Dakine Wetsuits FW 2024 Preview

Retail Buyers Guide: Wetsuits FW24 Retail Buyer’s Guide
Brand: Dakine
Interviewee: Phil Bridges, Designer

What is your confidence level regarding FW24 orders/preorders? Did retailers manage to clear their shelves of the former collections?
There’s a lot of inventory to work through for sure. On the plus side, as a technical hardware product the design remains current and valid through seasons. And winter wetsuits are a necessity not a luxury so we’ll see the product work through in time.

Winter wetsuits are the second most expensive pieces of the surfer’s kit after the board itself: are high pricepoints a challenge in an inflationary context or are the surfers willing to pay for quality?
Relative to the covid effect on price, the more recent inflation is less impactful so prices are reasonably stable again. The bigger influence is the clearing of stock that is driving prices down. That said, it’s definitely a pattern that core surfers will spend more on a winter wetsuit to be sure of a good suit. A cheap winter wettie is a false economy.

Will FW24 be a season of carry-overs for your brand or are you pushing new models?
We have a new price point model featuring a plant based version of our FriendlyPrene with Eco One for enhanced biodegradability. The Eco Mission aims to bring a sustainable option to the wider market, not keeping it only for the few like the previous plant based rubbers were.

Neoprene foams can be both sustainable and high-performance nowadays. What rubber compound will you use in FW24?
Our FriendlyPrene is the most high performing eco rubber around – Yamamoto #39 with Eco One to increase biodegradability. It has the legendary Yamamoto performance with the addition lab proven landfill degradation testing.

What technologies/constructions are your outer/inner linings made of?
We use recycled linings. We’re also working on introducing Eco One into the linings as well so the whole suit will degrade more quickly when disposed of.

What are the latest updates/innovations among your women wetsuit collection?
Our Women’s line matches the Men’s in technology and quality. We’ve also introduced some new styles in Womens, in a jacket, leggings and bikini cut long sleeve suit.

Repair, recycle, upcycle ? How do you handle the afterlife of your wetsuits?
As well as the FreindlyPrene innoavtio, we have partnered with Circular Flow to collect and recycle old wetsuits into new products. We have a line of accessories available using our old wetties.

Key Products:

MENS ECO MISSION: