As “innovative” as the snowboarding industry once considered itself, the blunt truth is when you’re indoctrinated at the brand level, you collectively appreciate the smell of your own farts, and that seems to be enough for some. We’ve been sold a story of creative rebellion, youth against establishment, for decades, yet when I survey the scene online and assess outerwear offerings today I’m totally bored with the styles, colorways, and pattern prints. (And you should be, too …) While a good camo will always sell me, the rest feels like a monotonous replay of what we saw five years ago, five years before that, and so on. In this stagnant landscape of lackluster design and complacent creativity, where brands are comfortable resting on their heritage, something had to give. A shart was needed to shake the industry out of its self-congratulatory state of slumber and somebody’s else’s farts always stink. Enter: Dope SnowThe name itself is a lightning rod. Mention it on a chairlift conversation and watch for the immediate eye-rolls from any of the old guard. For many in the core snowboarding world, the brand is a joke, a symbol of the “Insta-bro” aesthetic and a betrayal of the sport’s culture. For others, uhh, like the greater masses, it’s a reliable and resonate option: an affordable, stylish entry point into an expensive sport. The debate is fierce, often flagrant, and to fully understand it, you have to look at both sides of the coin with an open mind … The Case Against: The Fast Fashion Stigma
The criticisms are easy to find and often feel justified, echoing sentiments about a lack of authenticity. The most common complaint is that Dope is simply a “fast fashion” brand for shred. It’s not built on a decades-long legacy of pro riders or deep-rooted community events. Instead, it’s a direct-to-consumer model fueled by an aggressive social media marketing blitz. For riders who have followed the sport since the days of magazines and VHS tapes, this feels like a hollow business built on a culture it doesn’t truly belong to or deserve to be included in. Then there’s the quality debate. While the gear is generally more than sufficient for a casual resort rider hitting the slopes a handful of times a season, it’s not made with the same premium, high-tech fabrics or the durability of top-tier brands. It’s not Burton-AK-bulletproof, but the thing is … it’s not supposed to be. Complaints about zippers failing after a season of use or seams coming undone are common, though not at all isolated to Dope; leading many to label it as gear for “Jerry” who are more focused on a clean look for a quick post than on shredding the gnar. Who cares. The Case For: A Necessary “Disruption”But here’s the perspective that the core and critics often miss. The traditional outerwear market has grown dangerously complacent. With few exceptions, endemic heritage brands are no longer “true to this”, and their design innovation has become bland. Their sales revenue models are so contingent upon wholesale channels and the buyers at major retailers inevitably gatekeeping, dictating what gets made from year to year when what the cool kids want is nonexistent. This reliance on wholesale has driven a brutal marginalization of product. Anything that doesn’t sell well goes on close-out, and the consequence is a brutal sea of sameness, to then be repeated the following winter. You could remove any branding from a rack of jackets and pants from legacy companies and be unable to tell them apart by colorways and layups alone. (As maligned as self-made millionaire Jamie Salter might be, he’s kept heritage brands alive, for better, when they would've otherwise died off.) In this vast, boring sea, Dope found an opening. Their origin story, as I understand it, is a result of specialty Ride Shop, Sweden shop kids importing the what they interpreted to be compelling styles and then starting their own private label brand. In a surprisingly short period of time, a decade, give or take—it’s now, inarguably the predominant visible brand on-hill, having scaled faster than most in legacy could ever have imagined. The question is, is this disdain any different from what we’ve seen before? I’m reminded of another brand that had held a title of scourge of the surf industry. It leveraged an aspirational culture, without belonging, completely fabricated, in fact, with lifestyle products first sold to the Midwest kid and then seen on the streets of Huntington by local youth who otherwise could buy into core but opted not. Hollister, for a time, served a severe beatdown to beach and surf brands, proving more successful sales-wise than the collective of “West Coast” labels. At least the Dope Snow consumer is active, getting sendy after it. Their direct-to-consumer (DTC) model isn’t hindered by buyers not buying into particular styles; it’s a direct line of alignment with its community. But let’s ask a more fundamental question: Do core athletes even move the needle with sales anymore? Internet influencers are for optics and often pre-paid regardless of a real conversion rate. The truth is, most consumers of Dope Snow likely don’t follow, or even know, the names of current professional riders. Jamie Lynn … Who’s she? Some seasons back, riding a chairlift in Ohio with a chubby kid who’d been riding for three or four years. He’d seen one video once, but couldn’t remember the name of it. He’d never seen a magazine. And while he had a favorite snowboarder, he also couldn’t remember his name. I thought to describe Shaun White, and he said, “Yup... that's him.” Dope’s success proves that a direct line to the consumer is now more powerful than a traditional endorsement. I’d venture that those who buy Dope aren’t the core snowboard shop customers to begin with or the Winter X-Games athletes, but the Winter X-Games attendees. For the price point, Dope offers access to protective, semi-technical outerwear and draws more people into a passion unitedly shared by all of us. Their colorways and pattern range, with forward styles riffed from L1 Outerwear (who themselves co-opted Holden), prove that you don’t need a decades-long legacy to create something sort of new-ish. Compare their following on Instagram to that of Volcom. Single- to-multi-sport focused, ten years of history to 30, and Dope takes the lead on followers (if for real), 1.5M to 1.4M. It’s success of a different model and that’s okay. Will the last as long, time will tell. What’s in a Name?The core of any industry sits at the top of a pyramid, representing the most influential and authentic participants. These are the trendsetters and innovators who might set the culture. Within the Action Sports world, a brand’s name is often a reflection of its positioned personality. Consider some of the names that have been launched over the years but now have heritage brand status: Airblaster, Jib 686 Enterprises (now 686), Soup Kitch’n, Tonawawa, Mambosok, Crazy Banana, Liberace Technologies (now Lib Tech), TransWorld, et cetera. These names may sound ridiculous to the average person, but to insiders, they’re perfectly understood and appreciated. They’re not focus-group tested; they were born from a genuine, creative, and anti-corporate energy. The very fact that these names are a bit terrible or strange is what makes them great—they prove that the brand isn’t trying to appeal to everyone. This is where the debate gets interesting. While a brand’s name can signal its allegiance, everything gets diluted and kinda labeled lame without true arbiters of cool. I’ve checked out Dope, and honestly, I don’t see myself dropping in ever. But there are lessons to be considered from its success. The Last Word:The existence of Dope is a wake-up call. Disruption, innovation, and authenticity are all tired terms flown and flagged willy-nilly, though when you see it … it’s obvious. Is Dope any of that? Nope. It’s none of it. It is not real disruption, but a symptom of a broken and complacent system. It’s a brand that has simply done better than the bare minimum to succeed in a market where the once-great legacy brands kind of fail to even try. Whether you’re a purist who believes in core brands, or a newcomer who just wants to get on the mountain in a semblance of steez, the market has spoken. And if legacy doesn’t start listening, they’ll be left behind by a younger, more dynamic market that values style, accessibility, and a break from the monotonous.
You’re currently a free subscriber to that snowboarding blog. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription.
|
|
