RVCA to boost European effort

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 06:34:50 -0700

The folks at RVCA sent me some news this week about their move to develop and expand their European business.

To accomplish this, RVCA has formed a strategic partnership with Medinvest and Tradegroup, who have successfully launched brands such as Volcom in the European market, according to the RVCA release.

Based out of Marseille, France, Medinvest (controlled by Michel Gamet) will be accountable for the backend logistical operations of RVCA in Europe, while Tradegroup, headed by Marcus Prosch in Stuttgart, Germany will handle all sales and marketing.

RVCA already sells to many countries and territories in Europe, including the UK, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Scandinavia and Greece via distribution companies.

RVCA will maintain those working relationships with the distribution companies but will also have a European operation that will oversee those relationships and control the sales and marketing along with logistics for the overall European market, according to a RVCA spokeswoman.

All design and the marketing vision will continue to come from RVCA headquarters in Costa Mesa, she said.

The new arrangement will be up and running for Summer 2009.

"The potential for RVCA in Europe is huge. RVCA’s clothing and accessories collections fit in line with European standards and trends, and its brand concept of mixing art and action sports through its development of the ANP - Artist Network Program - is revolutionary. We are confident the European market will fully embrace RVCA as has already been done in the USA,” Marcus Prosch said in the release.

RVCA Founder and Creative Director Pat “PM” Tenore said in the release he is excited for RVCA to seriously enter the European market.

“While we have experience and history that RVCA can succeed within the European market, we understand that Medinvest and Tradegroup are the experts at brand development in Europe, and we are thrilled about the potential of developing further for local European needs,” he said.

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.

Macys cuts forecast as comp sales fall

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 06:10:26 -0700

Macy’s, which previously gave up reporting monthly same-store sales results, provided an update on its business this morning. As you may have guessed, the news isn’t good.

The company said same-store sales in August and September combined fell 5.8 percent. Year-to-date same-store sales (through September) company-wide are down 3.2 percent. If the weak trends continue, same-store sales could be down 3 to 6 percent for the fall season. Previously, the company had forecast same-store sales for that time frame to be down 1 percent to flat.

As a result, Macy’s lowered its guidance to $1.30 to $1.50 for fiscal 2008, vs. its previous estimate of $1.70 to $1.85 per diluted share.

The company stressed in the press release that its balance sheet is still in good shape. It said cash flow has improved despite lower sales as the company suspended its share repurchase program, reduced capital spending and tightly managed inventory and expenses. The company had approximately $740 million in cash and cash equivalents at the end of September, according to the release.

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.

Interesting story about Zara supply chain

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 06:01:06 -0700

BusinessWeek has a story about Zara and how it uses its supply chain to win the “fast fashion” game.

Several surf shop owners have told me the fast fashion experts like Zara and H & M who are expanding in the U.S. are hurting junior sales at core stores.

Zara has developed a supply chain over the years that allows the company to move designs from sketch pad to store in as little as two weeks.

The company also makes a lot of its most fashionable goods domestically in Spain and other nearby countries which costs more, but allows for faster turnaround and to save on shipping, the story said.

Here’s a link to the complete story.

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.

Ticket information for The Collective Oct 16

Thu, 9 Oct 2008 07:34:36 -0700

Here are more details about “The Collective” presented by 24 seven, an event about the juniors market I’m working on with Foam Magazine.

DATE: October 16, 2008
TIME: 8-11 am
COST: $50
LOCATION: The Lab, 2930 Bristol Street, Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Conversations with market movers on careers and the Junior's market of today and tomorrow.

Laurie Etheridge, Sr Vice President, Merchandising and Design, Roxy

- Candy Harris, Brand Director, Billabong Girls

- Carol Nielsen, Women’s Buyer, Becker Surfboards

- Cary Allington, Co-Founder, ActionWatch

- Stacy Clark, Chief Execute Officer, Swell.com

- Summer Rapp, Vice President of Design, Quiksilver Women's

- Susan Crank, Chief Executive Officer, Lunada Bay

- Johnny Schillereff, Founder and President, Element

- Dick Baker, Chairman Emeritus, SIMA

Click here to sign up. Space is very limited, so if you are interested, I recommend registering quickly.

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.

Zumiez comp sales take big fall in Sept

Thu, 9 Oct 2008 07:01:06 -0700

A few same-store sales figures were released Wednesday, a day early, due to Yom Kippur, while some were released this morning.

Here’s a round-up.

To me, the biggest surprise was Zumiez, which reported a 9 percent decline in same-store sales for the month. Previously, Zumiez had been down a little, but not as much as other retailers. Last month, sales seemed to decline significantly.

The company said sales deteriorated in California, Arizona, Florida and Nevada. Zumiez also experienced weakness in the Northwest and Rocky Mountain states.

Footwear posted positive comps. Mens, juniors and boys apparel all posted negative comps as did accessories and hardgoods.

Here are a few other results:

PacSun

Same-store sales: down 5 percent. Analysts had expected a decline of 5 percent to 7 percent.

Apparel comps: up 8 percent

Juniors apparel: up 17 percent. Denim and tops were strong.

Young men’s apparel: up 1 percent. Denim was strong, T’s were weak.

Accessories: down 31 percent.

Footwear: down 55 percent as the company exits the category.

Regions: “Significant” sales declines in California, Florida and the Desert Southwest. Sales also weakened in the Northwest and Rocky Mountains/Great Plains.

Guidance: The company now expects fiscal 2008 third quarter earnings to be at the low end of its previously announced guidance of $0.00 to $0.05 per diluted share.

Buckle

Same-store sales: up 19.7 percent

Nordstrom

Same-stores sales: down 9.6 percent, weaker than expected. The company lowered its earnings guidance for the third quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch

Total company same-store sales: down 14 percent

Hollister same-store sales: down 20 percent

The company lowered guidance for the third quarter and for the second half of the year. It also reiterated its strategy of avoiding promotions to protect its brands in the long term.

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.

Split cofounder takes helm at Ambiguous

Tue, 7 Oct 2008 07:02:45 -0700

David Patri, formerly of Split, is the new president of Ambiguous Clothing USA.

David founded Split Clothing in 1988 and later introduced the Split Girl line in 1999.

Frank Delgadillo, the founder and president of Ambiguous, recently left the company to start a new brand, Comune.

Below, is some information about the plans for Ambiguous going forward that I pulled from a press release David sent me. That is followed by a Q & A I did with David via email.

The plan
Patri said he plans to re-launch the Ambiguous clothing line for Fall 2009. The company is securing a new building, staff and team riders in Southern California and in Biarritz, France under the name of Life Distribution.

Growing Ambiguous internationally is a key priority.

JF Cahu and Christophe Chabaud will lead the European headquarters of Life Distribution. JF and Christophe headed Split Europe, with JF as President and Christophe leading sales and marketing.

Patri said the Ambiguous team has built a tremendous legacy of creativity in the market. The focus on street culture and art will continue to be an important component of the line. "We want to continue this legacy and create a line that is unique and forward as well as offer solid, consistent sellers," Patri said in the release. "Collaborating with photographers and artists is key to keeping it fresh and on point. I am committed to throwing off the limitations that have been put on the brand in the past."

Currently Ambiguous is still under Rays Apparel in Irvine. As of November, Life Distribution will take over the brand. The new line launch for Fall '09 will be at international trade shows Pool, Agenda for the US and BBB, The Bright, Ispo and Who's Next for Europe in January.

The new Ambiguous will be offering a special artist and photography series of T-shirts called "4A", which stands for "Ambiguous Addicted Artists Association" for Spring/Summer '09 that focus on the creativity and diversity of the brand.
 Q & A with David Patri

Is Life Distribution the new owner of Ambiguous? I'm not sure what is the business structure for Ambiguous.

Yes - Life Distribution US and Europe and Rays Manufacturing (not Rays Apparel) own it together as "Life Distribution."

Will Ambiguous have a spring 09 line?

We are offering a special high-end T-shirt line that features artists and photographers from around the world called 4A as mentioned in the press release. We will have some basic tees as well along with some carryover cut and sew pieces. We are hoping we can supply our loyal retailers with enough product to maintain the Ambiguous buildouts and sections. There simply is not enough time for me to react fast enough to get new salesmen out on the road to sell Spring 09. We will be launching Fall 09 with a full line and build momentum from there.

Up until now, were you still involved with Split? Will you be involved with Split going forward?

I still have my interest ownership in Split but have not been involved with the brand directly since 2005.

Will Ray's Apparel be involved with Ambiguous at all?
No.

What attracted you to working with Ambiguous? Will you have an ownership position in the brand?

I have always admired the Ambiguous brand. I feel like the brand has always been “real” with it's approach to design and marketing. We see so much of the “smoke and mirrors” in our industry it is refreshing to see a brand that is honest about who they are and who is the target market. This appeals to me and how I approach branding and design.

I will have an ownership in Life Distribution.

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.

Mikke and Todd on 20 years of ZJ Boarding

Sun, 5 Oct 2008 18:28:29 -0700

Todd Roberts and Mikke Pierson recently celebrated the 20 year anniversary of ZJ Boarding House with a party for the community in Santa Monica.

Since many partnerships and businesses don’t last that long, I asked Todd and Mikke what has kept them going.

Todd and Mikke hope to throw another party in December to thank their vendors and the rest of the industry.

Mikke Pierson

What are the top two or three business lessons you have learned over the past 20 years?

Communication. This very over used word has been very important to our business and our partnership. Learning how to communicate with our customers, our employees, our vendors and between ourselves has proven to be a huge task in business and in our lives in general. And communicating well is even more difficult and takes a greater commitment. One of the keys to good communication is that it’s never static…and you are never done with it. We build in systems to make sure we all keep communicating what we all need to share. It’s very important to us and we talk about it constantly. Oh, and it’s important to know that good communication is a learned skill.

Passion for the lifestyle. Todd and I really care about the surf*skate*snow lifestyle. We are participants and so are our employees. This had lead us to try and conduct our business with a great deal of care and honestly in what we do. We truly want to carry the best products and we really do want our employees to give the best product knowledge and customer service possible so that our customers can enjoy the sports and the life style the way Todd and I do. We try and develop our same ideals and goals with our staff, many of whom we are proud to help move on into the industry.

Keep being a student of what we do. Todd and I learn every day from our staff, our vendors and our customers. For the last 20 years we have tried not to think that we know what we’re doing all the time, but rather we view our business as an evolving entity. We are constantly learning new business skills, meeting new people, being exposed to new products and styles. We share this philosophy with our staff and as a group we are always trying to improve and grow what we do.

What was the biggest challenge, and how did you guys overcome it?

Why do I have a feeling we might be facing one our greatest challenges right now! It’s not just a challenging and changing economy that can make business difficult, but rather having the energy and passion to keep growing as people and a business. We can never rest on what we accomplished yesterday. Every new challenge needs to invigorate us to meet the challenge, and not just survive, but eventually flourish.

Whether it’s the economy, a new vendor store up the street, massive discounting on eBay. … or whatever, I think it’s important to view all challenges as opportunities; opportunities to gain knowledge, to figure out a strategy that works or to make decisions that make sense for our business, our customers, our vendors and mostly ourselves.

Do you think you will be operating the same business 20 years from now?

That is a fantastic question I wish I knew the answer to! More important than whether I’ll be there, is that I’d like ZJ Boarding House to be there. I’d be 68 years old in 20 years and the thought of a crazy old coot like me telling kids what’s cool is a little disturbing to me! But still I take most of my stoke and pride at work from the lives of our staff and customers that Todd and I have touched. We have become an important part in the lives of our neighborhood and our staff. I really feel we have saved and changed lives for the better. And for that I feel like a better person and I would love to see that continue. I love ZJ Boarding House and I really love what I do. Not sure I could handle that much tequila though at the next 20 year party!

Any secrets to maintaining a partnership for that long?

Well as long as Todd listens to me, everything will be fine! Though seriously, our friendship and business relationship has been truly remarkable. And I think that any secrets we have involve our communication and our passion for what we do. Ultimately I feel very humbled and honored to be friends with and have worked with Todd all of these years. I would never have dreamed 20 years ago that we could be a part of something so special. So I guess the secret is in the intention with Todd and I. And our intention has always been to run our business and our friendship with honestly and honor.

Todd Roberts

What are the top two or three business lessons you have learned over the past 20 years?

The first lesson in business was taught to me by my father when I was 13 years old! Work hard first then play hard after...

He taught me early on what it was to make a buck and to take pride in what I do.

The lesson was and still is that the good things in my life are earned. Love, friendship, respect, trust and even fun and leisure are far more enjoyable when earned.

To this day, everything that I have worked for has been far more gratifying than things that were gifted or fell in my lap!

I don't feel like MIkke and I would have survived this long if we didn't have a parallel work ethic and passion for board sports.

Mikke is a hardworking guy who takes pride in this same mantra, “Work hard, play hard.”

Take risks, believe in your vision, be patient and be willing to sacrifice some blood, sweat and tears!

Stay close to your Board! Get out of the office, shop or warehouse and and go surf, skate or ride. Get out there with your crew and remember why you're in this industry.

Go bond with your kids, your staff, your friends and customers. Love what you do or don't do it.

What was the biggest challenge, and how did you guys overcome it?

Mikke said it very well, all of our major challenges have been and always will be opportunities.

For me personally though it was learning to accept that surfing, skating and snowboarding were all becoming big business.

As our culture and lifestyle became more main stream and big business - outside (non-endemic) money and influence has perverted parts of our industry into a demon I don't relate to.

Don't get me wrong, I still love this business, our roots and the tribe but it was a bit more enjoyable back when we didn't have to strategize our next move based on the big guns last quarter’s performance!

We spent more energy figuring out how to gather and celebrate our culture without the thought of how it would affect our bottom line or a balance sheet.

So, yes, I get the importance of all these tools, but I say put as much energy in the water as you would the office is all. Keep it authentic... You know who you are!

Do you think you will be operating the same business 20 years from now?

It's my hope that in 20 years I'll be surfing with my wife and future kids and getting the same stoke from sharing all that I love about surfing with them.

I'm sure by then that Mikke and I will be more hands off but still very connected to this industry. I'll only be 64 so I plan on loving the dream until the end.

Any secrets to maintaining a partnership for that long?

I wish it were as easy as a secret but I think Mikke and I are pretty lucky.

I feel blessed and very fortunate to have Mikke Pierson in my life. He's been an inspiration, a mentor and one of the best friends I could dream of.

Before we were in business together we just clicked as friends and we had the same lust for life, boards and the dream of making a living sharing the lifestyle we love.

I'm really proud of the business that we've built. We have shared so much of what we do with the local community and we give back everyday. We set the bar pretty high and it feels unreal to get up every morning knowing that I get to join our extended ZJ family for another day of sharing the passion. I really love ZJ Boarding House and what we represent and that feels great!
 

© Shop-Eat-Surf, LLC, 2008. All rights reserved.