EUROSIMA AT SURF SCAPE, HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA, USA
EUROSIMA STRENGTHENS TIES WITH CALIFORNIA
EuroSIMA, the European representative of the surf & action sports industry, continues to extend its influence on an international scale. In April 2024, the EuroSIMA team, our President, Jean-Louis RODRIGUES, and Christophe SEILLER, EuroSIMA Director, traveled to California for the SIMA event: SIMA Surfscape 2024, Huntington Beach, USA. Our recent participation in this show is part of our drive to strengthen the international profile of our association and its members. This event, a strategic crossroads for industry professionals, offers an ideal opportunity to establish links, explore new market avenues and expose European news to an international audience. With a view to creating a Board Culture event, we were interested in understanding their approach and set-up.
INTERNATIONAL HUB WITH EUROSIMA
EuroSIMA, as a major player in the surf and action sports industry, launches its new strategic campaign: " International Hub with EuroSIMA" . The aim of this initiative is to promote EuroSIMA as an international hub, fostering the development and expansion of European brands on the world stage. This campaign underlines our commitment to building strong partnerships and creating growth opportunities beyond Europe's borders.
SURF EXPO: A WORLD-RENOWNED TRADE SHOW
This strategic initiative aims to position EuroSIMA as an international hub, crucial to the development and expansion of our brands on the world stage. By strengthening strategic partnerships and creating growth opportunities beyond Europe's borders, we are opening up new prospects for our industry, and helping our members to develop their brands and businesses internationally. Just as we can help and advise foreign companies in our sector to set up in Europe.
"During our recent visit to Southern California, our aim was threefold: to assess how the Californian market has evolved post-Covid, particularly in terms of brands and distribution, in order to fine-tune our strategies. We also took the pulse of the organization and audience feedback at Surf Scape, as inspiration for our own board culture event. Finally, we sought to strengthen links with potential partners, essential to boosting exchanges between the USA and Europe and consolidating our international network." Jean Louis RODRIGUES
SURF SCAPE, HUNTINGTON BEACH
Surf Scape isn't just a trade show, it's a vibrant festival open to the general public that celebrates surf culture. Organized by our partners at SIMA, this event has enabled us to observe and prepare the ground for our own "Line Up" event, to be held in Hossegor and Seignosse, dedicated entirely to surf culture in Europe. This event, a strategic crossroads for industry professionals, offers an ideal opportunity to establish links, explore new market leads and expose European news to an international audience.
A striking anecdote occurred when Christophe was asked about the origin of the T-shirt he was wearing, which was made in France. This simple question triggered a discussion about the quality and durability of European surf products. This exchange revealed a keen interest in our sustainable practices, underlining the growing curiosity and esteem for European innovations in environmental responsibility.
COLLABORATION WITH SIMA
Our recent discussions with Paul NAUDE, SIMA President, and Vipe DESAI , SIMA Director, have been very constructive. Working with SIMA allows us to connect directly with key players in the US surf industry, and to strengthen our presence and that of our members in the US market.
This exchange enabled us to better understand how to align our strategies to expand our influence in the U.S., while sharing insights on practices that could benefit our members. SIMA's approach to growth and networking provides valuable opportunities for EuroSIMA as we expand and collaborate internationally.
STRATEGIC MEETINGS
We held several strategic meetings with industry leaders such as Bob RIEF of SDSI (San Diego Sport Innovators), members of the Board Retailers Association, as well as discussions with innovative entrepreneurs such as Nixon founders Chad DINENNA and Andy LAATS.
We also had the opportunity to meet the General Management of the San Diego-based SDFACC (SoCal French American Chamber of Commerce) (Sylvie ALMERI and Trevor RAMEIL), who gave us a strategic overview of Franco-American development activities. We also spoke with Roy TURNER, CEO of Emerald Expositions, organizer of the Surf Expo trade show in Orlando (Florida), who offered to work with us to set up a European corner for its next edition. In short, these exchanges are essential and strategic to understanding market dynamics, strengthening our place on the international scene and anticipating future trends.
EUROSIMA MEMBER SUPPORT
This Californian trip also included support for our member companies to facilitate their integration and expansion on the American market. "We accompanied European companies wishing to be present and develop in the US, but above all we met numerous partners with a view to strengthening our collaboration between the development actions of SIMA and EuroSIMA member brands between the US and Europe." Christophe SEILLER, EuroSIMA Director.
CALIFORNIA RETAIL TOUR
A retail tour from San Diego to Santa Monica, via Carlsbad, Costa Mesa, Venice and Huntington Beach, gave us an on-the-ground perspective of our industry in California. The insights gleaned from these visits are crucial to our members' understanding of current and future industry trends.
This retail tour was instructive and very varied. Abbott Kinney (Venice), and its avenue where all the fashion and trendy brands jostle, still stands out, particularly with the ROARK brand, which seems to be a big hit (pretty boutique, superb collections, well thought-out merchandising...). Newness doesn't erase the great classics like Jack's Surfboards and Huntington Surf & Sports, which remain must-sees, confirming the strength of surf culture. In contrast, Santa Monica Avenue seemed to us to be in a restructuring phase, presenting both challenges and opportunities for the future.
This trip to California and the strategic interactions that ensued continue to confirm our association's determination to provide our members with concrete keys to international development. Our aim is also to give the European market a prominent place on the international stage, because our brands, our products and our innovations are more than legitimate, and we owe it to ourselves to be proud of our European industry. The prospects are real, and we look forward to continuing this adventure, by further strengthening the bridges between Europe and the United States.
________________
EUROSIMA AT SURF SCAPE, HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA, USA
EUROSIMA STRENGTHENS ITS TIES WITH CALIFORNIA
EuroSIMA, the European surfing & action sports industry association continues to extend its influence internationally. In April 2024, the EuroSIMA team, our President Jean-Louis RODRIGUES and EuroSIMA Director Christophe SEILLER, headed to California for a SIMA event: Surf Scape 2024, Huntington Beach, USA. Our recent participation at this event is part of our desire to reinforce international visibility for our association and its members. This key networking event for professionals in the industry offers an ideal opportunity to establish ties, explore new market perspectives and to exhibit European news to a global audience. With the objective of creating our own Board Culture event, we were interested in seeing and understanding their approach and set up.
INTERNATIONAL HUB WITH EUROSIMA
This strategic initiative aims to position EuroSIMA as a global hub, which is crucial for the development and expansion of our brands on the world stage. By strengthening strategic partnerships and creating opportunities for growth beyond our European boarders, we are setting sights on new perspectives for our industry. We can help our members to grow their brands and businesses globally just as we can help and provide advice to foreign businesses in our industry looking to settle in Europe.
"During our recent visit in Southern California, our goal was three-fold: to assess how the Californian market has evolved post-Covid, namely in terms of brands and retail, in order to sharpen our own strategies. We also wanted to get a feel for the organisation and feedback from participants at Surf Scape to help inspire our own event dedicated to Board Culture. Finally, we worked towards reinforcing ties with potential partners, which is essential to boost interaction between the USA and Europe and strengthen our international network. " Jean Louis RODRIGUES
SURF SCAPE, HUNTINGTON BEACH
This strategic initiative aims to position EuroSIMA as a global hub, which is crucial for the development and expansion of our brands on the world stage. By strengthening strategic partnerships and creating opportunities for growth beyond our European boarders, we are setting sights on new perspectives for our industry. We can help our members to grow their brands and businesses globally just as we can help and provide advice to foreign businesses in our industry looking to settle in Europe.
"During our recent visit in Southern California, our goal was three-fold: to assess how the Californian market has evolved post-Covid, namely in terms of brands and retail, in order to sharpen our own strategies. We also wanted to get a feel for the organisation and feedback from participants at Surf Scape to help inspire our own event dedicated to Board Culture. Finally, we worked towards reinforcing ties with potential partners, which is essential to boost interaction between the USA and Europe and strengthen our international network. " Jean Louis RODRIGUES
SURF SCAPE, HUNTINGTON BEACH
Surf Scape is not simply a trade show. It is also a vibrant festival, open to the public as a celebration of surfing culture. Organised by SIMA, the event allowed us to observe and prepare the path towards our own "Line Up", which will take place in Hossegor and Seignosse and be entirely dedicated to surfing culture in Europe. This key networking event for professionals in the industry offers an ideal opportunity to establish ties, explore new market perspectives and to exhibit European news to a global audience.
A memorable anecdote was when Christophe was asked about the T-Shirt he was wearing, which was made in France. The simple question sparked a conversation about quality and sustainability in European surfing products. This interaction revealed a keen interest for our sustainable practices, underlining the growing curiosity and estime for European innovations in the field of CSR and sustainability in general.
COLLABORATION WITH SIMA
Our recent discussions with Paul NAUDE, SIMA President, and Vipe DESAI, SIMA Director, were very constructive. Working hand in hand with SIMA allows us to connect directly with key players in the American surfing industry and to reinforce our presence in the American market, as well as that of our members.
This interaction enabled us to better understand how to align our strategies to extend our influence in the USA, while sharing insights on practices that our members could benefit from. The SIMA approach, focused on growth and networking, offers precious opportunities for EuroSIMA to grow and is in alignment with our efforts to collaborate internationally.
STRATEGIC MEETINGS
We held several strategic meetings with industry leaders such as Bob RIEF de SDSI (San Diego Sport Innovators), members of the Board Retailers Association and we had key conversations with innovative entrepreneurs like Nixon founders Chad DINENNA and Andy LAATS.
We also had the opportunity to meet the Head of the SDFACC (SoCal French American Chamber of Commerce) based in San Diego (Sylvie ALMERI and Trevor RAMEIL), who provided us with a strategic overview on Franco-American development activities. We also spoke with Roy TURNER, CEO of Emerald Expositions and organiser of the Surf Expo trade show in Orlando Florida, who suggested a collaboration to establish a European corner for the next edition of the show. In a nutshell, all these interactions were both essential and strategic to get a clear picture of market dynamics, to reinforce our position on the global stage and to anticipate future trends.
ASSISTING EUROSIMA MEMBERS
This trip to California also included helping our members to settle and grow in American market. "We provided support to European companies who wanted to be present and grow in the US, but above all we met many partners with the perspective of reinforcing our cooperation in growth initiatives for SIMA and EuroSIMA members alike, between the US and Europe. Christophe SEILLER, EuroSIMA Director.
CALIFORNIA RETAIL TOUR
A retail tour from San Diego to Santa Monica, through Carlsbad, Costa Mesa, Venice and Huntington Beach gave us a clear picture of our industry in California in the field. The insight we collected at these various encounters are crucial for our members and help get a better grasp on current and future trends in our field.
This retail tour was both varied and highly instructive. Abbott Kinney (Venice) with its fashion and trendy brands-packed avenue always stands out, namely with ROARK a brand that seems to be thriving (beautiful store, superb collections, clever merchandising...). That said, new options don't erase the classics like Jack's Surfboards and Huntington Surf & Sports which remain solid landmarks and confirm the strength of surf culture. In contrast, the avenue in Santa Monica seemed, to us, to be in a phase of restructuring, with a combination of challenges and opportunities for the future.
This trip to California and the strategic interactions that it provided continue to confirm our association's desire to give concrete solutions to our members for international growth. Our objective is also to establish a key position for the European market on the world scene, because our brands, our products and our innovations are more than legitimate and we can and must be proud of our European industry. The perspectives we saw are real and we can't wait to pursue this adventure by strengthening even more the bridges between Europe and the USA.
