Agenda and U.S. Surf Open come together by Nicole O’Dell Young Men’s Buyer

Last week I was able to attend The Agenda Show in Huntington Beach. Here buyers come together to shop other lines and look at the Spring 2011 line.  The great thing with trade shows like Agenda, is that we get to look at the different lines to see if there is a new brand we want to add to our stores.  Agenda had a very cool vibe. Nice and relaxing without all the noisy fluff.  The show also had a nice mix of brands ranging from Hurley to Crooks and Castles.  The fashion setting guys at the show were all outfitted in long sleeve flannels and skinny jeans.  Dark colors are key.  We will see how well this translates to us in the mid-west as are gear up for fall and holiday sales.

A bonus part of our buying trip was getting to attend the U.S Surf Open.  Here a half million people gathered on the beaches to enjoy surf, skate, and bmx biking.  Hurley had a special area in the stands for their key accounts. The Glik team was able to enjoy the surfing contest from this VIP area, which offered mingling with others in the business as well as a catered lunch and redbull!  The uniform on the streets here consisted of guys in boardshorts and girls in bikinis with cutoff denim shorts. Downtown Huntington was packed like I’ve never seen before. We stepped into Jack’s and HSS to check out the local brands. They were both piled high with Quiksilver, Volcom, Billabong, and Hurley (only at HSS). Surf brands are key!  We found some new brands to test, brands that were highly recommend.  We left California armed and excited about Spring 2011!