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The Continuing Conundrum Of Women's Market At SIMA's Women's Market Boot Camp several things were weird, weak or questionable―but that may turn out to be more of an opportunity than a problem. Vicki Vasil reports. 03/02/2010 Harbaugh's View: Billabong's Conference Call Veteran industry analyst Jeff Harbaugh has pulled up stakes and will launch his own blog later this month, but in the meantime here's what he has to say about Billabong's latest conference call. 03/01/2010 Customer Service or Satisfaction? Tough economic times or not, keeping your customers happy—and wanting more—is one of the most important challenges your shop and your brand should focus on. Total customer satisfaction should be a top priority, not just a goal to aim for. 02/11/2010 A Day In A Rep's Life A rep’s day can be a long one, full of countless highway miles, number crunching, and looking for new business. Don't beleive it? Come along with five superstar reps for a behind-the-scenes look at what a typical day on the road looks like. 02/02/2010 Women’s Market Report: Industry Leaders Sound Off There’s speculation that the women’s apparel market may currently be facing more challenges than the men’s. We asked the brands themselves, and the answer was a resounding:, “Yes!” “Not really.” “No! Well, maybe.” 02/01/2010 Surf Expo Is On! Energy and optimism set stage for a record-breaking show. 01/13/2010
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A Steady And Tranquil Dedication

By Vicki Vasil Eco awareness is now not only universal, it's expected. Hybrid cars. Green channels on television. Post-consumer-material furniture. Everything’s got the potential to be green, including the boardsports industry. Now that it’s become cost-effective—and dare we say trendy—many more Americans are willing to join the cause by supporting environmentally friendly companies and products. They’re pinning a green ribbon next to their pink, red and yellow ones.
Success—both eco- and image-wise— is all in how a company approaches the cause. Some industries and companies are more easily converted than others. However, even those with the biggest challenges can make significant and commendable advances.
Air travel stomps one of the largest carbon footprints on the earth. Delta took steps to make it up to the environment by initiating the first recycling program by a U.S. airline. Delta’s Environmental Blogger Jennifer O reports that in ten months Delta “saved roughly 192 trees, recycled more than 16 tons of newsprint, and recycled enough aluminum cans to build a Boeing 747.”
The company has since expanded the enterprise to over a dozen cities. It also supports the Conservation Fund which encourages passengers to offset carbon emissions from its flights with small donations. While all of this hardly offsets the environmental impact Delta has during a single week through its Atlanta hub, the point is: it’s a start. It’s also a priority for the company, if only in that its customers now fully expect these sorts of initiatives.
The onus is even higher in our industry, wrapped as it is in the lush environmental milieus of our sports. Our industry boasts accomplishments like organically-grown cotton, hemp, and post-consumer recycled materials that are all fashioned into myriad products—anything from T-shirts to surfboards. A few select businesses have embraced this eco-awareness in all facets of their operation, and in that group Sole Technology is first among equals. Sole Technology has instituted wide-reaching environmental initiatives—everything from extensive recycling programs and solar panel arrays on the roof to a pledge to eliminate the company’s carbon footprint entirely by the year 2020.
Other companies have found novel solutions to manufacturing challenges. Wetsuit manufacturers using petroleum-based neoprene are among the most challenged. Body Glove's Eco wetsuit line, first launched last September, is an accomplishment of revolutionary proportions. Body Glove uses their signature non-petroleum Bio Stretch and Eco Flex to create the wetsuit exterior. The result is a suit that consumes only a tenth of the energy used to manufacture a standard petroleum-based wetsuit. The latest SKU in the series is the Eco Surf Shirt, which will extend the potential to support the Eco suit to warmer waters.
Matt Walls, surf brand manager for Body Glove, says the success of the Eco suit has transcended the action sports world. Mainstream media like National Geographic, Outside, and the Weather Channel are spreading the word and lavishing awards on the company. “We’re excited to continue the evolution of unique environmentally-friendly products affordable for the everyday surfer,” says Walls. And in case you were wondering, the pricepoints are comparable with petroleum-manufactured suits of its caliber.
 Propaganda Headquarters, a youth brand consultancy out of Laguna Beach, has inspired participation amongst the ranks of the action sports industry for environmental causes since its inception. Founder and Brand Strategist Vipe Desai is intent on spreading the “blue” movement instead of just a green one.
What’s that mean? According to Desai, being blue incorporates green practices in addition to personal ones to better your life and your surroundings. Propaganda’s latest initiative—aptly named Project BLUE—unites top manufacturers such as Billabong, O’Neill, DaKine, Reef, Electric, and Nixon to create products with proceeds supporting coastal protection initiatives. “It’s not a charity,” says Desai, “it’s a plan of action.”
Other organizations have also come to the fore. The Action Sports Environmental Coalition (ASEC) was formed to “improve our collective environmental impact and to find better ways of educating the world about the dangers of global warming and the need for social responsibility.” ASEC both measures and celebrates eco-friendly companies in its marketplace:
The best intentions for any manufacturer or individual taking their first eco-friendly steps: take them slowly and deliberately. “I’m reminded of a great quote that I heard recently that parallels the excitement around environmental practices and the rush to go green,” says Desai. “’Patriotism is not the short, frenzied outburst of emotion, rather it is the steady and tranquil dedication of a lifetime.’”
Desai continues, “Any brand or individual taking on the responsibility of using best practices in either making environmentally friendly products or purchasing responsibly should keep this quote in mind. The changes that we want to see will happen over a lifetime. We need to build these responsible practices into our daily activities in order to have deep and lasting impact.” Log on for Surf Expo's Earth Day report from the SIMA Green Boot Camp
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Target Announces Debut of Shaun White Shoes Target athlete and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Shaun White expands collection to include affordable footwear.
03/10/2010 SIMA Image Awards Ceremony Says Adios To Cabo, Moves Stateside Next SIMA Image Awards Ceremony to Be Held in Early 2011 in Southern California.
03/10/2010 Rip Curl Unveils Premium Retailer Partnership Program For Mirage Boardshort “We believe the Mirage is the Ultimate Boardshort,” stated Rip Curl CEO, Kelly Gibson. “We’re excited to launch a program which allows us to connect the dots between our key product, the marketing that surrounds it, and a list of our valued core retail partners, which ultimately will tell the story of the Mirage boardshort.”
03/09/2010 Hobgood Brothers Join DaKine International Surf Team Be on the lookout for new Dakine CJ and Damien signature traction pads, due to hit shops late-summer 2010.
03/08/2010 Fuel TV Makes Two Key Promotions CJ Olivares becomes Executive Vice President, Shon Tomlin moves to Senior Vice President of Programming and Marketing.
03/08/2010 21st Annual Waterman’s Weekend Dates Set, Honorees Announced Tom Curren, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Al Merrick To Receive Awards.
03/08/2010 Rusty Appoints Steve Reiley As Brand Marketing Manager In his new position, Reiley will be instrumental in strategic planning for the brand and promoting key 2010 products, including the Rusty Wired Series, the Wired Series collaboration with Green Day, and the Ecostretch boardshorts.
03/08/2010 Transworld Media Announces Josh Brooks As New Associate Editor For Transworld Skateboarding Brooks will work with skaters, contributors and advertisers as one of the faces of TransWorld SKATEboarding and will help write in print and digital, contributing to the overall creative direction of the mag.
03/08/2010
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