ASR Surfs Steady
Although traffic was light, business seemed to be a steady ride at the Action Sports Retailer Trade Expo, despite the continuing turbulent economic headwinds battering many retailers, said executives who exhibited at the show, held Sept. 4–6 at the San Diego Convention Center.
“It was better than expected,” said Paul Naude, president of Irvine, Calif.–based surf brand Billabong USA. “Traffic was steady. As an industry, we’ve sidestepped a lot of macroeconomic issues.”
Business also was reported to be good at Agenda, the streetwear and fashion trade show held Sept. 4–6 at the nearby San Diego Concourse auditorium. During the same weekend, ASR debuted Virtue, a trade event devoted to the burgeoning sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) at San Diego’s Hard Rock Hotel.
Many of the 40 vendors at Virtue reported poor business at the new trade event. ASR Group Show Director Andy Tompkins did not confirm whether there was going to be another Virtue show. “The concept is strong,” Tompkins said. “There may be another opportunity to do it again.”
The 27-year-old ASR show might have dodged the worst part of this year’s economic slowdown, but it could not shrug it off entirely. Attendance and exhibitors decreased slightly, according to Tompkins. More than 400 companies showed 675 brands at the most recent ASR, a decrease from the more than 435 companies that exhibited last September.
An estimated 18,000 attendees browsed through the recent ASR, down from the 20,000 attendees who turned out last September. According to Tompkins, the lighter attendance was a result of vendors and retailers sending smaller delegations to the show. Lighter attendance also could be credited to the trade event’s new schedule.
For this show, ASR’s business was mostly scheduled on weekdays. The three-day show opened on a Thursday, rather than Friday. The date shift meant more business-focused attendees rather than the hard-partying crowd the show has attracted in the past, Tompkins noted.
“We had less kids at the show,” he said. “That’s a healthy thing for ASR.”
Quiksilver reported flat retail traffic in its booth, which fielded mostly domestic accounts. (Much of the Huntington Beach, Calif.–based company’s overseas business is handled in foreign offices.) Sales growth was estimated to grow in the single-digit percentages, according to Dave Rosenberger, vice president of sales for Quiksilver young men’s.
For many ASR vendors, business was bolstered by a larger presence of overseas retailers attracted by the weak dollar, according to Niels Juul, chief executive of Los Angeles–headquartered brand Hot Tuna International. He estimated half of his ASR business came from retailers from Asia and Europe, and his business increased 30 percent compared with last September’s show.
Domestic surf and skate retailing also seems to be doing relatively well despite a poor economy, according to Action Watch, a market-research company measuring the financial health of surf and skate specialty shops. The Loma Linda, Calif.–based company said the average business for the 180 stores measured by its index declined a mere 0.1 percent in the first seven months of 2008, compared with the first seven months of the previous year. March 2008 sales for the market actually were robust, increasing 8.9 percent, according to Action Watch co-founder Cary Allington.
Yet retail is still rough despite calm appearances, said Dave Hollander, president of Becker Surfboards Inc., which runs a chain of six boutiques headquartered in Hermosa Beach, Calif.
“There are two sides to the show,” Hollander said. “The manufacturers have been saying this is just a downturn, but retailers look like deer dazed in car headlights.” Hollander cut his ASR budget by 15 percent so it could align with his stores’ leaner inventory.Retailers browsing the show included specialty chains Active, Jack’s Surfboards, Killer Dana, Tilly’s, Pacific Sunwear and Sun Diego. Department stores Macy’s, Dillard’s and Nordstrom also sent buying delegations.
Macy’s West Menswear Fashion Director Durand Guion estimated his buying delegation made orders at only 10 percent to 25 percent of their meetings. Much of the trip was meant for research, and Guion was intrigued by what he saw at the show. “[Action sports] is a growing business for us,” he said. “Boardshorts colors and [this category’s] development have been mind-blowing,” he said. “I’m also excited about mesh tank tops.”
Fashion-forward styles might have been popular for surf and skate a few seasons ago, but this season, the trends for men’s and boys’ styles seemed to be going back to basics. “It’s boardshorts, boardshorts, boardshorts,” said Joshua Katz, a spokesperson for Quiksilver. “It’s a marquee category for us.”
Boardshorts are so dominant that Quiksilver, based in Huntington Beach, and O’Neill, based in Irvine, showed walk shorts inspired by the shape and feel of boardshorts.
Quiksilver was also showing boardshorts inspired by the company’s 1970s and 1980s styles. In addition, boardshorts constructed out of performance fabric, such as Hurley International’s Phantom, were prominent.
Virtue debut
Mixed martial arts is considered to be a sport with a rebellious edge. It combines boxing, wrestling, martial arts and street fighting. Millions watch MMA matches, often on pay-per-view. California clothing labels such as Tapout have gained a cult following by making clothes associated with MMA. Virtue, ASR’s new experiment with MMA fashions, was held at the Hard Rock Hotel, located across the street from the convention center.
Exhibitor Karin Wittman of Phoenix-based Grudge Fight Wear said buyers did not make the trip to see the new show. “If you go over there, it’s party central. If you go here, it’s a morgue,” she said. “It was not marketed as well as it could have been.”
New York–based tattoo-inspired fashion label Yellowman debuted its MMA line YMX at the show. Roger Mui, director of Yellowman’s Los Angeles boutique, said he hoped there would be more Virtue shows. “It’s a small market, but it’s exploding. You have to get in early to carve a niche,” Mui said.
Agenda focuses on skate, shoes
Lake Forest, Calif.–based skate brand Sole Technology Inc. exhibited at Agenda for the first time during the trade show’s Sept 4–6 run.
Sole Technology was one of several skate brands helping Agenda secure stronger representation in the skate market for its recent run at the San Diego Concourse auditorium.
Agenda President Aaron Levant said the emphasis on skate was part of his plan.
“We’ve tapped out the street-fashion market,” said Levant, who founded Agenda in 2003. “We’re going after the core skate market.”
Popular skate footwear brands Puma, Reebok, Adidas, Gravis, New Balance and PF Flyers also exhibited at Agenda. They helped attract more skate and surf retailers to the event, according to Levant and other exhibitors.
Footwear shop Carve and Val Surf reportedly browsed Agenda as well as larger specialty retailers Zumiez, Pacific Sunwear, Closet and Active. Department stores Macy’s and Nordstrom also shopped the show.
Exhibitor Ivan Arnold said he met new skate and surf attendees at his booth for fashion brand Tokidoki. “A lot of the entrenched core sports stores were looking for new brands,” he said. The show’s business exceeded his expectations. Arnold forecasted that he would take in $200,000 in orders.
Other reports from the show ranged from good to mixed. Executives at Los Angeles–based Grn Apple Tree forecasted the label would double its sales compared with Agenda show sales in September 2007. Jon Kim, a sales representative for Los Angeles–based label Freshjive, said the weak economy strained some business. “It’s been a decent show,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of new accounts. But a lot of people are waiting for the last minute to write orders.”
Levant said 110 brands exhibited at the show, which still has a strong streetwear appeal. Snowboard label Grenade chose Agenda to debut its first non-snow line of clothing because of the show’s base in streetwear, said Brian Danielson, vice president of sales for the Portland, Ore.–based snow line. It was founded by Olympic medalist Danny Kass, who won silver medals in snowboarding competitions at the 2002 and 2006 Winter Olympics.
Levant said he plans to keep the biannual Agenda show at the present size, but his organization is on the move. A New York Agenda show will debut in July 2009. The company also hopes to become one of the dominant players in San Diego’s fashion trade show scene. “We’re not a satellite show anymore,” Levant said. “It will be just as important for buyers to go to Agenda as ASR.”
