Band of Martians is a new brand agency and showroom in Newport Beach, Calif. Started by Jenna Woodhull, formerly the VP of Design and Merchandising at Volcom, and Ally Lopez, co-owner of Bikini Bird, the company is representing new talent and emerging brands for the action sports and fashion industries.
Band of Martians’ Newport Beach showroom features the brands from around the world in addition to local talent and artisans. Their space includes a photo studio, and a flower stand and food concept is in the works.
“The space is very important to us, and keeping the community involved is something we are focusing on as it helps to further expose the brands,” Jenna said.
Jenna answered some additional questions for us about Band of Martians.
Jenna, you have worked at large companies for many years. What made you decide to go out on your own?
Jenna Woodhull: I had been with Volcom since ‘98 with a five-year term at Hurley, and held a number of different positions from sales, to marketing, to product. I had such a positive experience at both companies, and I learned so much working for a public company and also under the guidance of Nike and Kering (formally PPR).
Leaving Volcom was incredibly hard as I have so much loyalty to the brand, but I knew the timing was right, and we had just assembled a dream-team of product people to take things to the next level.
My business partner and long-time friend Ally Lopez and I saw a need for a platform to help emerging brands as well as established, innovative labels from far away break in to the U.S. market. With all the change and consolidation that has happened in recent years, we felt the timing was right to start something new to help be a part of the next chapter.
While at Volcom, I was traveling a lot and spent a good amount of time working with the Australian team. The retail landscape in Australia was so different and there were all these new brands over there that had such a fresh perspective. Ally grew up in Maui and recently was living in Kauai, and noticed the same thing over there.
On the other side of the spectrum, we wanted to be able to bring something new to retailers and help them feel confident in investing their floor space in a new offering of brands.
What are your goals for Band of Martians?
Jenna: The goal of Band of Martians is to be a platform to help expose and build brands in the premium and lifestyle sector. There are so many extremely talented people that have started new labels over the last five years. Our goal is to help take the stress of sales away from the founders, so that they can put all their resources into building healthy, long-standing brands. We want to be an extension of the brands we represent.
See Page 2 for more details about Band of Martians
Are you investing in the brands financially or acting as a sales agency for them?
Jenna: Each relationship is different with the brands we represent. Some are strictly a sales relationship, and others are more involved. There is not a standard formula − it is completely customized depending on the needs of the brand.
On some of the smaller labels we help with product, marketing, and logistics and are able to utilize our past experience beyond just sales.
What kinds of brands are you hoping to bring on board?
Jenna: We are very happy with the family of brands we have already assembled. We have two sectors, premium and lifestyle, with a variety of categories including swim, apparel, candles, and hardgoods. We focused on curating a unique collection of brands that complement each other and don’t compete with one another.
We currently have seven labels: Acacia Swimwear, NOE Undergarments, First Base, Don’t Care, Vampirate Surfboards, The Waxx Company, and Vintage Mix/One of One by Hoffman Fabrics.
Jenna, we have known you more in a design and merchandising capacity. Can you tell us about your sales background and other career experience you and Ally bring to the new effort?
Jenna: Ally and I both started our career on the sales side of the business. Our first jobs were in retail as buyers, and then as sales reps. At Hurley, I was National Sales Manager and also Director of Retail Marketing before moving into the product department. Ally worked in media for advertisement sales and also co-owns an online retail and editorial site, Bikini Bird.
We have diverse backgrounds and can tap into all of our past experiences to help with the family of brands we represent.
