Slowing growth, or a decline in year over year sales if that’s what your company is experiencing, was inevitable in skateboarding. Sure, we would rather it didn’t happen. But since we all knew it was going to happen, it might as well be sooner rather than later so it’s less painful. What I didn’t see […]
Hype, Technology And Trade Shows; Not Enough of Some, too Much of the Other. Read More »
“Now, this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” Overall, Vegas showed signs of being the end of the beginning of the snowboard industry’s consolidation process. Which is convenient, since I’ve always wanted to use that quote. The first person who identifies
The End of the Beginning; Observations from Glitter Gulch Read More »
You might have thought I could have gotten around to this before now, but there were no more SnowBiz issues after Vegas, and I kind of forgot about this for a while. Sorry. As we’ve watched snowboarding evolve, we’ve noticed how closely products of different brands resemble each other. Differentiation is based largely on marketing and making
Three Business Models That Might Work; Ideas From Vegas Read More »
Following Vegas, in the last issue for the season of TransWorld Snowboarding Business, I wrote about trade shows and the issues we have with them. To make a long article short, I basically said, “We’re screwed!” Lot of people agreed with that, which was hardly a surprise. But I was bothered all spring and into early summer
Trade Shows Again, Kind of Read More »
The box on this page contains, as most of you are no doubt painfully aware, this year’s trade show schedule. Pretty intimidating. But of course it doesn’t include any key account presentations suppliers might have to make. Or regional shows. Or shoe shows, or bike shows, or toy shows or whatever other shows some suppliers and retailers might need
Well, At Least It Can’t Be Any Worse Next Year; The Trade Show Schedule Read More »
Lousy time for a deadline. What am I going to say about ASR that seems relevant when what’s left of the World Trade Center towers is still burning? The most talked about issue at ASR seemed to be conjecture about what was holding up the girls’ low riser pants, and it suddenly doesn’t seem so compelling.
Another ASR. Anything to Learn Read More »
It feels to me like more trade shows are being better produced at exactly the time when we don’t need them in quite the same way we use to. Or maybe there’s the same number of trade shows, but we don’t feel the need to go to as many. Or maybe retailers, who don’t make their living
Can’t Live With Them, Can’t Live Without Them; Trade Shows, That Is Read More »
Okay, what was I doing at the Ski Industry Summit (formerly known as Ski Week) and why am I writing about it for Snow Biz? Anybody got a problem with some early season turns in Vail when there’s hardly anybody here? Didn’t think so. Also, there was an open bar each night. But aside from the
I Think I See a Plan. News From the Ski Industry Summit Read More »
This article sort of took shape the Monday the show ended. In the first place, I was flying back to Seattle on an Alaska Airlines MD80, which didn’t exactly put me in a positive frame of mind. Second, thanks to the ticket to the Sunday evening Gallas party Jeff Cutler gave me, I was suffering from the
Thoughts From the Action Shoe Retailer Show; Opps- Did I Get That Wrong? Read More »
I spent three days walking and talking. I suffered through the usual distraction and traffic jam at the Reef booth (why is it that no matter which way you try and go, you end up there?). In no particular order, I noted the following things: No major new products Snowboarders trying to do skate tricks in
What I Learned at ASR: Products, Movies, Cooperation, Culture and Hype Read More »