Sanuk Founder Jeff Kelley is exiting Sanuk, which is now owned by Deckers Brands, to pursue his next entrepreneurial opportunity.
Jeff founded Sanuk in the late 1990’s, and made his biggest splash with the Sidewalk Surfer, a closed-toe shoe that launched the hanging shoe market, a whole new category for the industry.
He and his partners sold Sanuk to Deckers in 2011 for $120 million in cash plus earn outs. The company has grown tremendously under Deckers, from approximately $43 million in revenue in 2010 to about $101 million in 2013.
Sanuk has a new and larger management team, a widened product assortment, and has moved to new branding, changing its tagline from “Smile, pass it on” to “Never uncomfortable.”
I spoke with Jeff this afternoon about why he is leaving. His contract with Deckers ended more than a year ago, he said, but he stayed on. However, he only went into the office a couple of days a week, and was not actively involved in branding anymore.
Anyone who knows Jeff knows he is a serial entrepreneur. He is invested in several companies, including a new venture that he is quite excited about. It’s a tea company that uses a “disruptive” technology. Tea of a Kind allows consumers to brew their own, fresh tea with a twist of a cap using a nitrogen-pressurized storage and delivery system. (I highly recommend watching the video on the company’s website that shows how it all works.)
“Sanuk was a million dollar play,” Jeff said. “This is a billion dollar play.”
Experienced beverage executives are involved, and Tea of Kind is already carried in Albertsons, Vons and Whole Foods. They are also talking with alcohol and beer companies to use the technology on other products.
“It’s super disruptive, and no preservatives are used,” he said. “It’s my goal to change the whole drink industry.”
Jeff is a partner in the company, and is handling all the branding, including packaging, and is working with Justin Heit of Libre Design on the project.
Jeff said there are plans to connect Tea of a Kind to action sports in the future.
While Jeff is sad to be leaving Sanuk, he said Sanuk has the best crew it has ever had there. He acknowledged it was a little hard to not be in complete control anymore because he is a “control freak.”
“While I feel like it’s my kid and I love the people, I’m never the guy who looks back,” he said. “I’m always thinking about the next thing. I love creating something new and bringing it to the market, and making something out of nothing. I’m sure you can hear in my voice how excited I am about (Tea of a Kind).”
Sanuk President Jake Brandman praised Jeff’s work with Sanuk.
“It was JK’s vision, creativity and passion that supported the brand’s success as a major player in our industry. That founding DNA will always be a fundamental part of the Sanuk culture,” Jake said. “JK’s energy will live on in our organization and continue to inspire our vision for the future. We wish him all the best as he embarks on the exciting opportunities that lie ahead.”
I asked Jeff if he was proud of what he created with Sanuk.
“I feel like the luckiest person in the world,” he said. “We built a great brand in the action sports community, I got to work with people who are super passionate about what they do, and most of us got paid pretty well considering we are not sitting in cubicles.
“It was a dream job,” he continued. “It was amazing to create something in my gravel driveway and grow it to the point that we sold it to Deckers for a boatload of money, and to know that can be done. And to know you can do it over and over again.”
