So, if you read any other snowboard blogs, you’ll see everyones else is talking about it, so here’s my take on it. – Jed
Shaun White recently announced his own line of action sports goods under the brand name ‘Shaun White Supply Co’. This new line includes protective gear, ramps, rails, skateboards, scooters and bikes.
Yes, you read that right. He’s going to have Shaun White branded scooters and bikes.
'Hero' Stunt Scooter by Shaun White Supply Co
I’m usually one to defend athletes who get called ‘sell outs’ just because they take a big contract from Red Bull or because they launch their own clothing line. They’re just being smart and creating a brand, it’s business 101. So what if they get paid $1 million to put a sticker on their helmet or chew gum?
However, has this gone too far? I’ve always thought that if you’re going to put your name on a product, you want to do it right and you want it to be something you can be proud of and stand behind it as something you yourself would use/do. Scooters seems like a stretch.
If he wanted to expand outside of snowboarding/skateboarding, I would have liked to see him team up with Pro BMX and Scooter riders to create the brand. Bring in other people to show that you’re trying to build awesome products that aren’t just a grab at more money. That would have been the smart way to do it, but whether he might announce something similar to this or not, I don’t know.
I really hope he has more planned than just the short marketing sales pitch descriptions I see on the Shaun White Supply Co website.
Will this make a lot of money for him? I’m pretty sure it will. Kids are easy to market to. Is this the right business move as far as his brand reputation goes? I don’t know. Something doesn’t seem right to me about a pro skateboarder/snowboarder trying to use his name to sell scooters.
Leave a comment and let me know what you think about all this.