BEHIND THE LINES: Salomon Snowboards
mike lewis
- March 30 2009
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Salomon has long been known for not pulling punches on packing its decks with tech, and the company is increasingly putting that technical know how to work in creating boards that help reduce the guilt factor of creating new products by reducing the footprint of the processes behind the schralp. They’re also focused on the cause du jour of ponying up more bang for the buck. We caught up with Product Line Manager Alex Warburton to see what this translates into for next year’s line.
What macro trends, such as shipping costs, price of petroleum-based products, the environment, credit crunch, are factoring into the direction of next year’s boards?
D; all of the avove. This means value and relevancy are in. Bling, is out.
What’s on the horizon for next year?
The Grip WN 157 factory prototype is on the horizon. Wolle will be riding and developing this board throughout the year as we continue our G.I.F.T. project into unchartered territory. (For more on G.I.F.T. go HERE) Not having traditional fiberglass or resin allows this board to be disassembled and recycled at the end of its shred life.
What are the three biggest forces shaping the changes and developments you’ve made in the line?
In order: Snowboarders, G.I.F.T, and purchasing trends.
Any new models or anything going extinct?
The above mentioned Wolle Grip proto, a rockered Sanchez model called the Salvatore Sanchez, and the all new Gypsy: a true twin, equalizer sidecut, and the Popster profiled women’s freestyle deck.
Extinct? Well more of a drastic overhaul really. The ERA construction has morphed into Ghost. We take the same philosophy and on-hill feel of ERA and hide it under a 2D topsheet. It’s now much lighter and rides even better.
Grip 157 - MSRP - $449
Comes in: 51, 54, 57, 60
Bio: Freestyle eyes for freeride terrain. Inspired by the Sick Stick and Wolle we crafted a hyper extended tip and tail, utilized bamboo construction and pressed it in a perfect twin shape.
What’s gonna be your best selling deck? Why?
The Grip, the Salvatore Sanchez and the Gypsy. Because they all are unique, relevant to today’s shred, and provide more bang for your buck than anyone else is offering.
What other new materials and construction technologies will you be using?
ABC (Advanced Bamboo Technology) is spreading through the line the more we develop it. The Grip and Ivy show we can bring it down into the meat of the market. Wolle’s prototype shows we are still advancing it towards the ultimate goal of a sustainable board construction.
What themes are you seeing for graphics?
Everything is in. Each model targets a different type of rider, so it’s always a challenge to apply the right graphic to this personality.
We definitely make a conscious effort to keep our G.I.F.T. products away from the hippy-centric. Eco consciousness overlaps all fashion and graphic types now.
Gypsy 148 - MSRP - $449
Comes in: 43, 48, 51
Bio: Everything we’ve got went straight into the JPC. Equalizer? You bet. Popster? For sure. Sintered base for clearing jumps? Definitely. It’s all there just waiting to push the limits and make new things possible.
Where do you see price points going for the industry?
Hard to say for certain, but it’ll be interesting to see. Oil has dropped 64% from it’s high of July ‘08, but labor and other energy costs in China have risen substantially each year. So products are much more expensive to produce than they were even a year ago.
The world is essentially in recession and no one knows for how long, so people are tight with their spending.
I see price points finally rising with inflation, which they haven’t done for almost a decade, but brands will have to provide more value at every level with this more conscious consumer.
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