We have been hearing a lot of good things about the Jack O’Neill Collection. Designed to fill a gap in the action sports industry by catering products to an older male consumer, the collection launched in Spring 2013.
I caught up with O’Neill’s General Manager Steve Ward and VP of Design and Merchandising Danny Geary, to talk about the line, how it has opened new spaces at retail including at Nordstrom, and how O’Neill hopes to expand and tweak the line in the future.
How is the collection going?
Steve Ward: When we launched the Jack O’Neill collection, it immediately had traction at retail. The brand was truly embraced in the market, validating the need for a casual yet upscale product offering for the 35 to 45-year-old O’Neill enthusiast.
We aspired to keep the brand very special and offer it through finer distribution lanes including boutique, core specialty and select national accounts such as Nordstrom.
Overall, first year sales have been great, and we are anticipating steep double-digit increases in 2014.
Has the line opened more doors? How about outdoor?
Steve Ward: We’re not necessarily targeting outdoor with this line, but the product is clearly designed for the individual that is inspired by outdoor sports and leisure.
As far as “more doors,” our goal is really about adding the right doors and expanding our footprint within existing partners.Within the core market and more premium shops, the line gives that older male demographic a more sophisticated product offering and has been very successful.
What’s exciting is that this is new business over and above our young men’s business, rather than cannibalizing our already established business.
See Page 2 for details in design changes for Jack O’Neill Collection
How did it open more distribution points at retail?
Steve Ward: One good example would be our Nordstrom business where the Jack O’Neill Collection sits in the Men’s Sportswear department, while our young men’s O’Neill offering is showcased in Nordstrom’s “Rail” section.
This was the first season of the line. Any changes for next year?
Danny Geary: For 2014, we identified O’Neill’s need to re-evaluate the profile of our Jack O’Neill consumer. Previously, the collection included a mix of older sophisticated designs with retro styles. This approach was not necessarily frowned upon, but our young men’s consumer was buying these retro styles in our Jack O’Neill range. That was not our goal. Our internal re-focus not only helped us redefine Jack O’Neill, but also gave us a new point of view on our young men’s needs.
For Spring/Summer 2014, we re-launched with our new message, “Modern Classics with Timeless Style.” We re-aligned our concept with our merchandise strategy and price points. We focused on higher quality fabrics and better factories with pricing to match. The product now has a completely separate look and feel from any of the YM’s range. This customer is in pursuit of sport and leisure in his lifestyle. He might have been an O’Neill fan for decades and now can continue to grow with the brand.
Besides using better materials and designing the line with a more sophisticated edge, what else are you doing with the Jack O’Neill Collection?
Danny Geary: As we redefined our Jack O’Neill consumer, we realized we had an opportunity to engage our brand’s heritage with this clientele. We created a collaboration program called “Support Your Local Shaper.” It is a series dedicated to the artisans of surfboard shaping. We have launched this new collaboration for Spring/Summer ‘14 and will continue to develop this program as long as we feel it is relevant.
This season we partnered with Harbour Surfboards in Seal Beach, Calif. Harbour has a long history of shaping amazing surf crafts and is a group we are honored to showcase. This season, we used vintage photos supplied by Harbour coupled with offbeat slogans such as, “If my wife loved me as much as this board, we’d really have something.” We will continue to align with shapers that we feel our Jack O’Neill consumer will engage with. The T-shirts will be sold across the nation.
