Q&A With Stomp Design’s Dave Molinari and Eric Diaz

mike lewis

• December 25 2008
• 1 comment

Stomp Design CEO Dave Molinari scoring some fresh at Baldy last week.

This winter, many retailers are predicting that in addition to outerwear, accessories will be the hottest selling items, and the margins are always solid. Transworld Business caught up with Stomp Design CEO Dave Molinari and Sales Manager Eric Diaz to get the low down on a decade of making snowboard accessories, and to find out what’s getting traction in the world of stomp pads.

TW: You guys have been around for ten years – how have accessory sales been for you over this time period?

We’ve been around for 15 yrs (since ’94) and we started off by making snowboard traction pads and then moved on to other accessories. We grew steadily until the last couple years where snow has leveled out a bit but we were already in the process of diversifying our brand and products by crossing over to the motor sports industry with STOMPGRIP Traction Pads. We have continued to grow through it all.

Our products are 99.9% “Made in the USA” in “Surf City” Huntington Beach, California! Rider built and rider owned. They are distributed and enjoyed worldwide.

TW: Tell us a little about your product line.

STOMP Design’s snow accessory line started in 1994 with the most functional and best designed traction “stomp” pads available. Prior pads were made of flat, eva foam with poor adhesives. These pads offered little traction as snow would stick and pack onto them. They were also notorious for falling off your board and littering the slopes. We developed injection molded pads with raised surfaces that dig into the soles of your boots and provide superior traction and snow clearing. In ‘95 we were the originators of the first clear traction pad, which allowed your snowboard’s graphics to show through. Since then we’ve continue to innovate and evolve the traction pad by making 3-D padswith printed graphics to match and insert molded elastomer / metal / carbon fiber tech pads. These days, we are incorporating more fine art design and collaborating with artists, corporate partners, and team riders for increased individuality. Our specialty continues to be traction “stomp” pads yet we are adding to our other accessory product offering as well.

In 2001 we began developing STOMPGRIP™ Traction Pads as an alternative to grip tape that motocross racers had been using and therefore shredding their pants and boots at a ridiculously fast rate. For the elitetop pro’s that get gear for free, that was fine - but for the privateer and average Joe enthusiast it was an expensive proposition. With our CEO and product designer being a desert racer, the results of testing proved out the concept immediately. STOMPGRIP™ Traction Pads make gripping your ride incredibly easy, and therefore less energy is required to hold on to the bike. They provide better bike control, reduce arm pump and save your pants and boots. They are custom designed to fit frames, gas tanks, side panels, air boxes, shrouds, and more for dirt bikes, street bikes, ATV’s, and snowmobiles. We now make seat covers with integrated STOMPGRIP™ Traction panels on the sides as well.

TW: Last year hardgoods sales were flat for specialty snow retailers – how did you do?

Sales were a bit flat as far as snow but that’s where the moto side of things kicked in for us. By making products for the motorsports industry we have kept this dream alive. In the last year we put new energy into our snow product line and added to our snow targeted sales and marketing force in order to continue to innovate and round out our product offering while better serving our customers.

TW: How many shops are you in?

We are in thousands of doors worldwide with combined business. In regards to snow shops it’s somewhere between 200-300 in the United States and another 100-200 doors internationally.

TW: What are your hottest selling items?

Our top selling inline items are our tech pads like the carbon star, our basic pads like the clear ovals and diamonds, our 3d pads such as the hibiscus and butterflies which come in a 3 pack. Our custom traction pad program is also a big chunk of our business where we make pads for shops, rental fleets, and corporate promotions, as well as pads for other OEM’s.

TW: What are the most effective methods of selling hardgoods accessories that you’ve seen/hear from your retailers? Please elaborate on this and include as many tips/stories as you’ve got in your arsenal.

Our product is a great add on sale. It’s that last item a shop employee can throw in there after he has done the boot fit and size them up for the proper board. The female crowd is always looking for something that is going to help them from not slipping off their board when getting on and off the lift and the always most important reason is because it matches their set up. The kids love it for the same reasons and it helps them skate through the flat ground. There is always that older snowboarder who started out with some kind of traction pad on their board and once an employee mentions the word stomp pad that usually ends up in a sale for us.

TW: What would you say to retailers that are on the fence about expanding their accessory inventory?

It’s a no-brainer, low cost / high return (keystone) investment. If a retailer is on the fence we try to at least get them to put in 6 or 12 pads, stick them next to the competition, and see what sells fast and first. We don’t have a minimum so that’s a good way to at least give it a try and not be stuck with a lot of product. We also add value by doing custom shop pads or rental pads that help to promote and market their shop on and around the hill. We are also attractive in that we make our products here “just in time” in the US and have product here ready to go “at once” for those shops that choose to wait until they see snowflakes in the parking lot before ordering.

TW: What are your predictions for this winter?

Our predictions are pray for snow, we are! The 24/7 news about the economy sure isn’t helping but we see the glass as half full.

TW: Anything else you’d like to add?

Diversity = Stability

It’s an ecological theory that the more diverse an ecosystem is, the more stable it is. The assumption is that the greater number and variety of plants and animals there are in a given food chain or habitiat, the more the ecosystem is able to successfully deal with change.

We at STOMP apply this to our personal lives and business. STOMP Design Inc. is a rider owned and operated company made up of diverse people who have diverse interests, influences, and hobbies that influence our products, the markets we penetrate, and the company as a whole. The more diverse our interests, hobbies, and business skills: the more happy and balanced we are as people.

We are: snowboarders, surfers, off-road & motocross riders & racers, sportbike enthusiasts, skaters, atv’ers, wakeboarders, skiers, mountain bikers, bmx’ers, beach cruiser’s, road cyclists and r/c car enthusiasts.

We don’t care what you ride or are into, as long as you’re having fun and leading the lifestyle you want. Chances are we make products that will help with the performance or comfort of your activity.