Kelly Slater and the saddest thing in the world
It was the saddest thing in the world. Kelly’s nearly teary, Pete Mel’s voice is cracking as he asks the probing questions...Hell’s bells, Kel, how does it feel? We know, we know, sad, sad, sad. All those years, all that Quiksilver family. Just a kid, staying in people’s houses, for Christ’s sake, with Bruce in Sydney, Greeny in Torquay, Harry in Bidart (then later Pierre’s poolside pad in Capbreton), gossiping with the wives, playing with the kids and watching them grow. It was family, no doubt about it.
And of course it was a momentous decision in a momentous career, and Kelly, who frequently wears his heart on his sleeve, could not disguise the fact that breaking up was hard to do. But sometimes, when a marriage has run its course, both partners are going to get up tomorrow and the world is going to look a whole lot better. They already know that, they just have to get through the crying and hand-wringing part.
My hunch is that neither Kelly nor Quik CEO Andy Mooney will be shedding any tears tomorrow when business is business again. Mooney was hired a year ago to be a pragmatist, to lop the heads that had to be lopped, to make the numbers start to work again. There’s no room for emotion in that job description. Just ask Craig Stevenson, who was eaten up by the process.
Just last month Mooney told ASB’s Keith Curtain: “I think we need to be selective in the athletes that we develop marketing programs around… For me great brands are the cumulative effect of great products… so my focus has been on the product side of this business…then focussing more on aligning our athletes around product marketing, as opposed to lifestyle per se.” In a brave new world (for a surfwear brand) where product is king, where does the greatest surfer who ever lived, a lifestyle icon if ever there was one, fit? And in a new look company where cost-cutting has replaced marketing department excesses as the water fountain conversation piece, and the target market is an 18-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl, how much is a bald, middle-aged man really worth? Bottom line, Quik couldn’t afford what Kelly had to offer anymore. VSTR had to go, and if push came to shove, well…
I’m not suggesting for a minute that Andy Mooney killed Bambi. Don’t even go there. But I wouldn’t mind betting that he sent his negotiators in with the strict instructions that Kelly’s value had at least reached a plateau, and that he wasn’t prepared to break the new austerity mould in order to keep him. Beyond the emotional bubble, hard-arsed Quiksilver execs have been saying this for years.
Even Bob McKnight would occasionally pull out the mantra of no-one is bigger than the brand: “Kelly Slater wins a world title, sales go up 30 percent; Kelly Slater doesn’t win a world title, sales go up 30 percent.”
But for many of us, after nearly a quarter of a century, Kelly Slater is Quiksilver. At Margarets he faced the cameras unbranded, but if you’ve followed the champ throughout his career, he may as well have had a big 'Q' tattooed across his forehead. Overcoming that will be his challenge for the future – one I’m sure he will relish. //PHIL JARRATT
...and if you missed Kel and Mel's heartfelt interview, here 'tis.
Comments
saddest thing in the world..c'mon ya haven't had that much of a protected life Phil!!
If dane renolds get way more than $3m,and Kelly nowhere near that....Q turnsover about $1.6 billion...I find the decision to part ways with Kelly mind bogling.....
the highest paid basketballer in th world last year was a 50 year old Michael Jordan with more than a $100 m a year,which makes him still the highest paid basketballer on the planet.......why,because of his royalties on Air Jordan/Nike....still the largest selling model of Nike shoe by far!!
MJ was a freak,like Kelly, and appeals to Baby boomers/Gen X and Gen Y.......which translates into BIG sales.......
In the USA 80% of sales comes from the mid west,who believe that BBG /Q/S are youth brands ...there is a scenario that if or when the Midwest realize that the surfing youth of today have rejected Q + BBG as their youth brand sales could and should head south.......which with Kelly leaving Quik seems to be a punt that there will be no fallout from his departure....
Dane does not have the marketing fire power that Kelly has because those Americans love a winner.....and they have the winningest , mostest market penetration of any surfer in History.....connected to the Quik sales machine......
I wonder if Bob is dreaming of 30% increase or decrease now Kelly has gone I know which possibility I think is on the tables.....especially with Quik now going into hotels...core sports or?????
You're quick off the mark for an old bloke, Brute. There was a touch of irony meant to permeate my opening paragraph, obviously not a very clear one. I'm also not suggesting that Kelly can't sell product, just that Quik's new mindset is probably that.
yeah Phil still got a few gears left in the ol fella...damn missed the irony.......seems Quik has decided that the older freak athletes don't sell product.
But then Quik did not want to resign Jack Robinson who ,after watching the pro-Junior at Sunset this year,looked very Currenesque......very exciting talent who is being groomed outside the Current system...
So will be interesting to see what Quiks new marketing strategy is with out ol baldy and one of the hottest juniors in the world......hmmmm...so what is Quiks new mindset???
Is Dane really on "way more than $3m"?
Wow.
I was told he had signed for 600k a year to ride for quiky when the contract was inked
Good article Phil and the irony was obvious enough. It's an interesting take on Quiksilver's direction. Walk into any of there stores and it's not hard to see that the target audience is directed and teenage grom's who are growing up in the Dane generation. Tom Carroll touches on the subject about his own positioning in the company in his book and where or if he will fit in the ambassador stable. I assume that's why the 'Waterman collection' was developed for an older generation of surfers looking for a different product and direction. I know I am more interested in hearing about Jamie Mitchell and Mark Healy training and chasing swell's than Dane hanging out with other hipster's waiting to be ironic? I guess that show's my age. The target market that is greater and more profitable in todays market will set the direction unfortunately. Kelly has been the king for my generation and still is in my book I'm interested to see what the first endeavour is?
I agree with Brutus and Moodz above and are of the same generation. I don't think Quik will be exactly rubbing their hands together with glee.
After Kelly (and watch any contest and see how popular he is with the groms) and Dane, they've got..... well, Dane.
I don't think Jeremy Flores or uber-cool Craig Anderson in all his scruffy glory move that much product. As for the rest of their team riders?
Quik have also been slow to remove him from their website. Maybe they're still hoping he'll reconsider?
oct 2013 stabmag wrote - Dane Reynolds = 3mill per year.
$3m to do a few sweet airs, act all camera shy & defiantly sarcastic, dick around with art & craft and be non committal with the world championship tour where if you decide to participate, you can sometimes pull 3 manouvers in a row during a heat?
What I would give for a cashed up lifestyle like that!! QS's Ambassador of assing-around
perfect example. everyone is replaceable.
and yeah Dane is paid way more than $3m from quik...plus vans........rumours in USA this winter was they tried to get rid of Dane,but his contract was too strong,as Moody did not see the value in Dane not being a comp surfer....and after danes surfer poll speech......Moody had to be convinced not to sack dane for his derogatory comments on" the slaughter at Q.........interesting times...
Dane and JJF both on around $4m p.a. right? I thought those figures were pretty public knowledge.
Kelly's commercial track record is pretty poor I think, will be interesting to see exactly how tightly he's embedded in Kering, because I still don't see any real 'fit' between KS and their family of brands.
But if it's more about Kelly's own brand and Kering's back end operations and distribution then that makes more sense to me at least. Something similar to the Kate Moss / Topshop tie up to stay in Kelly's new fashion world.
Wow, hadn't seen the Surfer Poll video, here it is..
Dane's interview starts from 1:24
Hardly the raconteur. 3 million in him? Must have signed pre-GFC.
Luckily he can surf.
It will be interesting to see the spread sheet if Kelly dumps his shares in Quiksilver. I heard 20-30 millions worth - could be wrong? I predict this will come - why would he support a brand that may compete directly against his. If Danes worth 3m Kelly was worth 10x Danes figure.
Jeeez, he's lucky he can surf good.......................what a dick.
Like minds Fitzy. Comes across as a bit of a wanker.
At first I just thought he was off his tits. Nope.
Maybe it's just my age.
Same here Fitz, thought he was high as a kite, interesting fella.
It's a quirky little laugh he's got, isn't it?
any link to the stab mag?
I never could get interested in the clothes business.
just for the record guys..Dane is great bloke,very respectful of the history of surfing,he is a bit Currenesque,in that he's more introverted than extroverted....doesn't have a lot to say....just lets his surfing do the talking.......very hard to judge him on whats presented in the media.....he's the new Mysto man od surfing ,but a bit better paid.....
Agreed Brutus, seems like a great guy, particularly when he said his favourite beverage was Guiness. Not sure why everyone was getting a bit huffy over the speech. Just shy and honest, I thought it was a bit daggy and refreshing after the programmed rubbish that emanates from most sports peoples mouths when they are fronted by the media. Move forward, one match at a time, etc..etc.. ad nauseum. I preferred the old days when they would say really silly things that would have everybody up in arms whilst I was rolling around laughing.
I thought bringing up Quiksilver in the speech (and referring to it numerous times as 'The Massacre') was a little disrespectful, seeing so many people had been layed off but he was still sitting on a cool $3m+ a year just to free surf. Would have been better just quickly acknowledging them and moving on IMO.
Yes fair point, he does seem naive to the ways of the world. Wealthy parents, 3 mill a year, no pressure to put food on the table, however I don't think it was done with any malice, just not thinking about the sensitivities of the situation.
I came across this short vid the other day, was surprised to see a Quiksilver sponsored surfer appear...Raise the river levels or or move the ocean?
Great speech refreshing and funny and better then the usual boring and robotic stuff athletes usually come out with
Any idea what the CEO of Quik would pull a year ?
Andrew Mooney and Bob McKnight both on USD $1m base salaries, Mooney also got a USD $500k cash bonus and 1.2m shares in 2013.
McKnight holds substantially more of the company overall though as you'd expect.
Just google 'ZQK 10k' for the US version of an annual report, or 'ZQK Proxy Statement' for the Exec Compensation plan. Alternatively everything is posted on their Investor Relations page, that's the good part about public companies ...
Thanks Mickj
Kelly's name may be synonymous with quik but I don't reckon he made the label like occy made billabong.
Is there a top 5 WCT surfer coming out of contract anytime soon? It would be interesting to see who Quik would look to replace Kelly with? Looking at their team now it's very light on the men's side for event competitors opposed to free surfers. Freddy P's hardly going to fill the void. Flores is massive in Europe but For the first time there's no one that optimises the brand, such as Mick with Rip Curl & Parko with Billabong?
Spoiled little fucking princesses, IMO.
Grab a cup of cement and .......................
Touche, wellsy...... Can't wait for Phil's interview with Justin Beiber...... FFS, what has professional surfing become?........
Justin Beiber, isn't that young up start the singer Tagger...?
Not sure if Phil would do an interview with that little princess up start.
I love Phil's writing, can't wait for more Sheepio.
I've been around pro snowy boarders thingy ma giggy thingo's thru the 90's in comps and kicked their arses on steep find your line shit, I did it for the love of it, to prove to myself I could do it. Not for money or media, fame etc, just the adrenalin and stoked that my old man RIP gave me. Thats what life is about IMO, it's about your soul being at one with yourself not everyone else.... look at me me me I I I I'm the shit kind of thing.
Seen it heaps, bunch of spoiled brats, but saying that they promote themselves in such a way.
Hey good on them but that kind of money is over the top, they wouldn't know how to do a hard days work in their live.
:)
nice contribution
Simple fact of getting older ... you reach a certain stage of life where you don't care what star of the moment wears what brand of board shorts or wetsuit. The years have shown what works for you and what doesn't and you stick with the tried and true. T-shirts and sweatshirts? Forget it. You no longer want to look like an advertising billboard for a bunch of accountants listed on an overseas stock exchange. The boards are about the only commodity where you might chop and change - even if half the "innovations" turn out to be BS. It's all about the ride - always has been, always will be.
there is nuttin' like a heap of bloody luddites.....
"competition swimmer who was also known as an actor, lawman, early beach volleyball player and businessman"....
Didn't Duke Kahanamoku help market surfing well into his 70's?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_Kahanamoku
http://www.surfinaustralia.com.au/the-duke.html
And as the passage of time removes the inelegant and superfluous flaws of great ideas, moments and people , so nobody gives a fuck about Dukes board short sponsor.
Good on, Slater. For a hyper-competitive hard nut, I like how, even into his middle age, he is keeping true to the genuinely oddball aspects of his belief system. All that anti-chemical, anti-industrial, anti-GMO, organic only stuff which he takes to a more intense level than most of us. He does seem sincere and passionate. And when I say oddball, I am not saying he is wrong. And the different road is the hard road.
I reckon he is moving to a company that has a more ethical investment strategy and that might give him better scope to push his environmental barrows. So good on him.
The best of luck to Mr. Slater....
Noting's changed but the location. Stick will still stir the swill bucket.
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/g/georgeorwe102986.html
This is more than likely a huge 'Johnny-come-lately' observation, but it just occurred how strikingly Slats resembles the Silver Surfer these days. Obviously, the most prominent features are the chrome dome and the ability to do shit on a board no earthling is capable of doing...