Let me start by telling you I am an unbiased person. I am going to walk you through a little known fact about how our culture and how it is transforming. Right now surfing is the new golf. This last year the board sports industry combined to yield over 7.25 billion dollars. What an incredible number for such a small industry.
So I am telling you this? A couple of things to think about:
Maybe most people don’t actually know what it is like to ride in the tube.
You may never ride a skate board at your local skate park.
If you are a fan of the Outer Banks you know that the season is over. did you know there are still plenty of surfers riding the beautiful OBX peaks and barrels right now.
Why is the board sports industry so profitable you ask?
While we are setting up our drafts for fantasy football, preparing for our Christmas Vacation, this small group of Brave men and women are preparing to find the best peaks and barrels of the season, and they are going to travel anywhere any time to ride them. They do this because it is their job. Dont misunderstand, this is not the life you can just sign up for.
These few people are starring in your American Express commercial; they are contributing input to the design of the tee shirt you are sporting right now, and they are filming the next wave you want to surf for the ride of your life; they get you stoked. Their cultural input (on the clothes you are wearing) is helping them stay motivated while spending 1000’s of hours on planes, traveling the globe hunting for the perfect peaks and barrels.
Are we looking at a culture shift? We now look at the real road warriors as being the ones who stimulate us visually. These heroic few help guide us in our decisions of what it means to be an individual, express who you are, to be dressed up, to look business casual, or how to dress for a night out on the town. Look around how many people are wearing a tee-shirt that looks nice enough to wear under a sport coat? This is what I will be wearing when I apply for my Black Visa…Thanks Shane Dorian!
Road warriors of this culture have the office most of have always dreamed of. They are starting to define our office settings. Only from our cubes do we imagine ourselves to be on Ehukai Beach.
I am happy the surf industry is transforming culture, we are starting to have a new respect for one another, we are starting to work together as a whole not just as individuals. When I sit down at a meeting to discuss the latest in Physical Education I am not judged by my clothes but by what come out of my mouth, my actions, and my morals. Has business once again being transformed into a Golden Age a Surfing Surfing Golden Age? In this new Golden Age can we go into the board room and be judged based on business ethics and market understanding once again? I wish for nothing more.