It may have been held September 4-6, 2008, but this ASR show felt a lot like a typical January show in terms of size and scale. Still the must-attend trade show of the season, this year buyers, retailers, and exhibitors were gritting their teeth and smiling through a show that comes in the midst of a sliding U.S. economy.
At the surface, things seemed status quo—models in skimpy swimsuits handing out flyers, a full beer garden, after-show parties, and free-flowing drinks come 5 o’clock. But spend more than five minutes talking to nearly anyone on the floor, and the word recession rose quickly to the surface.
“I’m one of the few people here old enough to remember the last real recession,” says Jeff Harbaugh, market analyst and industry consultant. “It’s bad, and it’s going to be a while before we see the end of this one.”
Even those booths and brands who seemed unaffected were keeping their guard up. “As quickly as it comes, it can go,” says SkullCandy’s Luke Edgar in reference to his brand’s current meteoric popularity. “It’s especially important in hard-economic times to keep our heads down, be humble and treat our retailers with respect, and keep charging ahead.”
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Held after a summer plauged by reduced consumer spending, it’s no surprise that the mood at this September’s ASR show was at times somber. However, according to ASR PR rep Lora Bodmer the show’s attendance numbers were on par with the September 2007 trade show—down barely a few percentage points. “In light of the change in the economy from last year—it’s pretty amazing,” she says. “Basically all the same stores were back, though some may have chosen not to bring extra non-essential staff.”
This September ASR show also saw a surge in moto and MMA-inspired brands. Large booths from Famous Stars and Straps, Skin Industries, Tap Out, and others occupied floor space in key locations throughout ASR. This, in addition, to the ASR-sponsored Virtue trade show held concurrently to ASR at the Hard Rock Hotel across the street from the San Diego Convention Center resulted in an influx of a hard-core, street-fighting crowd that contrasted greatly with the skate/surf audience typically in attendance.
Conversely, on the skate side controversy regarding the timing and relevancy of ASR resulted in a reduction in the number of booths from the skate industry. Sole Technology, Podium, C1RCA all opted out of the show completely, while DC continued to show on the Mezzanine level upstairs. Adding to that, many related streetwear brands chose to abandon ASR for the Agenda trade show up the street.
All in all the show remains the premiere spot to gauge the mood of the industry while previewing the Spring trends from a multitude of brands. And, unless the skate industry does decide split off and create it’s own trade show, recession or not it’s going to continue.
