The most talked about trucks in 2009 and 2010 have landed in the Hopshop. All the longboarders can stop reading and go for a skate, it’s all about the short board on the blog today.
We have been following the progression of Theeve trucks for over a year. A select few Australian Vert skaters have been testing the trucks for a while. A lot of those trucks are the protos of TiH truck. This is the world’s first titanium axleless hanger. WTF. Ready for this? They cast the hanger and axle together, then machine down the axle to 8mm. This creates a truck that has an axle and hanger as one. The ultimate in strength. Cast in a Titanium alloy compound. How strong are these trucks? Some of our Vert friends have been on the same set of trucks since getting them. They have been unable to bend an axle. These might just be the last set of trucks you ever buy!
I now have to throw cold water on the party. The TiH trucks have not been released. However the next best thing are in the skateshop ready to go. That is the TiAX truck. The TiAX skateboard truck is still cast out of the Titanium Alloy blend, but they have inserted 6/4 Aerospace Titanium axles. The result is a stronger truck than anything else out there, but super light. Compared to a normal cast truck, you are looking at a 40% weight saving.
Needless to say, these trucks are at our premium end of what we offer. At $119 including shipping, still within everyone’s reach.
Check out the models we have in stock. If there is a colourway you are looking for and it is not listed, email or call the skateshop and we can order them in for you.
We have talked about it a lot, and today we have finally delivered on our promise. Hopshop Points are live.
Customers now earn one Hopshop Point for every dollar they spend with Hopkin Racing. To earn points you can buy online or in the skateshop. Our online system is used live within the skateshop. So when you buy, it is important to tell whoever serves you to put the purchase on your online account. Log into your account at Hopkin Racing, click on the modify profile and at the top of the page will be your accumulated Hopshop Points.
How do you spend them?
You can spend them online or in our skateshop. When you check out, there is a payment method of “Pay with Hopshop Points”. If you have enough points you can pay with all points or use what points you have to get a discount off the price.
ASRA members get double points !!!!
All paid up ASRA members will get TWO points for every dollar spent. Our ASRA list will not be totally up to date, but dont worry. If you miss out on the double bonus, let us know and we will add the extra points to your account.
What is the discount?
The discount equates to 5% discount for members and 10% discount for ASRA members.
This is just the beginning
We plan to expand our loyalty points so our customers can earn extra points. One example in the works is a referral service, so you can earn points for referring your friends as customers!
Disclaimer
This is new code for our website. The tempates and system has been thoroughly tested but we still need to make some small changes. Please give us some feedback if it is ruining your online shopping experience. We will get the price you can pay in Hopshop Points next to the dollar amount. At the moment, it just shows how many Hopshop Points you will earn.
Hopshop Points are not earned on discounted items.
Master of The Hill
It is Master of the Hill tomorrow, and in our sponsored races the winners get Hopshop Points. That’s right instead of the prize being a set of trucks or wheels you might not want or need, you get Hopshop Points that can be spend on anything!!!
We are doing some serious upgrades to the website today. It is really exciting, everyone is going to love the new features coming. No clues for you, unless you have seen our tweets today.
The code update is extensive. It will be unlikely we get it all right so you might see some unusual stuff displaying on the site. Don’t be alarmed, it is just the Meerkats taking over the server.
Any problems, please call the shop on 02 80601588. If you can not order something, call the shop we do phone orders.
It will be worth the pain, all our loyal customers will be rewarded with this upgrade!!!
Everyone is getting into downhill. Here is a clip of skate legend Ben Schroeder bombing a hill. Anyone know what board he is skating? It does not look like a short board. Definitely looks like he is getting into downhill. Throws in some nice moves.
Ben skates for Pocket Pistols, we have a few of his pro models in stock.
The longboarders are worried, has Hop gone mainstream? Is the Hopshop selling out to street skating?
We are not selling out but we are expanding our range!
We have renovated the shop over the holidays and put up a big street and vert section. The warehouse ramps have been sold and replaced with glass cabinets. One of our regulars was worried we were going down the stale, vanilla corporate road like a Skooter HQ mall store … NEVER.
We are still a chill place to hang out, get good advice and watch skate videos. We are just expanding the range.
Why
The Hopshop is in St Leonards, 5km from Sydney city, the biggest city in Australia. Our shop is located in the middle of three skateparks – Lane Cove, Chatswood and Neutral Bay. However, there is no dedicated skate shop in the area, except the Hopshop! We have a few surf shops that have a skate section but no real skate shop. So the word is out, there is a new skate shop in town. One skater tells another. They find the shop. The few street skaters has become the many, demanding product and service. So we have listened and are adding mainstream skateboarding products to our shelves. Those Powell SPF wheels look tiny next to inHeats .
The reaction
The response from distributors has been positive. Most of them, and their representatives, dont believe there is a skateshop in St Leonards. Imagine that. If I was a distributor and my sales rep did not know there was a 90 square metre retail skateshop in their territory, I’d fire them.
We still get distributors refusing to deal with us, which is hysterically funny. For anyone not in the industry, this is how the skateshop/distributor dance works. First you have to find them, they have a bad or no website, missing links, misspelt urls, or no contact details on their website. You find them, call them, so you can convince them to let you sell their product. Some dont return calls, or emails, just ignore you. I dont know the rationale behind this strategy. Keeping their brands exclusive? Protecting a nearby surf shop? Scared you might put it online? (psst dont tell skaters about internet) Protecting online US skate shops?
So who has been difficult? Lush Productions is number one. They sell Independent Trucks, which I have on my pool deck, so I would like to carry them in the shop. Sometimes you feel these distributors think they are going to hurt your business if you dont get their brand. Lush, here is a reality check. Most skaters dont ask for Independent Trucks, seems like their poor distribution strategy is working. We get asked for Theeve, Ace, Thunder, Ruckus, Tensor, and Destructo. You’ll see all these good brands in the hopshop soon. Looks like I’m going to have change truck brands on my pool deck, those Ace trucks look nice. A better independent truck you say? I heard about it on the internet, shhh, dont tell the kids.
This week’s challenge
Want to know what it is like to have a skateshop? Try Hop’s “find this distributor” challenge.
Your challenge this week is to search for the Lush website, and then only using their website find out how to contact them.
Rant over, I feel better now. I’m going to go try these Theeve trucks at Balmoral.
The first post for the year I thought it should be a good one. I have been going through our sales and statistics for 2009 and it has been some interesting reading. The website and skateshop has under gone huge growth in the last 12 months. It does not look like slowing down, and I think this is a reflection of the skate industry in general. Longboarding and Downhill is starting to break out of its niche and become more mainstream.
Our business is a true reflection of longboarding and downhill in Australia. We have a popular ecommerce website and a skateshop located in a busy part of Sydney. Our sales are split evenly between website and skateshop. However everyone that comes to the skateshop (other than local walk bys) hear about us on the internet.
Why publish a 2009 best seller list? The idea came from an article on Pop Magazine about what is selling well in Melbourne skate shops. There is a classic line “a brand I had never heard of before” by the writer in reply to Hemleys nomination of Randal trucks. It got me thinking about Australian skateshops and the skate industry, and how little they know about longboarding and downhill. Here is a clue, it is more than a rack of Sector9 completes. I hope this blog will introduce some of the brands that are big in the sport, new product they need to stock and help them communicate to a new type of youth appearing in their shops, the longboarder.
All these products have distribution in Australia. The figures were influenced by new brands in the market and supply problems in 2009. Landyachtz boosted their distribution channel in late 2009. The fastest selling products in every category has been Landyachtz in the last 3 months. Rayne have invested more time developing their Australian business, this reflects in the sales of their decks.
Most popular general longboard
1. Loaded Dervish. Without a doubt this is our biggest selling deck. Flex 1 out sells the flex 2.
2. Rayne Hustler.
This category will be getting a shake up in 2010 with the Loaded Tan Tien arriving soon. The most popular board in this category will move to 38 inch from the current 42 inch. Skaters are wanting smaller decks that are more maneuverable for tricks and freeriding style.
It should be noted we are expecting Landyachtz to be strong in this category in 2010.
Most popular downhill longboard
1. Omni Drop 43. Our overseas readers will be wondering what is a Drop 43. This is an Australian board made by a local skate company Omni. We sold twice as many Omni boards in 2009 than any other deck. Why? The start of 2009 there was not much choice in race boards, Rayne and Landyachtz had not sorted out their distribution. Omni Drop 43 is also has an entry level price which makes it a perfect starter board.
2. Rayne Nemesis. If we had stock of this board all year this would have been our number one selling deck. It is the deck we like to recommend in the shop, it size, width and shape make it an all round board for downhill, freeride and longboarding.
3. Rayne Demonseed.
4. Rayne Killswitch. This board was released in late 2009 and sold out a few times. It’s success is a reflection of the growing freeride market and also the financial strength of the longboard market. The Killswitch is one of our most expensive decks.
5. Rayne Hellcat.
6. Landyachtz Evo. Over the latest few years this deck has been the biggest selling downhill board in the world. Our sales have been down mainly due to supply issues in 2009. However the market is growing, and there are a lot more choices for skaters. It is doubtful that the Evo will claim back the crown of the biggest selling board.
This category has been the biggest growing market for our business. It is also has the youngest demographic. We are selling more downhill decks to under 18 years olds than anything else. It should be noted that a single sale separated a lot of the placings. Drop 43 sales were 50% bigger than any other board. The second most popular board was 2. through to 6.
Most popular longboard truck
There are two parts to this category. Trucks we sell on completes and trucks that are ordered separately by customers.
1. Paris 180 . This is our biggest selling truck. We sold more Paris trucks in the first 4 months of 2009 than we did all year for any other truck! The reason is it is the preferred truck for skaters buying a Loaded Longboard. 90 out of 100 Loaded Longboard customers orders Paris 180 trucks on their longboard.
2. Bear Grizzly 852. This is a surprise because we have only been selling these trucks in volume since September. In that time they have caught up to Randal 180 yearly sales. It was close. Only two truck sales separated Bear and Randal.
3. Randal 180.
Paris is the most popular longboard truck. However we we only count independent sales of trucks and not completes, the number one truck is Bear Grizley 852.
Most popular longboard wheel
This result will not surprise anyone. Jackson works in the Hopshop, is on the Hopkin Racing Team and rides for Orangatang. It figures Orangatang wheels sell well in the Hopshop. There are performances to back it up. Jackson is the fastest skater in Australia in slalom and downhill. Kevin Reimer won the IGSA World Championships at Newtons in 2009 on dem purps.
1. Orangatang inHeat
2. Orangatang 4Presidents
3. Retro Big Zigs
4. Orangatang Stimulus
5. Orangatang Durian
6. Retro Zig Zags
Most popular Bushings
1. Venom.
2. Reflex.
3. Khiro.
Venom has dominated bushings this year. Releasing more duros and also the eliminators. The Hopshop started selling Reflex in the second half of 2009, and they have performed so well with our customers it has created a shake up and re organisation. Khiro has been bounced out of our retail display and off the website by Reflex. Any shortboard bushings are now mostly Reflex short cones.
Most Popular Bearing
1. Bones red
Nothings sells like Bones red. Price vs Performance longboarders get with Reds is second to none.
Most Popular Slide Glove
1. Loaded Slide
2. Landyachtz Slide
3. Loaded Race
Loaded win this category because of supply. They have a consistent supply, consistent quality. Therefore they get the sales. There are some good alternatives out there but with supply issues.
That is the Hopshop awards for 2009. I hope it starts lots of arguments about what is the best product on the market. Maybe it will help some skateshops with what they could be putting on their shelves in 2010.
With only 10 days to go until Newton’s Playground, we thought we should spruce up the Hopshop. Maybe get a bit of paint down, brighten the place up for all our overseas visitors and VIP’s. The retail area got some nice white paint on the floor, you need sunglasses in the boardroom now! What to do with that empty space between the ramps in the warehouse? maybe ….
I have so many things swimming in my head, this could be a big blog post. I’ll be kind and break it up over a few days.
Newton’s Playground is close, we are getting some amazing people drop into the Hopshop. (if you follow my twitter you’d know who they are).
My favourite people are the customers. Having a website is cool, skaters around Australia can buy online, get their product within a few days, but I never get to meet them. Some of my best customers I have never met! We do have our skateshop (the Hopshop), so it is always fun when skaters drop in, back to the blog post topic …
We have started up Saturday trading at the Hopshop. Today was something special. We had skaters from 12 to 18 years old in the shop.
First up a young kid, 12, buying his first downhill board. He brought his dad in, and dad walked around and picked out the skateboard, from my collection, he first started skating on…”back in the day.” Meanwhile Robbo, set up his new deck. His first longboard. His first skateboard. He was about to start a journey I wish I could start again, but he was starting on a longboard! Off to skate his local neighbourhood.
Later in the day, the shop groms arrive. The local crew of 14 to 15 year olds. Hanging out at the shop, picking up some supplies. These guys are already pimping out their decks with new freeride wheels, most have a quiver of a few boards for different occasions. Their main purpose, to coax Jackson out of the Hopshop and have a skate session (Jacko was out of there real quick).
Finally Gabe turned up, in his late teens, looking for some shop gloves, arriving late for the skate session. Totally addicted to longboarding. He’d probably sleep on his deck if he could.
It got me thinking. Three young generations of skaters were in the Hopshop today. All on their skate journey, I hope lasts them a lifetime. All of them passionate about longboarding and skateboard racing.
I might have met the next Australian champion today.
You might have seen my twittering this week about a film crew in the Hopshop. It was the team from Rush TV, interviewing Jackson Shapiera about all aspects of longboarding.
RUSH TV is a half hour action sports series exploring youth lifestyle and profiling the most creative people engaged in the dynamic world of action sports. Their mission is to be a totally relevant TV program for youth, offering the kind of entertainment and action that youth expect.
The series will feature both Australian and international action sports athletes and events, as well as segments celebrating the fusion of sport with music, fashion and the arts, showing how the culture of action sports has become a full time and viable way of life.
The series will launch as a weekly show on the new ABC 3 youth channel on 5th December 2009 at 7pm.
In his interview, Jackson explained about the different types of longboards for racing, freeriding, cruise and carve. How to set them up, and the different different styles of riding. When we get our hands on the edited version, we’ll throw it up on the blog as a video, and keep a look out for when the show starts.
The RushTV website in the next few months will start to get more content.
Manufacturers
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