Kelly Gibson on his new role as SIMA President

Kelly Gibson, President and CEO of Rip Curl USA, spoke with SES about his role as the newly elected president of the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association.  Kelly was announced as the new president of the industry trade association at the recent Waterman’s Ball, and succeeds Vans’ Doug Palladini whose six-year SIMA presidency ended in August.

As the 10^th president in the association’s 26-year history, Kelly shares why he accepted the role, his goals for the organization, and why he believes SIMA is still relevant to the industry today.

Why did you accept the job as president of SIMA?

Kelly Gibson: I’ve been on the board for several years and have always admired what the organization has done to support the industry, the environment and humanitarian causes. I just believed it was my time to give back at an even higher level.

What are the goals for your presidency?

Kelly Gibson: Just before being approached about possibly serving as president, SIMA’s Executive Committee and Senior Advisory Board had already gotten started on a strategic planning process that was all about better defining SIMA’s reason for existing.  

One of the key things we came away with was a more targeted mission statement or list of objectives for the organization. Those objectives are to promote the industry and sport; develop/educate member brands, employees and outside world; and give back to environmental and humanitarian groups centered around surfing. My goals are to execute on those objectives and leave SIMA in better shape then when I came on board as president.

Why SIMA is important?

Kelly Gibson: SIMA is important because it helps to unify the industry and gives the industry a strong voice. SIMA’s job is to serve the industry and member brands by promoting, developing/educating and giving back as I talked about earlier. 

Having a trade association allows member brands to come together to foster a common perspective on issues we’re all facing; we’re able to promote the sport and the business side of surfing; SIMA produces research studies that provide reliable and independent insights to guide business strategy; employees of member brands can take advantage of educational programming, and we even offer emerging brands an accelerator program.  Also through SIMA, the industry collectively supports nearly 40 surf-related environmental and humanitarian groups. More simply put, SIMA is the conduit for the industry doing good things.

How do you see SIMA evolving?

Kelly Gibson: Funny you ask that. With all the new young brands that we’re seeing in retail, I think one of SIMA’s strongest initiatives is our Emerging Brands program. That was born out of direct feedback from up-and-coming brands and became an instant success.

We’re going to see something similar with our Insights Committee and the consumer study we’re working on that should be released in January. We’re doing a better job of listening to the needs of member brands and finding ways to deliver.

What do you see as the challenges – for SIMA? For the industry as a whole?

Kelly Gibson: As the industry continues to change and adjust to new business paradigms, I think we need to focus on bringing up the next generation of surfers who can take on leadership roles in the industry. This industry has been led predominately by true surfers since it began and it’s important that the surf industry continue to be led by men and women who care about the sport, lifestyle and culture.

SIMA will continue to push educational programming and the organization itself is a great way for the next generation to gain leadership experience from serving on committees to being a Board member.

What is the role/value of trade shows, and how does SIMA play a part in that?

Kelly Gibson: We all know that the trade show landscape has changed a lot over the past 20-25 years, but at the end of the day, trade shows continue to play a vital role in brands bringing their products to market and finding time to meet with key accounts.

It’s never easy as there are and have always been competing shows and line-break dates have changed over the years, but brands and retailers need an environment that provides the opportunity to get together.

SIMA’s role in that part of the business is to serve as a unified voice for member brands in regard to show dates, show locations and letting the show producers know which buyers they’d like to see at the show. It goes deeper than that, but that is the basic premise.

Will we see a refresh of any of SIMA’s key properties under your leadership?

Kelly Gibson: We have a great Board, Advisory Board, Senior Advisory Board and staff – and everyone who serves on any part of the Board does so on a completely volunteer basis. The good news is that the Board and staff are always challenging themselves to make SIMA the best it can be and offer the members the biggest bang for their buck. 

As I mentioned earlier, we recently conducted a full strategic planning session and audit of all SIMA activities. I think it’s safe to say that everyone involved is excited about finding ways to freshen up and energize key SIMA properties like Waterman’s, Surf Summit, Image Awards and StokesMe.

Are there plans to launch any new programs or benefits of direct value to members?

Kelly Gibson: The SIMA Board is always evaluating opportunities for new programs, initiatives and benefits for the membership. Our plans for the immediate future are to focus on growing and/or improving key areas such as research, education, promotion of the sport and business of surfing, and keeping SIMA events fresh.

As for launching new programs or benefits, what we’re doing to foster new ideas is create some new committees and revive some previous committees that had gone away for one reason or another. Those committees, such as the Marketing Committee, Competition Surf Committee and Retail Relations Committee will get discussions going with people from around the industry to see what new programs or benefits are most needed by member brands.