YES Snowboards Launches At SIA
mike lewis
- January 23 2009
- 7,812 views
- 23 comments
YES, the rumors are true. David Carrier-Porcheron, Romain de Marchi, and JP Solberg, who all parted ways with Burton last Fall, are starting a new snowboard brand. YES they will be available at SIA and YES they have landed on a name. YES.
The idea for the new line was hatched when Jim Zbinden, founder of the Pulp68 family and designer of Nidecker’s NDK line, began talking with Romain de Marchi several years ago about a new type of company focused on quality, affordable boards with more of a skate feel. “RDM liked the idea and met [with] DCP & JPS to use this board,” says Zbinden. “At the same time, I worked out a new concept of snowboard brand, a brand that looks like a skate brand. Cheaper but stronger, changing design every 4 months.” Zbinden worked with Henry Nidecker, who manages the family factory, to create the boards, and prototypes started rolling out a couple months ago.
Here are a few details from the press release:
TransWorld Business caught up with Jim Zbinden to find out why his crew decided to launch YES now and what will set it apart in these times:
TWB: Will the boards be available for 09/10?
Jim Zbinden: Yes! Directly after the trade show we want to sale end of season first boards for impatient fans, first graphic series and ultra limited “yes we can” graphic hand-painted boards.
TWB: What price range are we talking?
JZ: $349, and special deal in $299 for price point. We want to do special editions, but in regular price [range] ( except for special auction & donations).
TWB: Why change designs every four months?
JZ: For different reasons, first, to push creativity, it’s a cool challenge to imagine new series every time. Second, to help the Southern Hemisphere have new boards right on time. Lots of countries currently have to wait to have new products.. Why ignore these riders ? Third, to give the fans and customers the possibility of having a special product (every size/design limited to 100 pcs). And fourth, because nobody does it! Some brands do “late” models but not this kind of challenge.
TWB: Why do you think it’s a good time to launch a new board company?
JZ: To be honest, it is not a choice, we have been talking for 10 years with RDM to do our own brand from pulp68, and the opportunity is now! The market is down, but a lot of riders are bored of giving money to big companies and are disappointed with the choices of brands. We just want to do what we like.. and the reactions are really positive.
TWB: Where will these be sold?
JZ: From the Internet and in partnership with core shops - we just try to imagine new business solutions.
TWB: You mentioned that they will be “cheaper but stronger.” How?
JZ: At the begining, I just looked in China for cheaper prices, but I hate this kind of thing like “Oh, make the board in China is cool, it’s so cheap.” We are from Switzerland, and have a manufacturer 30 minutes from my home. Nidecker are really strong about development and technology.
I want to do the board with a “Swiss engineering ” label, made here, from my country. We knew exactly what we wanted to ride and we need technology and prototypes to develop our boards. Henry decided to support us because he believed in us.
It’s a great thing to sell boards made in Switzerland for the price of those made in China - Henry is making some money sacrifices to help and develop YES. It’s a big challenge to work with the team from Nidecker but everybody enjoys working together. Everybody wins in this partnership, customers have quality, the team has a cool research center access, and the Nidecker Factory has the best riders to try their innovations.
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January 23rd, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Burn down the Big Green Mountain! Hell Yeah!!!!
January 24th, 2009 at 6:51 am
So that last question wasn’t answered was it? How are they “stronger”?
January 24th, 2009 at 11:04 am
Please R come to the booth at SIA and when you will see the board you will understand the technology which is inside. For exemple the boards have 7ply wood sidewall like a true skateboard of what i heard…
That will be “less expensive” because all the administrative and marketing will be really concentrate to the minimum. Working directly with the factory will help too. the rider have a really active part in the company, not only the promotion.
joker
January 24th, 2009 at 11:51 am
oh man.
the over used core tactic.
one problem i see is your riders:
North Face = HUGE VF Corp Brand (bigger then Burton)
Drake and Northwave = Fail
Flux = Carmate
All i see is a bunch of non producers from Burton trying to get back their inflated pay checks they never earned.
good luck to you. Not hating just stating.
January 24th, 2009 at 11:57 am
I just love the whole “we’re against the big corporations.” None of these guys would be able to do this project if the big corporations hadn’t given them everything they have.
January 25th, 2009 at 7:09 am
haha ya your so right the big corporation magicaly taught these boys to snowboard, gave them there talent and love for the sport!! the only thing that the big corporation did for them was “use” them and there f’king amazing snowboarding to look true to the sport and sell so dumb asses like you would spend hundreds of dollars on there logo to look cool!
January 25th, 2009 at 8:14 am
Check this video itw with the YES crew:
http://broblog.snowbroader.eu/2009/01/23/yes-now-board-the-new-brand-from-rdm-dcp-jps-and-jmz/
January 25th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Zim Zbinden is a cool dude…but never made anything work!
Henry Nidecker is a hard working guy, deep respect from him!
Burton had good reasons to kick Romain & JP Solberg out…but why
they let DCP go, is a big question mark to me!
YES is a nice promo gag..but as mentioned above the big payment checks are coming from VF, Northwave.
This bullshit talking about being small, core, not core is such
kidish bullshit talk.. STOP IT! COOL DOESEN’T PAY THE BILL!
January 25th, 2009 at 3:36 pm
call me drinkin the koolaid on this one, but i’ve always been stoked (and happy) with the uninc crew and their boards. i was sad to see the pig fade away. i’ll be watching YES closely and am curious to see the first release boards in February. can’t make vegas this year, but will be curious to see the catalog and board details. will YES be at the OnSnow demos?
the idea of changing it up a few times a season from a board perspective, even it it’s graphics, is a time that has finally come.
keep it real homies.
January 25th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Zay are naught keeling it enuff. Vat iz dis sheet? Jake duz not even know I cut dees guys.
January 25th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
Yes Yeah, sick. Great idea. 3 guys with super sick style, and tons of experience. Made in Switzerland and $300? They are going to kill it.
January 26th, 2009 at 6:32 am
The brand wouldn’t have been lauched if Burton didn’t kick out/didn’t expand the contract of some of their riders. So all the blah blah blah about the reason why to come on the market now is not really honest. By the way, this Jim Zbinden has founded a “Boycot Burton” Group on Facebook. Somebody is selling a YES board on ebay even before the launch, not sure if this is the right way to manage a new brand. Check “Snowboard OBAMA 08: YES WE CAN” on ebay…
January 26th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
UMM, no boards are on ebay with that description. Thanks John Dough
January 27th, 2009 at 4:41 am
its so funny how the world today is filled with so many haters. total american style, just check out any magazine or newspaper and its covered with hate and distruction off others success. i guess thats not such a bad thing for these boys, keeps up the hype! the only reason to dis them is pure envy! rdm,jp, dcp you boyz kill it out there and this brand is gonna blow up for sure! such a good concept your representing and keeping the spirit alive like the surfer and skate boyz. keep it real. aloha
January 27th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
yes girls love you!! xoxo
February 2nd, 2009 at 10:38 pm
These guys kill it! The boards are amazing and there is so much love in the snowboard industry for what these guys are doing! They never said they wanted to make money from it they just wanted to make good boards that are not produced in China like the rest of everything else out there!
For all you haters, their booth at SIA was going off and was the talk of the show!
Oh and by the way Romain is not wearing any Northface bitch!
February 9th, 2009 at 10:53 am
DCP is on North Face aka TNF.
Yes is not the only brand not made in China.
Hope they do well, but it’s going to take more that what I’ve seen.
February 11th, 2009 at 6:37 pm
People talk smack about romain de marchi but hes def got one of the nicest styles in riding today! you cant say that he was a non producer in fact Burton is becoming a NON producer..I mean they still obviously produce a lot of talkent as well as revenue but not as muchas they have in the past. This year Grenade passsed them in sales by a longshot!
May 26th, 2009 at 11:49 am
Really? Get a grip, dude.
August 31st, 2009 at 8:28 am
I am going to go out on a ledge here and say that O-Matic did this way before YES did… you can get an O-matic for around 300.00 or less. Todd Richards is the one who sort of coined this concept of getting good wood for cheap. Check out this years top ten boards and you will see an O-Matic on there. Just saying these guys are lemmings, great concept but it has been done.
October 29th, 2009 at 4:46 am
DUDE Drake and Northwave are legit shit… you have no idea what your talking about
November 1st, 2009 at 5:25 pm
I'm a rider of twenty plus years, now with three children. I want my boy's to understand what snowboarding is about, not all the money and big names, but the fun of being outside away from the idiot box and video games. the more i read about YES the more i remember what snowboarding is supposed to be about. Having FUN and enjoying what your doing and the place your doing it at, on a good stick that gets you to the bottom. as soon as possible my three boy's and myself will be on yes boards. I know for me i buy what i believe in and the more i find out about YES the more i like them.