SUP industry exposed?

[BrownSugah]

did anyone else see this in their local facebook groups or any one read this ?? pretty interesting to think that SUP is in a bad place .

https://wordpress.com/view/staynmocean.wordpress.com

[surf4food]

Uh this requires an account with password. 

[surf4food]

But if the gist is that SUP is in decline that's not really news at this point.  The hope is just that it's just slipping into a a normal healthy plateau and not another hear today gone tomorrow fad.

[PonoBill]

Hmmm. Might this be BrownSugah's blog? The link is an admin link for the site owner. Here's a link to just read it:

https://staynmocean.wordpress.com/

[BrownSugah]

Hmmm. Might this be BrownSugah's blog? The link is an admin link for the site owner. Here's a link to just read it:

https://staynmocean.wordpress.com/

That's the one

[ukgm]

I think his comments are reasonable. Firstly, participation sports are booming here but the sport is not engaging with this. It's focus is in the wrong place.  I have written an article in a mag coming up on the subject.

Secondly, the race board market is about to disintegrate. Look at the big players - fanatic have just opted for colourways changes for 2018, starboard apparently have years of a contrived orchestrated and fabricated r&d process sketched out and Naish butchered their line up down to just one model. Does this sound healthy ?

[surf4food]

That's the link I was shared with on Facebook ? Idk what's the password for ? I personally don't think sup Is going anywhere

The link you posted requires a log in ID and password, whether or not you shared it on Facebook.  Is it supposed to be the on PB posted?

Anyway I don't think SUP is going to die out of existence, but the growth explosion has definitely cooled which is to be expected in any new sport.  This year however has seen a drastic drop in the number of races, with existing one having a drop in participation.  Even local surf contests in my area which previously has a SUP division have dropped it.  Also some manufactures have gone under.  Not a good sign but then again it could the cooling of faze I mentioned above.  Only time will tell.

[surf4food]

I think his comments are reasonable. Firstly, participation sports are booming here but the sport is not engaging with this. It's focus is in the wrong place.  I have written an article in a mag coming up on the subject.

Secondly, the race board market is about to disintegrate. Look at the big players - fanatic have just opted for colourways changes for 2018, starboard apparently have years of a contrived orchestrated and fabricated r&d process sketched out and Naish butchered their line up down to just one model. Does this sound healthy ?

I just looked at the Naish site.  Raceboards, one 12'6 and one 14. That's it.  NOT a good sign.

[Badger]

The only reason the SUP industry appears to be in bad shape is because it has run its course. For ten years lot of people made a ton of money and now the glory days are coming to an end.

I can see how that might affect the racing part of it. We will probably see fewer and fewer events and many players will drop out. It may never recover. No one knows. The same thing happened with windsurfing in the 80's.

Touring and downwind might also drop off dramatically as the newness of the sport wears off and people discover other more fun things to do.

But stand up has established a permanent place in the surfing world and that will be around for as long as people enjoy riding waves. The surfing industry has always had its ups and downs but there will always be someone making quality surfboards.

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[addapost]

From a good friend of mine deep in the industry, "SUP racing is dead. No one has ever made any money making race boards and they now realize it is never going to happen. Surf is a niche. Whatever money is to be made going forward is in cheap recreational boards. The people who buy those boards paddle only a few times a year. They are not interested in surfing or racing and they don't read the magazines. Racers and other sponsored paddlers who might have been getting a few bucks from manufacturers had better start looking for a job because that party is over."

[PonoBill]

I don't know how a lot of "people made a lot of money". At least not in modern terms. The race board market has never been hugely profitable. There's no price competition for expensive race boards. To me, that's the first sign that a business is small and is going to stay that way.

[Badger]

I don't know how a lot of "people made a lot of money". At least not in modern terms. The race board market has never been hugely profitable. There's no price competition for expensive race boards. To me, that's the first sign that a business is small and is going to stay that way.

Yes, not a lot of money in modern terms, but to people like me living at the poverty level of income, $50,000-$100,000 a year is definitely a lot of money. From the company brands all the way down to the shops, stand up was a huge boost to a lot of peoples income. I wish I could have been part of it.

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[Admin]

Gaming is an under-considered draw away from all sports.  While SUP is not singularly impacted it is certainly not immune.  The numbers are staggering.  Over 100 Billion in sales now and growing fast.  Which one of the stats at the link below is the most unexpected?

https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/02/25/21-video-game-stats-that-will-blow-you-away.aspx

[TallDude]

Gaming is the new youth socializing for sure. It's no surprise to me that gaming is such a crazy growth industry. My son is a gamer. He has the fastest computer in the house. I've spent probably more on my son's Game Stop purchases and gaming computers than I spent on his 5 years of travel club basketball. When he's online, he's talking with and playing with his close friends. Some who have moved thousands of miles away. Once he puts those headphones and microphone on, he's hanging out and playing with his buddies, not strangers. I used to meet my friends at our favorite local beach, or in the hills on a BMX trail that we built. Those days are gone. We safely track our kids whereabouts (even by tracking apps) and chauffeur them everywhere.
As for the future of SUP, it's lost it's latest greatest excitement factor. I see it falling inline with the kayak business. The big races are a dying bread. Grass roots races that include all kinds of paddlecraft will sustain the competitive side of the sport. Downwinding will remain as popular as SurfSki's and OC's. Costco will soon sell their SUP's as seasonal items only, and not as many. SUP only retailers need to diversify fast. I have to imagine even Wave Storm sales are declining. Paddle surfing has it's place regardless of marketing or the success of any professional SUP tour. If anything, the lineup will return to mostly skilled surfers. Foiling on a SUP is a fad. Enjoy it for what it is, but it isn't replacing surfing. Unicycles are fun, but only a few are ever willing to learn how to ride one.   

[Tom]

Just  because  sales  are down  doesn't  mean  the  sport  is declining .  I'm  just  as excited  about  SUPs  today  as before  but I'm  not  spending  much  money  on it. I  like  the  boards  I've  got  and keep  them  in  the  good  shape .