Surf Board design questions

[cseabrook1]

Hi there,

I am a student studying Graphic communication at university, for a project and I wondered if I could just get some feedback on a few questions and some of your opinions.

I understand that generally people prefer their surf boards to be quite plain with little or no design, maybe a logo or a brand printed somewhere on it however, am I right in saying that a younger market may be interested in boards or surf clothing with designs more exciting and suited to their age group?

Does anyone believe that there could be a market for a brand that produces low priced boards maybe for beginners and younger people with boards that display some more intricate designs and illustrations much like designs that are found on many skate boards and snow boards?

Relating to the prior question does anyone have a thoughts on a brand that could produce surf wear (T-shirts, shorts etc) targeted at a younger group of people with designs similar?

If anybody knows of any companies that design surf wear or boards in a similar style to how I have described, could you share it with me.

Thanks for your time.

[jaffa1949]

This is not a question about surfboard design for starters it's a question about design on surfboards, so I have a feeling that you know nothing about surfing, surfing brands , cheap surfboards where they are manufactured and what designs are available.
The best answer to your project is for you to head down to the local surf shop or even the beach and have a look around.
The demographic range is clearly available,
You could even have good browse on this site and you would begin to understand all the factors involved throughout the surfing crew.
As for tee shirts etc the same applies.

Buy a surf magazine or two, they are the sellers and possibly the arbiters of surf fashion.
I always get the feeling with these sort of questions is that someone is trying how to figure what to sell surfers from outside as a non surfer.
So a quote, "Only a surfer knows the feeling!"
Sheesh don't they teach research methodology anymore?

[cseabrook1]

Cheers for the reply, and yeah I've checked out some surf magazines but I thought it would be best to directly ask the people that know what they are talking about!

And yeah your right about the whole "Only a surfer knows the feeling!" the problem I have here as I myself am not a surfer and for my project i kinda need to try and see what your all thinking and what your ideas and thoughts are.

Have checked out a few shops but the people I really need to ask are you guys because at the end of the day, you know best!

[IB_Surfer]

I think you already missed the boat on this one, google Super Surfboards , they had the same idea

[jaffa1949]

Cheers for the reply, and yeah I've checked out some surf magazines but I thought it would be best to directly ask the people that know what they are talking about!

And yeah your right about the whole "Only a surfer knows the feeling!" the problem I have here as I myself am not a surfer and for my project i kinda need to try and see what your all thinking and what your ideas and thoughts are.

Have checked out a few shops but the people I really need to ask are you guys because at the end of the day, you know best!

cseabrook1 I can see you are genuine about your research, and being the old fart I am I don't fit any demographic in the surfing world

The classic surf design is so cliche now and the big companies are selling to landlocked European people but some of the companies are falling in their stockmarket appraisals.
Street art iconography is now being done on boards by younger guys and the older guys don't connect to that at all and have gone to no logo or design fashion with no label just good tailoring.
The ages of surfers covers birth to senility now and no-one is producing anything that suits that.
Why the diffidence to answering your sort of question is that so many startups who want to "corner" the huge market and make mega bucks.
I'd suggest you identify which part of surfing's range you want to target and ask them specifically.

I still question the methodology you are learning about research at wherever, as its lack has been evident in other requests.

BTW I'd suggest you look at the teen to mid twenty market, beyond that most are interested in just surfing not the frippery that surrounds it.

[cseabrook1]

Cheers guys and yeah I just checked out super surf boards and they look fantastic! They are the kinda companies I need to be researching. The thing is about the project I'm doing is I'm searching broadly across a range of areas, not just surfing so I've got quite a lot to cover. Cheers for your last comment jaffa. I see what you mean about how the older guys aren't connecting with the street art style. I'm guessing its more about quality and not looks? It sounds like the more seasoned and professional borders go for the simple looking boards. Your right about what area of the market I'm targetting, I'm heading out again today to check out a few more shops etc and to hopefully bump into a few customers.

Thanks for your help guys

[kitesurfer]

Alot of cheap surfboards come from factories in the far east where the workers are paid a pitance for their labour and have to endure some horrible working conditions. Might be worth keeping this in mind when doing your project.

KS

[cseabrook1]

Yeah definitely, I think that has to be one of the main factors when working on this project.