Producing the debut board collection, Adjective Dragon, and the first merchandise/apparel line for the Breezy Boards Launch Party.
So I am building Breezy Boards as the product of passion from a life-long longboard skateboarder. Now what?
Launching Breezy Boards is the doorway to the next chapter in my life, so what better reason to throw a party! I will be graduating from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg on Sunday, May 8. The following Friday is Friday the 13th, which happens to be a day that I’ve always been fascinated with and also happens to fall on my birthday this year. A reason to party paired with the perfect date! In October, 2015, World of Beer in downtown St. Petersburg eagerly accepted my proposal to host the event at their bar, agreeing to feature local beers and accommodate my vision of an all-out celebration.
In preparing to execute my vision for the launch party I have worked to produce the first collection of Breezy Boards, featuring artwork from local artists, as well as the first line of Breezy Boards merchandise and apparel.
The essence of Breezy Boards is quality longboard skateboards that bring people together, whether it be through a shared love of skating, supporting local businesses or feeling a connection to the Breezy Boards brand. The longboards that I produce will focus on this essential factor.
For the debut collection of Breezy Boards I chose a theme, derived from a play-on-words that let the imagination run wild and highlighted my love and appreciation for puns. I reached out to local artists, presented them with the concept for the theme and asked them to participate in an art contest, where five winning designs would be selected to be a part of the Adjective Dragon collection. Once the five designs were chosen, after being submitted and showcased on the Breezy Boards Facebook page, I announced the winners and began production on the boards. The collection will feature the debut Breezy Board shape, along with these specifications:
- 47 inches x 9.5 inches
- 7 ply Canadian Maple Hardwood
- Wheel cutouts
- Slight concave
- Kicktail
- Complete, ready-to-ride boards
The 100-board collection will feature the five winning artist’s dragon-inspired artwork, 20 of each design:
- Fat Dragon by Dylan Haught
- Mystical Dragon by Deanna Marinello
- Unborn Dragon by Cameron Miller
- Basic Dragon by Kelly Owen
- Hungry Hungry Dragon by Jessica Sarlis a.k.a. Bam
The winning designs can be viewed on the Breezy Boards Facebook and boards from the Adjective Dragon collection will be available to preorder in March. The entire collection will be on display at the launch party in May and those who preordered a board will be presented with their board at the event. These will be the first people to ever own a Breezy Board! The artists featured in the collection are expected to attend and will be formally recognized at the event.
Once the collection was finalized and sent into production I shifted focus from the longboard skateboards to the Breezy Boards merchandise and apparel that I wanted ready for the launch party. A girl who entered artwork into the Adjective Dragon art contest, Kayla O’Brien, had reached out to me offering to produce any customized products for my business through her father’s marketing company.
Kayla’s enthusiasm for the project had me on board, which I found out was both exciting and beneficial for her, too, because I was her first big project that she would manage on her own! The partnership was mutually beneficial and equally exciting for the both of us, which is the nature of business that I strive for with Breezy Boards.
So I met with Kayla to explain my vision for the merch line, everything from colors and logos to types of shirts and promotional products. She was all about it and excited to start working on it. After months of designing, reworking and tweaking our creations, we had developed a full, 13-product line of Breezy Boards merchandise.
The line includes apparel:
- Basic men’s t-shirt
- Men’s tank
- Men’s pocket t-shirt
- Unisex baseball t-shirt
- Women’s muscle tank
- Women’s fitted t-shirt
- Women’s cotton athletic shorts
And merchandise:
- Beer coozies
- Bottle opener keychain
- Canvas drawstring backpack
- Bic pens
- Sunflower vinyl stickers
- Hashtag on deck bumper stickers
For one of the shirt designs I needed to stage a photo of a group of people hanging out, taking a break from a skate session. To get the image I organized an event where people were invited to bring their boards and do a group photoshoot on a Tuesday afternoon. The picture came together perfectly, thanks to the crew who showed up and Casey Nelson who was the photographer for the shoot, and I formally invited all of the amazing kids who made time to help create the photo to officially be members of the Breezy Boards Street Team! Everyone accepted with smiles. A photograph from the day I founded my street team, with the original people who turned out to support me and my endeavor, will be printed on a product in the debut Breezy Boards merch line.
Kayla O’Brien was essential in helping me to bring the idea of Breezy Boards merchandise into fruition and is also expected to attend the Launch Party. She will be recognized for her contribution to the success of the launch.
With back-of-house production finalized in the beginning of February, the countdown now begins for everything that needs to be planned, organized and executed for a kick ass, memorable launch…
The next step: party planning! Stay tuned, keep skating and get ready to put on your party pants, kids!