Category: Humanitarian

Kelly Slater, 11-Time World Surf Champion, Adds More to His Sustainability Initiatives with Majority Stake Investment in Firewire

John-and-Kelly-2200

Just off the heels of announcing the direction of his new, sustainable-driven apparel brand Outerknown, Kelly Slater, the 11-time Association of Surfing Professionals World Champion, has told Slab Magazine, his intentions for buying a majority stake in Firewire, the surfboard brand. Firewire is one of the few surfboard brands in the industry that have been […]

Outdoor Retailer Trade Show Features Refreshing Themes Including Urban and Modern Outdoorsman, Twists on Heritage, and Fashion Representing a New Kind of Buyer

TheNorthFace200

Story and Photo by Tom Wallace and Kathleen Gasperini Outdoor Retailer at the Salt Lake Palace, UT, is the premiere outdoor trade show in the U.S., which featured 1,036 exhibitors, and an estimated 22,000 attendees over the course of 4 days running from January 20-24, 2015. Key themes this winter included the usual technical outerwear […]

BREAD & BUTTER Plans Summer Tempelhof Trade Show with New Platforms, Reworked Concepts to Meet New Challenges in Streetwear, Denim, Urban Contemporary Fashion

bbbkh2001

The fashion trade show industry has been undergoing significant changes to meet with challenging economic conditions, changes in consumer spending habits, and the business of fashion as a whole. As more consumers shop online vs. brick ‘n mortar, utilize mcommerce, and engage a DIY lifestyle, so too has the concept of the traditional trade show […]

Lack of Women in the Outdoor Industry Isn’t It’s Only Problem, but OIWC and REI Have Partnered To Do Something About It

women_200

There was a lot of talk last week during the Outdoor Retailer Trade Show in Salt Lake City, January 20-24, 2015, regarding just who is the modern outdoors person? From Range magazine’s excellent presentation on the Modern Outdoors Woman, to the New Product TV area interviewing panelists on the Modern Outdoors person in general, to […]

Agenda Trade Show January 2015 Edition Provides Best Platform for Streetwear and Action Sports, Mix of Heritage and Fresh Twists, Achieving Business and Fun In Unique Style

AgendaHaze_200

Story and Photos by Kathleen Gasperini and Tom Wallace The Agenda Trade Show in Long Beach, CA, January 5-6, 2015, featured inspiring designs, brisk business, and a coming together of the best in action sports-inspired and streetwear fashion, footwear, accessories, and wearable technology. With an industrial theme made of a mix of barrels, pallets, and […]

4th Annual Agenda Emerge Powered by Group Y Highlights Innovation and Creative Brand-Building with Speakers Shepard Fariey, C.R. Steyck III, Mike Ness, Tinker Hatfield, and More

Agendaemergestage200

The 4th Annual Agenda Emerge powered by Group Y held in Long Beach, CA, January 6, 2015, was the biggest conference yet for the action sports and streetwear industries. With a capacity crowd of 825, it was clear that people were interested in hearing how innovation and creativity can produce the most amazing brands, bands, […]

Fashion Trade Show Round-up: Selvedge Run New Berlin Trade Show; Project Brings in Japanese Brands; Pitti Uomo’s Born in the USA

selvedge200

Fashion trade show season is underway, and after a successful launch at Agenda last week, here’s more of what to expect next in the realm of street, denim, urban contemporary, and youth lifestyles. Selvedge Run When Bread & Butter initially announced that it would be heading to Barcelona for the summer edition in 2015, Maria […]

Fast Retailing’s Uniqlo Posts 64% Profit Increase–Illustrates Differences in Fashion Brand Performance

A company logo is seen on the exterior of a UNIQLO store at Taikoo Li Sanlitun shopping centre in Beijing

In the wake of many teen retailers taking a beating, Fast Retailing Co., owners of the Japanese fast-fashion and technical brand, Uniqlo, announced an incredibly strong fiscal report today, January 8, 2015 with profits up 64% in the first quarter. Net income rose to 68.8 billion yen ($575 million) in the three months ended in […]

Teton Gravity Research Gets Strategic Investment from Lonely Planet

ttr200

Action sports media house Teton Gravity Research (TGR) has announced that Lonely Planet has taken a strategic stake in the brand that will allow TGR to expand significantly. The investment comes as TGR has doubled in size in recent years becoming one of the top media houses in the action sports and outdoor industries. Following […]

Kelly Slater’s Outerknown—Why This Brand Is So Important for Fashion Right Now

John-and-Kelly-2200

After ending a 23-year relationship with Quiksilver in April this year, Kelly Slater has moved on to create his own lifestyle fashion brand, Outerknown. As we’ve written about before, Outerknown is one of those highly anticipated new brands that’s changing the course fashion for many reasons. First, while surfing is obviously at the heart of […]