When Slowtide first launched back in 2015, its three co-founders were single, still living in California, and laser-focused on bringing some of their favorite artists’ designs to its line of high-quality towels.
Nine years later, Slowtide is still partnering with visual artists and music legends like the Grateful Dead and, more recently, Bob Marley. But the company has also grown its North American sales team, launched distribution in Australia and expanded its product offerings, adding ponchos, bathroom towel sets, oversized throw blankets, and hooded towels for kids, which co-founder Dario Phillips said reflects how their own lives have evolved.
“Now we have wives and kids and homes of our own,” Phillips said on a video call from his home in Ucluelet, a coastal town on Vancouver Island in Canada. Co-founders Kyle Spencer and Wylie Von Tempsky have also left California, and are living in Hawaii.
Slowtide’s Ciao Zen towel set in mustard. Photo courtesy of Slowtide.
The idea for the coastal-inspired bath bundles came from customer feedback collected through an annual survey. Also new is a massive throw blanket that can either fit the whole family outdoors or be used as a bedspread. And Slowtide’s elevated take on ponchos has already been a best-seller among surfers in colder climates.
“You go into the parking lot in Tofino and every single person’s wearing a Slowtide poncho,” Phillips said. “I mean, obviously it’s more of a necessity because it’s cold and you need it. But it’s pretty awesome to see.”
The company launched in Australia with the help of Shannan North, formerly of Boardriders and Billabong, and Topanga Distribution.
While the European and Canadian markets are slightly different because they’re colder climates, the Australian market is similar to what is already loved by Slowtide’s customers in California, Hawaii, and the Eastern United States, Phillips said.
The company has also returned to its roots of throwing events, Phillips said, and raising money for art-focused community groups. The proceeds from one-of-a-kind towels and T-shirts went toward Australian non-profit Art Helps Heaps, for example. And Slowtide just recently finished a four-stop tour in Costa Mesa, Oceanside, Ventura, and Los Angeles, raising money for San Francisco non-profit Creativity Explored with designs by iconic action sports artists such as Evan Hecox and Russ Pope.
Slowtide’s recent Bob Marley Collection will benefit Jamaica’s Freedom Skate Park, with 1% of sales going toward the island’s first skate park. The company’s custom channel, which features unique partnerships with brands as opposed to white labeling, is made up of mutually beneficial agreements that broaden the reach for both Slowtide and its partners.
Wholesale has been more challenging this year, Phillips said, but its direct-to-consumer business is up 20% thus far.
And even though Slowtide’s co-founders have made homes outside of California, Phillips said he and his partners are in the office at least once per quarter. Rather than just working in the office, they’ll coordinate activities with staff or work together on charity events or brand activations.
Slowtide will host a pop-up event over three days in July at Jack’s in Huntington Beach. It’s the first pop-up the company has done since 2021, but their booth at Ohana Festival each year in September in Dana Point is always successful.
“It’s a bit of a test for us, but I’m super excited to partner with Jack’s and see how it goes,” Phillips said.
Kate Robertson can be reached at kate.robertson@emeraldx.com.
