Monday, May 6, 2013

Jackie week 11


This week included research and talking to people.  I tracked down some skateboarders in Union Square and reached out to some other people who are skateboarders as well.  These are their stories: 

Interview with skaters in Union Square group of 3 guys:

I approached a group of 3 guys sitting on the steps of union sq with their skateboards.  
The beginning of the conversation had started a little strange but they had invited me to sit with them on the steps of union square.  One of the guys had gotten up and skated away a little.  He came back every now and again to rejoin the conversation.   

All three said with much enthusiasm that they value the condition of the board at 10.  In the past one of the guys has wrapped his board in plastic bags when it rains to protect it... His friends thought that was a good idea to protect a board.  I told him that was kind of funny because the idea had been born form that originally when Huy had wrapped his board in plastic one rainy night leaving school.  They thought it was a good idea. 

The conversation we had covered several topics.  I asked them about their bag preferences and we talked about some other skateboard bags and skateboard caring solutions that were out there.  No one was in the market to buy a bag and talking about rain on a beautiful sunny day probably didn't help my argument much.  I was also able to show them a picture of the bag we have.  They really like the ability of the roll top to use the bag separate from a skateboard.  They admitted having brand loyalty but didn't name any specific names.  

As we were talking i got to know the guys a little as well.  Two of them were photographers.  They did art and fashion photography.  Having previous experience with back and white analog photography I was able to ask them about the work they did.  One of them showed me this beautiful retro camera he was using to take pictures.  And I told them about how kraken has an Instagram account.  We also talked about the JR art work that is currently going on in Times Square because one of the guys was thinking to start a portrait project with random people in the city.  Turns out that we follow some of the same people on Instagram.  

I had explained that this was part of a project when I had initially asked the guys for permission to ask them some questions.  They asked me if we were given money from the school to execute the project, that too is a little funny because people keep asking me that when I interview them.  I also explained to them that I was not a skateboarder but I was working with one to bring his vision to reality, they were really nice and accepting about that fact.  I wowed them a little when I asked about the “pop” of their boards.  The guy who had been skating and joining in every now and again was all like “you got it!” I let him know that little by little I was learning the ling.  Another one of the guys who had been sitting on his board, stood up and smacked it on the ground to show me the “pop” it had.  I think that they found it a fun question to be asked.  



My interview with other skateboarders went well but  were a little more straight froward and less tangental. 

Skateboarder 1:
I value the condition at 6
I have done nothing to protect my board but ride carefully 
Brand loyalty 0
no bags
This latest board hasn't needed parts 8 months old
I'd spend 100-300 on a board because my 250lbs needs it
I skate with a backpack 
I also have a longboard with no kick on the nose or tail, its just for going for cruises on nice days and getting from Columbus circle to work quickly.

Skateboarder 2:
I'll say I give it an 8. -> good grip tape and ply condition can determine the pop, the bearings tell you how much energy you (don't have to) waste when using it.

I don't know what a bag is.. haha 

I typically spend 50 or less on a complete skateboard and it works.
No brand loyalty as long as I can see it in person.

I don't replace the parts. I've broken 1 skateboard because I meant to intentionally 
Usually they get fucked up by things other than me and that determines when I need a new skateboard.

I don't skate with a backpack, but I'd attribute that to the age group - under the age of 16 and no driver's license, and keeping shit like a towel, a first aid kit, water, snacks, probably drugs. Who knows. The skate companies would market backpacks that looked cool so that definitely helps.

Mine still has pop, yeah, depending on # of tricks a person tries to do per-day, or if they like to do tail or nose-slides I guess, would wear down the nose or tail and eventually reduce their length. If someone likes to skate on flat ground and do tricks constantly, their board will shrink but that's still fun - just gives kind of a getting-used-to period when buying new boards.

Also - what about shoes eh?

Skateboarder 3:
The bearings are important other things are expendable.  Long boards are more expensive.  He has painted the board and put grip tape on it for protection and rubber risers to protect the board where the wheal parts sit.  Typically he spends $30-150 on boards.  And he has brand loyalty.  He replaces his deck between three and five months.  He also skates with backpacks and currently has a new board with pop but the old board does not have much pop left.  He like the idea of having a bag for his long board because his regular skateboard is kind of a beat up board.    

The idea of creating custom bags to accommodate different sized boards such as long boards has come up a few times.  I we would need to determine if this is an avenue we would like to explore in the future and if so why.  

Aside form all the enthusiastic people and no sales we did get some good news that could lead to some sales!  The exciting news is that a friends friend saw the Facebook page and has a skate shop that they would be interested in selling the bag.  the skate shop is located in Thailand.  It is also currently rainy season in Thailand so this bag would be a welcomed item on the market for skateboard enthusiast.  The questions we need to figure out now is how would this be possible... Manufacturing, import export cost and taxes, etc...  I plan to reach out to some people I know who import and export international and see what I can find out to how this could be done.  Next week may also include more interviews but I plan to be working on writing a final paper about this project, research, and creating a revenue model.  

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