Vissla, three years after its inception, emerged as the men’s apparel brand of 2016 at the Laguna Niguel-based Surf Industry Manufacturers Association’s annual gala this month.
The brainchild of Paul Naude beat his former employer, Billabong USA, for the honors in a category that also included finalists Vans Inc. in Cypress and The Roark Revival in San Juan Capistrano.
The award goes to the brand that’s featured the most exciting designs, increased its brand appeal, and grew its business.
“We are constantly looking to bring newness to the market, and so far we’ve been successful,” said Naude, former Americas President of Australia-based Billabong International Ltd. who ended his 15-year run there in 2013 after a failed attempt to acquire the company for $299 million.
Fine-Tuned Focus
Vissla is part of Naude’s three-brand stable—Stokehouse Unlimited LLC—which includes D’Blanc eyewear and Amuse Society, a women’s apparel brand in Costa Mesa.
Stokehouse has more than 50 employees, most working from the head office in Aliso Viejo, which handles back-end operations for the three brands, including finance, IT and customer service, plus design and marketing for Vissla and D’Blanc.
Naude said the company will turn a profit this year but declined to provide details. “When you’re public, you have to hang out all your washing—I don’t have to do that anymore,” he said at the Agenda trade show in Long Beach in January.
“I consider us to be a small to medium sized company in this space. We had a pretty nice ramp-up, but we got a lot of work to do. We are focusing primarily on product marketing and fine-tuning things here in the U.S. and then in Europe and Australia—those are our key markets.”
The brands are sold at specialty surf shops and retail chains, including Nordstrom and Irvine-based Tilly’s Inc. All three operate e-commerce websites but are “disciplined in pricing structure so we make it fair for the retailer,” Naude said.
Market Mission
Stokehouse labels are sold in 37 countries. The company works with “very few licensees,” and only “where import restrictions prevent you from selling directly … Our focus is to be specialty based and have a direct interface with the consumer. Today, the world is a village because of technology—kids can speak to any other kid or look at what’s going on in the world by pushing a button, so having a global footprint is important.”
Another key step for Stokehouse is to understand and focus on its target market—up-and-coming “Gen Z” teens and younger millennials—a constant that Naude said has remained true over the 30 years he’s been in the business.
“[Our] mission is to grow the category of sustainable and environmentally conscious fabrics because we think that this new youth consumer responds to that type of thing and are becoming more socially responsible,” he said.
Vissla, apart for being named men’s apparel brand of the year at the SIMA awards, was recognized for developing the men’s boardshort of the year. Its Upcycled Boardshort features an “odor-resistant, fast drying” blend of Cocotex yarn made from coconut husks, and Repreve polyester yarn made from recycled plastic bottles.
Vissla also collaborated with Taiwan-based SHEICO Group to develop its Eco Seas Wetsuit made from “natural rubber instead of neoprene, and water based glues rather than solvent based materials for laminating.” Each wetsuit also features an Upcycled Ultraspan water-repellent jersey made from about 45 recycled bottles, instead of traditional petroleum-based fabrics.
“Wetsuits are a really strong growing category for us, and we see that continuing,” Naude said.
Amuse Society, meanwhile, is flocking to where its audience is. The women’s apparel brand partnered with Drybar LLC in Irvine and Urban Decay Cosmetics LLC in Newport Beach to host a private pool party during this month’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio. It also collaborated with D’Blanc and retailer Prism Boutique in Long Beach to set up a pop-up shop in Palm Springs during the first weekend of the annual festival.
Stokehouse promotes its labels on social media via brand-sponsored events and digital marketing. It also works closely with a number of brand ambassadors—surfers, surfboard shapers, models, bloggers, designers. Vissla calls them “Creators & Innovators,” and features some in short films posted on its website. Amuse Society calls them “Our Society,” and defines them as a “group of women who represent all shades of creative expression.”
“This company is made up of people who understand the intangibles of the surf industry, who love it and are passionate about it,” Naude said. “So far, it has been a winning formula.”
