The grand opening of Hansen's new Rip Curl store drew quite a crowd, with its prime location on HWY 101
Photos: Alex Befekadu
Around 70 surf industry members and locals came out to Hansen?s grand opening for its new 1,700-square-foot Rip Curl store Wednesday, May 1, including surf legends like Tom Curren and Taylor Knox. The store, which officially opened for business about a month ago, is likened to ?an in-store buildout on steroids,? with its own company branded storefront that is connected to the retail shop?s 17,000-square-foot main floor, according to Hansen?s Owner Josh Hansen.
The Rip Curl crew, who was at the event in full force headed up by Marketing Director Dylan Slater, were in charge of all the merchandising and POP for the new retail space, and have been generally working to create an authentic surf experience, complete with?collages brought to life by Slater and Hansen?s Founder?Don Hansen? and one of Andy Irons? jerseys from a Rip Curl Search event.
?When we looked at the space we decided that Rip Curl made the most sense with their wetsuit business and pretty strong men?s and women?s clothing categories,? says Hansen. ?And now, obviously with Alana Blanchard blowing up, their bikini business is really strong, so it?s setting up to be pretty solid.?
Although he mentions it?s hard to measure the success of the store so early in the game, Hansen says he?s confident the addition will be a solid investment.
?For us, because of how it all lays out as far as being on the Coast Highway, it creates more of a destination for people to pull over and shop, and walk through both Hansen?s and Rip Curl,? Hansen says. ?Obviously with having all that inventory in the Rip Curl space we can also move some of that product into the main store, and with that you get the ability to capture quite a few more sales.?
Rip Curl has consistently been one of the top performing brands at Hansen?s?one of the main reasons they decided to partner so closely with the company, explains Hansen. Wetsuit sales have remained strong, and he suspects will only gain momentum now that the product category has been given proper floor space. Women?s swimwear is also a category that, although in the past has seen softer sales, is now coming back strong and shaping up to see a successful season, the shop owner shared.
Overall, the grand opening Wednesday marked a bright beginning and Hansen was happy with the turnout and the overall vibe from everyone in attendance.
?It?s a cool space,? he says. ?It?s always a ?work in progress. We were even talking [Wednesday] with the Rip Curl guys about how it?s really starting to feel, and smell, and become a surf shop, but there are always things to tweak and change? it?s always evolving.?
Hansen?s is located at 1105 Highway 101, Encinitas, California. For more information, visit?www.hansensurf.com.
CATEGORIZED: Features, Photos, Retail News, retail profiles, surfTAGS: alana blanchard, don hansen, dylan slater, hansen's surf shop, josh hansen, rip curl, shop in shop, Surf Industry, surf shop, surfing industry
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