It’s been twelve months since my epic adventure to the West Coast of America. As they venture forward into the 09′/10′ season it seems only fitting to introduce you to some of the characters I met along the way. New York felt like home thanks to the people I met and the inner sanctum they introduced me to. I arrived on December 4th and the snow season was starting to gain momentum. In-between exploring the likes of Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Long Island there was the mountain. During my stay I spent the majority of my time in great company riding some of the East Coasts finest. This is where I was introduced to Darrell Abrams, not only an extremely talented snowboarder and instructor; he was also an undeniable character and extrovert within the seasonaire community. Unknown to many is that Darrell is the driving force and creator of Laurus which strives to create original, innovative, and exciting products that not only demonstrate practicality on the mountain but also incorporate the snowsports lifestyle. The products reflect that unfaltering desire to get on the mountain and shred with a refreshing approach in design that results in an aesthetically pleasing functional range of garments for everyday use. 12 months on I found time to catch up with Darrell to gather further understanding of his vision for Laurus and any developments over the last year.
Hey man, how’s the start of season 09′/10′? I heard you guys have had some early snow?
When you say “you guys” do you mean all of us on this side of the pond? lol. They are getting hit hard out west and it’s the earliest openings for resorts all over the place out there. Here in the east we’ve got some teaser stuff going on, lots of early season rail jams, weather that keeps toying with me and every week there’s rumours of resorts opening that weekend. I got a little fix by hitting up the dry slope in VA in August but I can’t wait for the season to really start here. Hopefully I’ll get a couple days in before the end of this month.
How long have you had the bug? I have spent time with you, snowboarding is in your blood, you feel at home on the mountain yeah?
My passion for the shred has been with me for more than half my life, 13 of 24 yrs and somehow I just can’t get enough, the more I ride, the more I want to ride. I’m totally entrenched in snowboarding, the people, the industry, the entire lifestyle that surrounds the sport. All my friends are riders, and most are also involved or connected to the industry. Snowboarding isn’t just something that you do, for most it becomes a big part of who you are. For me it’s definitely the main motivator behind just about everything in my life. As much as I love snowboarding though I don’t think I could really live in a small mountain town.
First mountain pass?
First place I rode was Blue Mountain in the poconos, I basically grew up there and at Camelback. We did a lot of night riding after school and every weekend.
So what inspired you start creating your own products? What fuels your passion?
It all started when I was working at a board shop, we’d always criticize all the gear and clothing. We’d come up with new ideas and variations of stuff. Concepts for items that were more versatile and that really fit our lifestyle. We wanted items that nobody else was making, or to add functional elements to products that were purely aesthetic. To take functional gear and make it look good so that we could wear it everyday and not just on the hill. Items that would allow us to get pass the velvet rope at places we wanted to go while still representing snowboard culture. So I would say that my everyday life from the day job, to business to partying, school, fashion, my friends, snowboarding, and the desire to bring all these things together in the form of products that other people will love is my fuel.
Introduce the team, who’s involved with Laurus?
The core of Laurus is four guys; Amaury Piantini, Shatiff Conyers, Katiah Lunn, and myself. These guys are close friends, they all love snowboarding as much as me, and each have their own history within the snowboard industry. They were with me when Laurus was just a bunch of crazy ideas. Each of us have some specific roles within the company, but we all pitch in to get things done. When I say that WE are the manufacturer I mean that literally. We don’t send our designs out somewhere to be made, I myself am hands on involved with the development & production and so are my partners. My family is also a huge help and I wouldn’t be here without their support. We’ve got a couple interns, sales reps, affiliated companies and people that have joined in and helped out along the way, like photographers & writers. Our friends and riders in general give us tons of feedback on the product and ideas for more stuff so they are a big part of our team.
What can we expect to see on the mountain from Laurus this season?
Pow slashes! I really hope it snows; but definitely jibbing, jumping, high fives and good times. Business wise we’re supporting and getting involved as a sponsor for more contests and on snow events than ever before. Product wise be on the look out for co-branded face wraps featuring our all new and totally organic/sustainable resource (eco-friendly materials) that we’re doing with some really great organizations that in their own right make great impact or just great product. We don’t associate ourselves with just anyone but are proud to support Launch Snowboards, Hoods to Woods Foundation, and Stoked Mentoring as a few of our key affiliates. If you see one of our team members on the hill check them out because they’ll probably be wearing, carrying, and testing some of the products that we’ve got in the works for next season.
Creating a company amongst the industry giants must be tough. Where do you find a point of difference from the likes of Burton, DC, 686 etc?
Well the whole economy is bad; the big guys aren’t doing so well themselves. Shops and retailers are hurting so they’re very reluctant to take on new brands and so we get some resistance there. We’re a tiny company and we’re still just getting started, while those guys are hurting because they didn’t make as much as the years before, we’re getting bigger. I don’t see Laurus as competing with those guys at all though, we don’t try to. We make our own products in our own way and the people who know about us really love and support our product and how we do business. For me 10 really stoked customers is way better than a million that look at your product as just another T-shirt. We just want to continue to focus on the products and the end user. We don’t have expensive ad campaigns or a fancy to tell people how amazing the product is instead we have an amazing product and people tell each other about it.
For me, your products come with a real personal touch, like every detail has been thought out and considered. For the people by the people if you will.
We’ve put a ton of time into those little details and I really am glad you notice it. It’s one of those things were you just can’t fake it. It won’t look and feel handmade if it isn’t. It won’t feel like it was carefully tagged and packaged if it wasn’t. This is why we do this stuff ourselves because we care about the product and the end user. That’s the difference between us and those big guys, they present the image of being for riders by riders, of being all about product when the truth is they’ve got umbrella corporations, and guys in suits having meetings about how much ROI the next contest or video is going to create and could really care less about the riding, riders, tricks etc. They’ve got market research; we’ve got our friends feedback. Our stuff doesn’t have to be shipped overseas or sit around forever so we get away with our minimalist approach to packaging and take time with details like the how it’s folded and put into recycled paper envelopes and tags with biodegradable hemp string instead of those stupid plastic tagging things.
You seem to be involved with some amazing events stateside. How important is this for your brand?
Along with word of mouth, events are our biggest source for exposure as a brand and we feel its the best way to reach our target market. We want to support the riders, the community, and to sell our stuff to people who snowboard so we go where they are. We also love to shred and “work” is always a great excuse to get a day on the hill.
What’s the dream, where do you see Laurus in five years time?
Making a complete line of clothing, outerwear, luggage and accessories all year round that’s multi-functional, versatile and looks great. Products that are focused on snowboarding, the surrounding lifestyle and all the things we do when we aren’t snowboarding from surf, skate to casual wear and right back to the mountain. Stuff that we are proud to make, stuff that we are stoked to use and that enables people. We want to grow but we won’t ever let our products get watered down. We’ll always create products in limited quantities; we’ll always follow certain ethics in everything we do. We set out to create a brand that is holds itself to high moral standards, our mission was never to get rich but to make dope stuff and that’s another major difference between us and a lot of other companies. Right now I just want to reach the point where my team and I can all do Laurus full-time, so we don’t have “day-jobs,” so we can live comfortably and go riding.
Related Links:
http://www.facebook.com/LaurusSnow
