Way back in early January, rumors were flying about Gravis’ launch into skateboarding. ‘Who was on the team,’ ‘what did the shoes look like,’ and ‘what was the brand going to be called’ were the questions everyone was asking. But Gravis kept a pretty tight lid, confirming nothing.

Then came the announcement that parent company Burton had acquired DNA Distribution, the Ohio-based parent of Alien Workshop and Habitat skateboards. DNA may not be the biggest brand, but they are certainly among the coolest, in terms of team, trend-setting, and aesthetics. So, they’re definitely interested in the skate market, and coming hot on the heels of Burton’s purchase of Channel Islands—their first dip into the surf market. A launch into skate footwear was hardly surprising.

Transworld Business finally caught up with General Manager Fabrice LeDet to ask him some questions about Gravis’ venture into skate.

Transworld Business: For those who don’t know, what’s the history of the brand?
LeDet: The brand is ten years old. It started off with its strong snow origins. Gravis always meant quality product at a premium price, with cool and high-end material and clean marketing. It has changed its brand message a few times over this ten-year period, but we are now all about consistency. The office moved 18 months ago from Burlington, Vermont to Irvine, California to be closer to the action sports market. It is a brand new team of young, passionate individuals who skate, snowboard, and surf.

Was Gravis in the skate market when it first came out? Was there a team back then?
Gravis was never into skate. It never had a team, nor made skate shoes. The only skate deck featured in its catalogue was in one of its backpacks.

Why the interest in skate in 2008?
Skate drives the trends in action sports. Surfers and snowboarders look at skaters to see what’s cool. Skate is raw, urban and it’s a growing activity with endless potential. Skate is accessible to most of the kids on the planet, it’s almost as accessible as soccer is.

Is it coincidence that Burton recently launched into skate footwear and acquired a few skate brands at the same time?
It’s not a coincidence. Burton has always been very successful with performance-related hardgood product. They first tackled surf with Channel Islands and DNA [Distribution] was a logical move into skate. DNA provides a legitimate portfolio of skate brands, which have been around for a long time.

Who’s heading up the skate side of Gravis? Who is the skate team, and who are the behind-the-scenes people?
Our designer is Kelly Kikuta who used to be design director at Podium Distribution. Mark Oblow is our Creative Director of skate. We really listen to our riders. Our riders are: Arto Saari, Dylan Rieder, Javier Mendizibal, and Steve Forstner. We will be looking to slightly expand the team when the fit and time is right.

You recently revamped the image/logo. Can you explain the rationale behind the change, and the meaning of the new look?
We had changed our wordmark and corporate color in the last 12 months, the last step to revamp our brand was to change the logo. After careful consideration, we realized that our old “G” logo did not translate well on our product and felt a bit too sophisticated to the younger consumer. Our new “IV” logo looks better on product, it’s fresh and we feel it talks better to the younger demographic. Both letters come from our created new font of the word Gravis.

How many skate shoes are coming out for the first season, and when are they dropping?
We are launching skate in different phases. Our first very limited launch hit retail early August. One style (Viking Hi LX LTD, Arto’s signature shoe) one SKU. We have another launch hitting stores in October with two new colors of the Viking Hi in the regular version and the low version named Viking in two colors hitting stores in November, one slip-on in two colors and one lace upper in two colors—all vulcanized. The SS09 line, Arto Hi in four colors, the Arto low in four colors, vulc lace up in three colors, one cupsole (G1) in four colors, and two slip-on. These will hit stores in Feb/March 09. To summarize: Through all the phases, five styles and 24 SKUs.

Prior to the skate launch, who was the Gravis customer? What percent was surfer, snowboarder, and sneakerhead?
It was mid-20 to 35-year-olds who wear great quality, comfortable shoes/sandals and carry their personal belongings around the globe in great quality and cool looking bags. Surfers 35 percent, Snow 35 percent, and Sneakerheads 30 percent.

What is the price point of the shoes?
Vulcanized: $50-60, Viking Hi: $90-100, Viking Lo: $75

In the past, where was the distribution? Core shops, mass-market?
We have never been mass, and always stayed in specialty stores, boutiques, and some high-end department with our bags only (Fred Segal).

Who is the sales and ordering contact?
Brent Lantz: 949-789-6103

Tags: fabrice ledet, Gravis

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 28th, 2008 at 10:10 am and is filed under FEATURES, PROFILES. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.