We’ve been trying to corner Skullcandy’s Rick Alden into an IM interview for a while now, but it looks like the audio accessories CEO has more important people to talk to: like Inc.com for instance.
Today the site featured a story titled: How I Did It: Rick Alden, Skull Candy, which explains how the company’s three-year grown is up 24,077.4 percent. It’s a question we’ve been trying to answer for months.
I’d walk into snowboarding and skateboarding shops that I’d sold bindings to or that I’d known for 15 years, and say, “Hey, man, I think you ought to sell headphones.” They’d look at me a little bit funny, like, “Gee, Rick, maybe you didn’t realize we’re a skateboard shop. We don’t sell consumer electronics.” So I’d say, “How many of your customers have iPods? Music is a lifestyle experience, and you are a lifestyle shop — and we’re selling a product that is relevant to your customer base.” Still, convincing them to carry Skullcandy took a lot of work.
After spending nearly two decades circling the snowboard industry as an event promoter, the founder of Device Step-In Bindings, and other odd jobs, it’s great to see Rick taking his snowboard knowledge out into the world of electronics and kicking ass.
[Link: Inc.com]
