It’s going to be interesting to see which brands and retailers make it through this.”
So true. If anyone has any info to share, please leave it in the comments.
by The Editors on November 3, 2008
Plans for a new Chicago Billabong retail store on the city’s State Street have apparently been scrapped according to a story in Chicago Business.
Gourmet grocer Fox & Obel and trendy surf-wear retailer Billabong are dropping plans for stores in the former Carson Pirie Scott & Co. building on State Street, leaving the ambitious project with only one tenant as it approaches an opening next fall amid the bleakest retail climate in decades.
Probably not a bad idea. Are people even shopping any more?
[Link: Chicago Business]
When we occasionally talk about the “old media” not getting it, this is what we’re talking about.
