Every now and then, I get random "update" e-mails from the folks over at Board Retailers Association (BRA). How, or why, I ever got on their mailing list, I'm not entirely sure. Maybe it's because I had a pretty happy-go-lucky relationship with Melissa Clary when she was working there... I don't know. I just think it's kind of funny that they send e-mails to somebody, every month (that's me), that spends the better part of their time these days kicking them in the nuts.
But, I've gotta tell ya: I'm generally inclined to support BRA. Any organization who's mission it is to support the independent retailer, is automatically on my "good" side. It's not the mission where BRA continually fails. Their failures are almost always in transparency, and the execution of that mission.
Before I go any farther with this... you might wanna take a few minutes, and familiarize yourself with BRA, via their website. Especially if you're a skateshop owner... in that case, it's tedious (but mandatory) reading. The address is here:
http://www.boardretailers.org
But, be warned: You might wanna have a fistful of Advil right at hand, when you do. Because there's fucking acres of ridiculously confusing, and fully nauseating "industry-speak" on that damned website. A thesaurus, a dictionary, and a Bullshit-Babelfish would probably be pretty handy, too.
We go to some pretty extraordinary lengths around here, to show our support for the independent skateboard retailer. But at some point, the best "support" that you could ever give them, is to tell 'em like it is, and in a language that they can actually understand.
Let me address the "transparency problem" first. Ironically enough, BRA does go to some pretty extreme lengths, to be as transparent as possible. Obviously, given those acres of "hokey hubbub"all over the BRA website. So, again: It's not a lack of effort that's the problem. It's the execution. BRA is famous for doing a ton of fucking talking... but at the same time, saying absolutely nothing in the process. The first post that I saw on their blog, was a pretty convenient example of what I'm saying here:
"Huntington Beach, Calif. (October 25, 2011) – On Monday, October 24, more than 135 manufacturers and retailers reported for duty at Industry Boot Camp, co-presented by the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) and Board Retailers Association (BRA). For the third time in the Boot Camp series, SIMA and BRA partnered to bring surf manufacturers and retailers together for educational seminars, roundtable discussions and valuable networking time. The ocean-front conference rooms at the Hyatt Regency Resort and Spa in Huntington Beach, Calif., were filled with attendees who were engaged in seminars that offered lessons on consumer research, web search optimization, marketing campaigns, public relations, media and driving sales. The event, sponsored by Surf Expo and UPS, was deemed a success by those in attendance..."
Now, here's the Bullshit-Babelfish Translation:
"We had an industry brouhaha at a swanky resort, and everybody thought it was pretty cool". This one sentence probably would have sufficed.
Idea: Instead of having these "retailer roundtables" in some swanky hotel/resort/spa/whatever somewhere... why don't we start having them right on the retailers' home turf, and in their backyards...? Maybe even at a place where we can keep our "real mission" in focus at all times: In a skatepark, where kids are actually skateboarding...?
But, I think the really telling part of that statement, is this:
"...engaged in seminars that offered lessons on consumer research, web search optimization, marketing campaigns, public relations, media, and driving sales..."
This, my friends and enemies, is precisely where BRA is dropping the ball. And this is exactly why I'm not inclined to support BRA, on an everyday, give-them-my-money sort of level.
The truth is, BRA does a hell of a lot for the average retailer. Membership- for a retailer- is a mere $99 a year. Included in that, are a ton of benefits that really go a long way to easing the burden of shop owners. There's a health and dental insurance benefit, for example, that's probably well worth the $99, all by itself, in today's shitty-ass health-care environment (where insurance is damn near mandatory, but nay impossible to get for any private individual orbusiness owner). There's a benefit from Electronic Transaction Systems Corporation (ETS) that promises to save retailers money on their credit-card-processing services. And there's a pretty kick-ass Freight Savings Plan (from FedEx, Roadway, and Yellow) that saves retailers all sorts of money on their shipping. I remember Jeff Harbaugh telling me one time, that retailers would be damned idiots for not joining BRA... just for the member savings alone. And for the most part, I concur with Jeff on this. They do some damn good work. It truly is impressive. That is: If you can actually understand what the hell it is that they're doing over there.
However, I don't think that the retailers really "get it". Nor are they particularly worried about saving money on shipping, or enrolling in a comprehensive dental plan these days. Not the retailers I know, at least. This is another place where BRA is failing on the execution: I simply think they're shooting way, way over the heads of the average "core retailer".
My personal photo album is literally filled with photos (from my many tours around the midwest) of skateshops (and skate parks) that "used to be here". Just a few of them, top, to bottom: Boards, Inc. (Richmond,Indiana); The Board Room (Columbus, Indiana); Adrenaline Zone (Louisville,Kentucky); and Just Ride (Muncie, Indiana). What is BRA doing to stop this menace from happening in your town...?
The core retailer's first and foremost goal in today's retail environment, is simply to survive. To keep the lights on, the shelves stocked, and to (hopefully) open the doors the next day. "Dying" is a very real concern for a lot of these shops. "Avoiding Dying", then, becomes the everyday, de-facto "Job One". And everything else... that is, "everything else that BRA offers, or even talks about"... becomes a bit of a distant-second-concern, by comparison.
Here at Everything Skateboarding, we've launched a broad-scale initiative, aimed directly at the core retailer, titled (simply enough) "Spotlight On The Independent Skateshop". It's an incredibly simple initiative that talks to shops... and, everybody else along the way... about where shops really need the help right now. And where they really need the help, is in getting back to the basics of what they're in business to do, how to do it well, and how to do it successfully. We focus over and over again on the simple stuff, like:
- Having the right product, in stock, at the right price.
- Knowing that product, and knowing it thoroughly.
- Always being cool to everybody that walks in their door (after all, anybody could be a customer...),
- Making positive investments in their local skate scenes, tokeepthose scenes growing, and
- Being diverse in their philosophies, and in the types of skating that they support. (Translated: Having a much bigger "worldview" of skateboarding than the "typical" skateboard shop, opening up thier customers'eyes to "alternative" forms of skating, and diversifying their shops, to truly become full-service skateboard shops).
And most importantly: We talk about these things in a language that damn near anybody with even a tiny fraction of a fucking brain, can still fully understand. Which is really important, because that also dutifully describes the editor of this damned magazine.
I think that BRA's biggest mistake, is to write these things off as "common knowledge", and ignore them altogether. In this, I would normally be inclined to whole-heartedly agree with BRA. These things really should be common knowledge. However, as the old saying goes: "Common knowledge just ain't so common anymore". Just because BRA (and I) think that they should be common knowledge, certainly doesn't mean that they actually are.
Most skate shops that go out of business, do so because they're blowing it on one (or usually, most) of these levels. As a direct answer to that reality, I'd encourage BRA to follow our lead, and make "Getting Back To Basics" a cornerstone of their 2012 initiatives. Everything Skateboarding is completely non-profit, and we don't enforce any sort of "copyright" around here. So, feel absolutely free to blatantly rip off, re-package, and re-use anything that you'd like. Hell: Steal the whole damned intitative if you want, we don't give a toss. We'd much rather see shops survive and thrive, then have ourselves look "cool", "visionary", or "having any sort of leadership skills". I don't give a damn about any of that stuff. I just want independent skateshops to stop going out of business. Nothing more, and nothing less.
If BRA could find a way to strip things down to "focusing on basic goals, and getting results"... and back that up with some fluff-free, straight talk... I'd totally support that. I'd happily... no wait, "enthusiastically"... no wait, "overjoyously"... send in my $99 to help the cause. And, I'd tell every skateshop that I know to do the same. And I don't even own a skate shop! But, it's a goal that's worth supporting. And I know a lot of heads that feel the same exact way.
The knock-on bonus would be that when some core skateshop calls you guys (and gals) up about becoming a member.. and they want to know what the advantages are, or what BRA is gonna do for them... you've got something tangible and hard-hitting, right at hand, that they can actually get their hands and heads around. Point them to the "Back To Basics" initiative, and simply say, "Read this. We've compiled this for you... and it's totally beneficial to you, and your shop... and you're not even a member yet." That's pretty powerful stuff. It could be compiled and posted on the BRA website once, and it's readily transparent, and accessible for posterity. And best of all, I think it would actually drive membership.
But most importantly, it would give BRA a renewed sense of focus in a world where the problems are multiplying, and the solutions are usually pretty fuzzy and impractical. Let's start with the easy stuff, and get that nailed down pat, first. We can talk about "acting as the primary voice and action group within the retail boardsports industry" when BRA actually has someting useful to say.
Likewise: Maybe we should put off worrying about shit like "factoring search optimization skills into social sites", "driving offline sales with location-based social and search tactics", and "encouraging consumer engagement, and driving user participation" for when we got the average core retailer off life support.
Best regards, and well wishes,
Bud Stratford
Publisher, Editor, and Chief Troublemaker,
Everything Skateboarding Magazine
www.everythingskateboardingmagazine.blogspot.com
