At Outdoor Retailer, I caught up with Andrew Sarnecki and Josh Sweeney of Hippy Tree. Their booth was tucked back away from the action sports section, near some climbing brands and a few aisles down from Sanuk. We talked to Andrew and Josh to see how things were going.
How’s the show?
This show is huge for us. This is our third time exhibiting at OR. We are not that active in the snow or skate industry. We focus on our passions, surfing and rock climbing. We call our marketing platform “Surf & Stone.” This is one of our bigger trade shows because of the presence of climbing and outdoor related accounts.
How is business?
We continue to grow every season. We are in over 500 retailers in 16 countries.
That’s a lot for a brand that started in a garage eight years ago.
In our mind that is not that many doors, but they are all top quality, core surf and outdoor shops. We put a lot of emphasis on maintaining a strong core account base.
You guys stand out here.
We are one of the few surf brands that targets and designs products for the outdoor sports enthusiast. How many surf companies make rock climbing chalk bags? We put a lot of time and effort into designing clothes that appeal to both surfers and climbers.
For example, all of our shorts and boardshorts have crotch gusset panels. Gusset panels are really important to climbers. They need to be confident that when they place their foot above their head their shorts aren’t going to rip.
What product categories are you focusing on?
We continue to expand our cut and sew offerings. We now utilize stretch fabrics in some of our boardshort styles and have been doing well with our recycled polyester boardshort made from recycled water bottles. We’re also incorporating spandex and stretch textiles into our pants and wovens. Adding a little bit of stretch enhances garment performance and makes it more comfortable to wear.
As for specific products, there are a few we are really excited about…
The first is the Kodiak Hoody. We took that classic outdoor sherpa style pullover and gave it a twist, by putting it on a traditional hoody template more often seen in the surf market. It’s a great style to put on after a morning surf session and is so comfortable you almost want to sleep in it.
Our stretch cotton twill Trail Pant has been well received. We offered a similar pant last season that flew off the shelves. Both surfers and climbers dig the pant because it’s flexible and durable enough to wear while climbing, but stylish enough to wear out at night.
We have also expanded our accessory and headwear division. My favorite is this new terry cloth trucker hat – simple but awesome.
(See photos of these products above in the slide show.)
How about your eco line?
Every T-shirt style is offered in at least one organic cotton colorway. We continue to use recycled and sustainable fabrics in boardshorts, headwear and accessories where applicable.
See Page 2 for a new HippyTree logo, more
What’s up with your logo? I am seeing a few in your booth.
We are known for our green tree logo, but we have introduced a newer logo that we call the HippyTree crest logo. The crest logo is a surfboard and a rock climbing axe making an “X.”
The logo resonates well with both our surf and outdoor customers. Some of our surf athletes have asked for crest logo stickers for their surfboards. The crest logo still incorporates our tree logo and, most importantly, the surfboard and axe icons communicate the brand DNA.
(See the logos in slide show, above.)
I’m also seeing some funny sayings.
PUT THAT ON YOUR MIRROR AND SMOKE IT
OUR TEES MAKE MORE SCENTS
YOUR CAR WILL LIKE OUR TEES
We developed a HippyTree air freshener in the shape of our tree logo. The sayings you see in our booth are to promote our air fresheners. So far the response has been incredible and everyone who passes our booth wants one. The air freshener is also a hangtag that will go on all of our t-shirts for Fall 2012. The best part – whereas 99% of the time people throw out a hangtag, people won’t throw this one away.
How are sales?
We continue to grow, especially on the international distribution front. We have always been strong and continue to do well in Japan and Australia. We are beginning to do more business in Europe and Central America.
How about domestically?
We continue to focus and service the core specialty retail market. That’s where we put a lot of time and energy. Our core accounts – stores like HSS, Spyder, Hobie, Thalia Street, O’Neill Surf Shops in Santa Cruz – have been backing us since the business started so we continue to give them our attention and work with them on a personal level.
