Things haven’t been going so well since last Thursday’s Volcom Conference call. Shares are down, the market is down, but the Motley Fool investing site is still “stoked” on the stock.
Volcom is one of the smartest consumer-goods companies I can think of, boasting what I consider an intense, in-depth understanding of its customers. That kind of deep understanding of and affinity for a specific client base similarly attracted me to Urban Outfitters (Nasdaq: URBN). . . Furthermore, Volcom’s recent stock’s weakness is giving investors a great opportunity to buy, although the short term might be rough.
If you were basking in the sun at Huntington Beach yesterday (like much of the surf industry) and missed the Volcom conference call, here it is transcribed in it’s entirety. Here’s how Wooly kicked it off:
We are no more than half way through the year and I feel good about the progress that we have made managing our business in the U.S. running our new European operation and integrating Electric. The power of Volcom brand continues to capture the attention of consumers around the world and we are excited about the global opportunities that lay ahead.
His comments about electric:
Last quarter we added the full product line from electric, which includes sunglass, goggles, soft goods and accessories. During this period we launched three new sunglass styles, the Technician XL in May and the Detroit and Hoodlum the last week of June. So far the initial sell-through on all three styles has been very positive and we look forward to continuing to build on this excitement.
The Laguna Surf & Sport story:
The multi branded concept of the LS&S stores is a little different for us, but we believe it helps diversify our retail business by providing us with greater insight about our customers and market trends. It also brings an experience team to the company adding strength to our overall retail infrastructure. We plan to keep these stores operating under the LS&S name with the same employees, management and general product and brand mix.
For the rest of the call (including analyst questions) click the link.
Julian Fine, a 31-year-old snowboarder from Sydney, Australia died at Portillo, Chile on July 22, 2008 after slipping off a “poma, or t-bar” lift at the resort.
He’s gone on a lift on the way up a mountain … and he was nearly at the top and he was just unable to hold onto the lift any more and he let go of it and he was caught in a sense in one of those sections on a mountain that was very difficult to get out of,” Michael Fine [Julian’s father] said. “He couldn’t traverse to the other side, and in his attempts to get out he ended up going over a ledge.”
Tomorrow, July 24, 2008 at 1:30 PST Volcom will host a conference call to discuss their financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2008.
The conference call will be available to interested parties through a live audio Internet broadcast at www.volcom.com. Volcom intends to utilize this webcast event to discuss financially-oriented goals and objectives and to disclose material company and industry-based topics in an open manner. The company does not plan to report or comment on its progress during the current fiscal quarter.
For those who are not available to listen to the live broadcast, the call will be archived for one year on the Volcom website. A telephone playback of the conference call will also be available until 11:59 p.m. EST, Thursday, July 31, 2008. Listeners should call (800) 642-1687 (domestic) or (706) 645-9291 (international) and use reservation: 55485369.
Linked to the show “The Age of Imagination: Japanese Art from 1615 to 1868″ from the Etsuko and Joe Price Collection (through September 14th), the skateboard features a Japanese warrior battling a dragon. The image is from a rare painting by Katsukawa Shunei (1762-1819), an artist best known for his block prints of Kabuki actors.
The items are the brainchild of the Prices’ daughter, Sachi, who has made it a mission to draw new and unlikely audiences to traditional Japanese art forms. For the fall, one of Shunei’s warriors will make an appearance on a snowboard.
Apparently, Salt Lake City based action sports photographer Rob Mathis has been doing a little more than sitting around playing online poker. He has a new book out titled Slide featuring a collection of his photography. Knowing him, and his work, we’d say this one is a keeper.
At the ESPN ESPY Awards on Thursday night snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler won the award for best female action sports athlete. She edged out skier Lindsey Vonn, surfer Stephanie Gilmore, motocrosser Jessica Patterson, and snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis.
That’s a huge award,” said an elated Bleiler on Thursday, following a long night of post-awards parties. “All these athletes were there, all these football players, the Boston Celtics, so many amazing people, and just even to be nominated is an honor. To win one, it’s a huge honor.”
Here’s a car that’s got action sports written all over it. It’s a tiny, two-wheel drive Renault Clio that features, “special touches include specific upholstery sporting the Rip Curl logo, a chrome centre console, exclusive Rip Curl sills and specific rubber floor mats, as well as a sand- and snow-proof compartmented stowage box in the boot.” Because there’s nothing worse that getting sand or snow in your Clio.
Buoyed by the sale of 30,000 Clio by Rip Curls in more than 20 countries in 2007, Renault is looking to build on its successful partnership with the well known surfing and snowboarding brand Rip Curl with the release of Clio by Rip Curl 2008. . . . Available in three- and five-door form, this limited edition is both dynamic andtrendy and promises to appeal thanks to the potential it offers for customization and a list of specific equipment tailored for those who enjoy winter and watersports.
Only in France (and 20 other confused countries, apparently).
We’ll never say that Shaun White isn’t working for his money. Not after you see what he has to go through. Take this game preview at the video game convention E3 held July 14-17, 2008 for instance. . . . it’s just so sad.
After three long years of waiting John Martin and Bobby Meeks finally get their patent for their “snowboard boot with liner harness. Patent No. 7,386,947.
1. A sports boot comprising:
an outer shell having a semirigid sole and an upper attached to the sole;
a harness assembly fixedly attached to the outer shell and disposed within the outer shell, the harness assembly including a flexible panel having left and right edges defining a gap therebetween and a plurality of cord keepers disposed on either side of the gap;
a cord slidably engaging the cord keepers; and
a tensioning mechanism that engages the cord to maintain a desired tension in the cord such that the left and right edges of the flexible panel are urged toward each other;
a liner that is removably insertable into the outer shell such that the harness assembly flexible panel wraps about a portion of the liner;
wherein the tensioning mechanism is fixedly attached to one of the upper and the harness flexible panel.
