The Ryde Blog

If you’re in the Laguna Beach area on Saturday July 19th you should definitely make your way over to our friend Isaac’s gallery opening. The place will be rockin’ from 7-11 in the PM. Apparently all the cool kids will be there. Here’s the pertinent info: 210 N. Coast Highway Laguna Beach 92651 — Tosti Studios — On the PCH just north of Broadway. (Just up from the old Diedrich Coffee — in the Pink/Salmon colored building) 

Here’s a shot of The Ryde’s newest labor force in action!

Here’s an interview that we did a little while back with Nick Cocores, buyer for Thalia St. Surf Shop in Laguna Beach, CA. If you haven’t been to their shop then… you can’t be friends with me. Though small, it’s one of the best shops around and they have an incredible knack at buying some of the best brands in surfing. Read on:

The Ryde: How long have you been buying surfing apparel?

Nick Cocores: I’ve been in the industry since 1996, So, about 12 years and I’ve had a good time doing it. I’ve seen a lot of changes.

What shop do you buy for?

I buy for Thalia Street Surf Shop in Laguna Beach, California.

How did you fist get started in the surf industry?

My family purchased the shop in 1994 and we originally sold licensed Toes On The Nose products. We ran that for, I don’t know, maybe four or five years then we changed the name to Thalia Street Surf Shop. Since then we’ve been running with that. That’s how I got the foot in the door.

Do you surf? If so where and what do you ride?

Yes I do. I ride all kinds of boards. It just depends on the waves. For small waves, just a longboard. I’ve been riding a lot of fishes and quads lately. I just picked up a couple Simmons fishes from The Swift Movement, so I’m going to be surfing with those.

Give me your version of the progression of surfing apparel?

We’ve always had a little bit of a different perspective of it. The progression is really mainstream now. You have your Tilly’s or your PacSun’s and you know, your bigger surf shops that have really grown and flooded the market with all of the apparel. It’s opened the door to a lot of other areas. It’s good! There are so many people surfing and there’s a lot of neat, niche markets out there and that’s kind of what we’ve tapped into. It’s opened the doors for a lot of different things to happen.

Is there a certain brand that pretty much defines surfing apparel to you?

Well, there are a couple of brands that kind of started us in our direction. They’re old brands that are kind of not around anymore but just under different names like a clothing company called Free. They had a few name changes, but when that first came out that really put us in the direction that we wanted to move forward with. So, smaller independent companies. Now they’re doing Ando And Friends. That’s the kind of a company that got us going in our direction.

In the evolution of surfing apparel there have been a lot of changes. Where do you see it going and what was the worst stage it ever had? The best?

The worst stage it ever had? Well I guess it wasn’t a bad stage but, it was the late 90’s when everything was really brand oriented. It was all about logos and brands. Lables everywhere. So while that was happening we took the other side of it getting on board with Free, where our friend Andy was doing a lot of cool, simple graphics that really just hit us a lot in our age group. For them surfing wasn’t all about the logo. People went more in depth with the drawings that related to the feelings they had when they surfed. It was organic like that.

Do you feel like, as far as progress goes that the Tilly’s and the Pacsun’s have realized that or are they still kind of banking on the logo based art?

They’re trying to tap into all markets. Definitely. I mean, this has been going on now for eight years as far as the change goes. Logos are still an important part, but yeah, they’re a whole other customer and a whole other demographic. They’re definitely tapping into that.

So, going along with that…. A lot of trends start at the coast and work there way in. Do you feel like they’re taking notice because the Midwesterner now doesn’t care as much about the logo as he once did and now it’s more about artwork? Or do you think they’re still a little behind on that side?

I wouldn’t necessarily say they were behind. Everyone is catching up. Right now it seems like everyone is kind of seeing the artwork and the progression of where it’s going and moving in on it. So it’s next, but everyone wants the stuff that we’ve been doing for like the last ten years.

The best?

The best stage was the sixties and seventies as far as they didn’t even know what they were doing. Surfers just wanted to be different with their plain white tees and jeans, real simple, clean and plain. And there’s still people out there like that. That was probably the best stage of surfing apparel. Now with all of the trends and stuff going on it’s hard to say. Right now people are more accepting to buying things that aren’t Quik, Volcom, Hurley… all the mainstream stuff. That was harder to sell in the late nineties. Now it’s more accepted. So, right now I think it’s at a really good stage. There are a lot of doors open for people to do cool things. It doesn’t have to be going with the main corporate brands to be successful.

Artwork or concept? Do you think that one is more important than the other in a good design? Why?

It’s a balance between everything. Good artwork is useless if you can’t market it and sell it. So it’s the combination of both. You have to have good artwork to have a good concept. You’ve got to have a good team and then they will come together, but if definitely takes both.

What surfing apparel brand seems to be the most progressive… taking it to the next level?

It’s kind of tough for us because some of the brands aren’t really surfing apparel brands that we like the most. Some of its street wear, some of it’s considered skate. Ando and Friends are doing a pretty good job. But there’s a couple of other, newer companies that have a line that caters more towards the surfing aspect that we really like. I’d say Brown Sound is a company that’s doing really well for the season right now. That’s the one that mostly comes to mind.

What surfing apparel brand is the most unique?

I’m going back to Brown Sound. They have a really good line right now. It’s been the most unique. Modern Amusement is still doing their deal. Expensive, high-end. Really nice fabrics. There’s a company called Short Straw that’s doing boardshorts from Australia and they have a pretty good take on it. They have really good cuts and patterns.

What is your favorite surfing apparel brand?

I don’t really have one. There’s a grip of them. Our own shop tee Program 2 is getting pretty dialed in. Ando and Friends is a pretty key player for us and Brown Sound is a key player. Every couple of seasons we get a company called Yellow Rat. They do some neat stuff. Vans has been pretty supportive of us with shoes. The line of Sprout and Seedling shirts have consistently been doing good for us for a couple years now. There are a lot good artists involved with them and they bring in a lot of business.

What surfing apparel brand seems to be crushing it right now?

For us, we’re tuned into the small, independent so not any one brand is crushing it. They’re all equally doing their own thing on their own page and no one’s really blowing up in the spotlight right now.

How about in the Surfing Apparel industry as a whole? Because there are so many trends now, do you find that no one is really stoked about one particular brand like Volcom or Quik but they’re more interested in the designs that are being put out?

There’s a huge product mix in our shop even though it’s really small and there’s a lot of small brands. There’s just so many of them that’s it’s not like any one brand is taking over in the shop. It’s because of the artists and the companies together. At the end of the day you sell a little bit of everything.

Do you know what the first surfing apparel brand was?

No. That’s a hard question. I don’t. In the fifties there were surfers so it’s hard to say what the first surfing apparel brand was.

Does anyone know what the first surfing apparel brand was?!

Nah, I would say somebody knows! Somebody was out there either Hawaii, California, even Australia. Someone was doing something.

What sets Surfing apparel apart from other industries?

Just not being corporate. Having the flexibility in the smaller companies to put whatever they want on the shirts even if it doesn’t sell. Having fun with it. I think that’s what separates them.

Where is Surf apparel going from a design standpoint?

Surfing apparel is going in a really good direction. There’s been a lot of seventies influences going on for the past ten years. It’s slowly moving into the eighties but with a big twist on it. It’s not like eighties are coming back, but for sure there’s eighties influences. That kind of brings me back to two companies that are doing a big push with us. A company called Gonz out of L.A. and a company called WOR (The Wizards Of Radness) their kind of the future of where we’re taking the shop.

How much do team riders and pro athletes effect what your customers buy?

I’d say it actually affects a decent amount. Longboarding is back in it in a really good way, not like it was in the late nineties where it was kind of looked down upon. There’s some really good longboarders and some good stuff happening. You have people like Alex Knost, Robbie and a bunch of kids from our area that are considered pros and whenever they do things certain projects we end up selling those pretty well. But as far as opening up Surfer, we don’t deal with all the major brands. So like, what Slater and Bruce and Andy are wearing doesn’t’ really fit our market so I wouldn’t really be able to comment on it, but I’m sure it’s probably a big factor. The local, independent riders in our community and what they’re wearing and they’re riding for surfboards definitely helps sales.

What Surf Brand does the best job with marketing and why?

That’s hard for me to say because, like I said, we’re not really tapped into the whole mainstream marketing. For us, we do our marketing with some of our smaller brands. We have shop parties once a month. We have one coming up on the 19th with Gonz and WOR. Marketing is starting to do a lot for us. Most of the brands that we’re carrying you’re not going to open up most of the mags and see. I mean they’ll be some here and there but they’re not running huge campaigns. Marketing is definitely going to take us to the next stage for our little shop.

Do you sell online?

We do.

Does that account for a decent percentage for you sales?

It’s starting to. It’s a tough thing to do correctly. We’ve always had an online store and it’s always done pretty well… 10% to 15% of our sales probably. It’s just good marketing. People can see what we have and then come down and purchase it. We’re starting to make everything available now and we’re starting to take a stronger look at that, so hopefully in about a year we’ll see it going about 50/50.

Who’s your favorite surfer?

Um gosh? It’s kind of switched up. It used to be Joel. He surfs really smooth but there are so many kids out there doing a good job. Alex Knost is surfing really well. Rastovich. There’s a grip of them. I don’t just have one.

What’s your ideal vacation?

I love surfing, so a good surf trip. I’ve been doing a lot of riding motorcycles too, so maybe a little combo. Some trail riding and some good waves and having the family there too. That would be the ideal vacation.

To check out The Ryde’s Surfing Apparel Visit www.theryde.com. Peace dogg. Oh, and check out Thalia St. You’ll be stoked!

If you haven’t noticed we’ve moved! Well, at least the Daily InsaniTee has. Feel free to poke around our blog and check all of the news, stories, articles and interviews or make your way over to insanitee.theryde.com if you want to see the daily steal from The Ryde’s Daily InsaniTee. Now get out you worthless, loitering punks!

For more surfing apparel from The Ryde you can head over to www.theryde.com.

In our attempt to shed some light on the History of Surfing Apparel we recently connected with Christine Ayala, buyer for Swell.com. Here’s her take on it:

The Ryde: How long have you been buying surfing apparel?

Christine Ayala: 5 years as a senior buyer and 4 as an assistant.

What shop do you buy for?

Swell

How did you first get started in the surf industry?

Working sales at Channel Islands Surfboards.

Do you surf? If so where and what do you ride?

Yes. Grew up surfing in Santa Barbara and therefore ride Merrick shortboards. More specifically I ride an MBM and a Flyer. I currently live in San Clemente and try to surf Lowers as much as possible or the local beach breaks.

Give me your version of the progression of surfing apparel?

I don’t know if I would call it progression or more of cyclical rebirth. It seems to be a revolving cycle of recreating past trends in new ways. Or current silhouettes inspired by certain past eras.

Is there a certain brand that pretty much defines surfing apparel to you?

Not necessarily. I think the general consumer associates certain brands with the image of surfing. The top brands such as; Quik, Billabong, O’Neill, and Volcom. They also have the strongest lines as far as depth in each category and can therefore showcase a surf apparel line in its entirety. But I think a lot of the newer and smaller brands are pushing the fashion element and adding some spark to the industry.

In the evolution of surfing apparel there have been a lot of changes. Where do you see it going and what was the worst stage it ever had? The best?

Ha. The worst, early nineties when shops were entirely pastel: turquoise, pink and yellow. Which ironically is resurfacing and where it is headed again…..

Artwork or concept? Do you think that one is more important than the other in a good design? Why?

Artwork is more relevant to items that are defined by graphics such as tees and fleece. Concept is entirely important for differentiating staples such as sweaters and jackets. You can only create so many striped crewneck sweaters and hooded parkas without the category becoming stale. Therefore, newer updated silhouettes play key roles in keeping these categories alive.

What surfing apparel brand seems to be the most progressive… taking it to the next level?
This is a difficult question to answer. I think each brand has its strength and lead the market in certain areas. For example RVCA started and pushed the tee categories to new levels and have been leading the market. Billabong pushes the market with their boardshort designs and no one has been able to surpass Reef in the sandal arena.

What surfing apparel brand is the most unique?

None. They all have elements of overlap.

What is your favorite surfing apparel brand?

This would be the same answer as progression. I think RVCA does a great job with tees. Billabong and Quik do a great job with Boardshorts. Brixton has come on the scene and pushed the headwear and accessories market.

What surfing apparel brand seems to be crushing it right now?

Not to sound ambiguous once again, but it depends on how you measure it. Obviously billabong and Quik are leading the market in sales, but they are able to do so by sheer volume and depth of their lines. Smaller brands can’t compete because they are not able to produce the depth in a line that can sustain equal sales.

Do you know what the first surfing apparel brand was?

The first…hmmm. Good question. My GUESSES (and really these are complete stabs) are Lightning Bolt, Hang Ten, Bear, or OP???

Does anyone know what the first surfing apparel brand was?!

Probably Tom Adler but he left already for the day and I can’t ask him.

What sets Surfing apparel apart from other industries?

It’s a lifestyle as well. As long as surfers promote a healthy fun lifestyle then it will be set apart.

Where is Surf apparel going from a design standpoint?

Hopefully somewhere interesting….

How much do team riders / pro athlete’s effect what your customers decides to buy?

Until recently I thought it played a pivotal role. But after reviewing some surveys here at swell there are a lot of consumers out there that have no idea who Kelly Slater or Andy Irons even are! Believe me I am still digesting this. I grew up in southern California and thought everyone knew how they were. I think their signature boardshorts and so forth sell well because they are marketed so well and not necessarily because of the team rider…

What surf brand does the best job with marketing and why?

Hmmm. Tough question. As cheesy as this may be the only brand that comes to mind that has had the same consistent, iconic brand image through their marketing is Reef. EVERYONE knows who the Reef girls are….

Do you sell online?

Yes

Does that account for a decent percentage for you sales?

All of it – were exclusively an online retailer

Who’s your favorite surfer?

Hmm. Dane Reynolds and The Gudauskas Brothers – all of them in an equal tie. Also, Kelly because no one has come close to accomplishing what he has.

What’s your ideal vacation?

Circumnavigate the globe for a year, maybe two….with Eric and few surfboards.

A few weeks back we were sitting around the office talking about surfing apparel and it’s roots and we realized that we couldn’t really find a definitive history on the type of clothing that we love so much: surf clothing. There is plenty written on the history of surf and the lifestyle that accompanies it, but on the subject of apparel, the history books are dry. On the interweb most of the information to be found was too brand specific and didn’t give an over-all view of surfing apparel. When we started talking to our friends and co-workers in the industry we found that opinions varied. So we decided to make a go of it ourselves.

We called on some of our friends who happen to be buyers, shop owners, and designers from some of the premier surfing brands and we started compiling their thoughts on the subject. We once again found that opinions vary, but all in all they had some pretty interesting things to say. In the weeks to come we’ll be posting various interviews and articles written in an attempt to educate ourselves and hopefully to stoke you out!

Surfing has a rich history and the sometimes outrageous and always radical clothing that has helped define that culture is something that we think is worth talking about.