Stewart Surfboards 2023 Surfboards Preview

Retail Buyers Guide: Surfboards 2023 Retail Buyer‘s Guide
Brand: Stewart Surfboards
Interviewee: Rémi Chaussemiche, Marketing Europe

Looking back to 2022, the past year could be tagged as tricky: weakened spending power, overstocks in some segments, shortages for others… What was the ‘22 bottom line for your brand and what do you foresee for ’23?
Sample N co just got the License of Stewart Surfboards for Europe in august 2022. So we don’t have over stock and we started organically with some pre-orders for 2023. Our Challenge will be to gain market share and to give Stewart the visibility and reprensentation it deserves on the European Market

Which category(ies) is(are) performing most within your range: entry-level, high-perf, midlengths & retro crafts, funboards, longboards?
Longboards and Midlength are definitely the bread butter for Stewart Surfboards. That said we have a broad range of boards including retro crafts and fun shortboards.

What used to be considered as alternative crafts (twins, midlengths) are the new normal and overtook the classic performance shortboard sales. Does this mean the fun factor is more important than the actual performance? If we were to quote Phil Edwards: “The best surfer out there is the one having the most fun.”
That is definitely what Stewart is about. We are providing fun, boards that catches waves and that can be ridden from intermediate to excellent surfers, keeping in mind, that any boards even a fu one has to remain performant to provide fun. STEWART SURFBOARDS ARE FOR PROS, BEGINNERS, AGING SURFERS, AND ANYONE IN-BETWEEN.

A few years back, high-end techy EPS/carbon surfboards were the hype. But eventually the masses stick to an old-fashioned PU board. Isn’t the lack of innovation a threat for the development of the surfboard industry?
For the kind of boards we produce, PU seems to be the most appropriate material. We do work with other material but most of our customers will look for some PU surfboards from Stewart. I think there is a room for innovation, but for the moment PU remains the most appropriate material for Stewart Surfboards.

Nowadays e-com is everything but negligible in the surfboard market: how do you deal with this channel (D2C, distribution partners, etc.)?
For the moment we have focused our sales on the B to B side, we will go D2C as well making sure we maintain the price positioning, we will orientate our D2C offer on customs mainly and really high end surfboards.

Best Sellers

Red Line 11

The Ultimate 9’0 Surfboard! Turns like an 8’6,” Paddles like a 9’6.” Noserides like a 10’0.” Bill says this is the “best all-around longboard he’s ever designed”. The nose bottom has a deep single concave that continues back past the half way point. This concave is what makes the Redline 11 paddle, turn and nose ride exceptionally great. That single concave flows into a double concave with a heavy V in the rounded pin tail, which makes it loose, fast and easy to ride. Bill invented the beveled rail over 30 years ago, and it remains a key feature in many of his board designs for a reason. The bevels in the Redline 11 rails lift the rail edge making it really forgiving on the drop-in and in rail to rail turns. The hard edges in the tail rails release water for insane speed. The included 2+1 fin set-up (another Bill Stewart invention) features 2 short wide rail fins forward giving the board drive while keeping it loose. The larger center back fin holds the board in the pocket when riding up on the nose.

Ripster

The best of both worlds, the Ripster combines classic styling with modern technical design features, making it the ultimate performance single fin! Nose A deep, long blended concave in the nose makes this board paddle with maximum glide to catch every wave. It also creates trim speed and lift down the line, beating sections like you won’t believe! Rails The rails are down hard in the tail, then soften as they go forward, making this board turn incredibly well while also being forgiving. The hard edges on the tail release water, giving it ripping speed, and the foil holds it in the pocket. Tail The heavy V in the tail runs up to the middle of the board, where it’s perfectly transitioned into the nose concave. This makes rail to rail surfing easier, and beautiful back-to-back roundhouse turns effortless. Single Fin Comes with a clean & simple raked 9″ single fin, for that classic look and optimal performance for this model.

949

A High Speed, Performance Five Fin Fun Board. Low nose entry rocker for paddle power. A monstrous deep vee concave bottom which makes the board ride much smaller rail to rail. Designed to be surfed with the included Future Vector 2 Quad Scimitar fins and a center box trailer fin, which provide solid bite and insane drive. A great board for all conditions, from punchy beach breaks to playful point breaks. You’re gonna want to have this board in your quiver!