Swim update from Reef, LSpace, Puma, Rampage

Tandi South and Lindy Williams of Reef

The cooler Southern California summer presented swimwear companies with an additional challenge this year. Shop-eat-surf caught up with a few brands at ASR in San Diego to see if they were impacted and what they have in store for spring 2011.

Reef Swim

For Spring 2011, Reef is going with jungle themes, and is adorning pieces with beads, metallics, grading details and tribal prints.




The company is also introducing new silhouettes, including a sports bra that ties in the back and skimpier brief bottoms.

Reef swimReef Swim Vice President and National Sales Manager Tandi South said the new styles have received good feedback at the trade show in Miami, where Reef set up at a hotel penthouse rather than a booth at the convention center.

The company picked up a few new accounts, but South didn’t want to jinx anything by getting into the details.

“We have some very exciting new prospects in the works,” she said.

She did reveal that the company recently picked up a new account, Maui Clothing Company, in Hawaii.

South said she expects the majority of spring orders to come in within the next few weeks.

“We are projecting some nice growth,” she said adding that buyers are more eager to shop comparing to last year.

On page 2: Reef’s marketing, lower price points

 


 

To help with the growth, Reef is sticking to proven methods of marketing – ads in magazine swimsuit issues, social media and in-store advertising. The company is also bringing back a window contest for retailers, which was a big success last year.

Williams said a few dresses and swimsuits sold out in a weekend after being featured in the window contest.

Reef swimAlso new this year – lower price points.  Last year, a Reef swimsuit averaged more than $80. The brand’s swimsuits will now retail from $58 to high-$70.

“We want to be more competitive with our pricing structure,” South said.

The change is a response to the tough economy as well as competition from fast fashion retailers, although Reef seems to be positioned better to deal with the fast retailers than some other brands in the action sports industry.

With a factory located close to the company offices, Reef is able to respond to trends quickly by identifying bestsellers early on in the season and making sure they are always in stock. Reef Swim is licensed to Raj Manufacturing in Tustin, Calif.

“That’s probably our most competitive edge,” South said. “When competitors try to get rid of stuff that doesn’t sell, we are selling our bestsellers.”

Although some girls still shop at discount stores, Reef aims to emphasize the quality of its cuts, construction and materials.

“There are some things like shoes, bags, bikinis where you just can’t skimp on quality,” said Director of Girls Marketing Lindy Williams.

Overall, Reef business is better this year comparing to last, but there is still work to be done.

“There’s still a lot of uncertainty out there,” South said. “There’s never a time to relax and take anything for granted.”

On page 3: L*Space, Puma, Rampage

 


 

L*Space

ToteFor spring 2011, L*Space is offering sailor chic, ikat and ethnic prints, reversibles, geometrics and new colors such as gray and kelly green.

The company teamed up with African Wildlife Foundation to create a few animal prints and donate money for preservation of tigers and lions.

L*Space is also introducing a novelty group at a higher price point of about $180 per set as well as a line of beach totes.

Like any other company, L*Space has seen a change in accounts, but while some backed off, others placed additional orders.

“In the long run, it’s evened out,” said L*Space Sales Manager Debby Martin, adding that sales are up compared to last year.

“Knock on wood, we’ve been very fortunate,” she said. “We’ve been holding our place in the market even though it’s been tough.”

On the marketing front, L*Space credits its press photos and social media efforts with boosting sales.

bikininsL*Space is very active on Facebook, posting updates, contests, giveaways and collecting feedback. Twitter and blogging are also huge for the company.

“Anybody that doesn’t understand it, doesn’t use it, is missing out,” Founder Monica Wise said.

One Facebook sample sale posting resulted in a sale of 900 pieces in two hours.

Martin said the web brings the company closer to its customers and helps create an L*Space community, bringing brand awareness and understanding of the value of L*Space products.

“I think that girls, shoppers want to be a part of something nowadays,” Martin said. “Girl shoppers can become very loyal very quickly.”

Overall, retailers seem to be in a better place this season.

“We think the buyers are getting more optimistic,” Martin said.

Puma, Rampage

Puma is entering its second year as a swimwear brand with a larger collection of one pieces, bikinis and tankinis featuring lots of color blocking. New this year is the addition of enamel hardware with a Puma logo on the swimsuits.

PumaSales Representative Traci O’Neill said Puma enjoyed a successful launch a year ago and hasn’t had to make a lot of market adjustments.

Puma Swim is licensed to Blue Water Design Group, a division of Apparel Ventures Inc., which also makes Trina Turk, ABS, SOLO and Rampage.

O’Neill said she’s seeing increased interest in Rampage swimwear, which had a tough year last year and has since dropped its price points. ABS has also dropped prices on its one piece suits, which appear to be popular for Spring 2011.

Another popular one piece comes from SOLO. O’Neill said the sizzle suit has been selling very well nationwide.

She said overall buyers are not holding back as much as a year ago, but they’re still not ordering as much as in the past and are monitoring the weather. She said her company picked up a few international accounts in Canada and Mexico during a trade show in Miami and a few more at ASR in San Diego.

 

 

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