Austrian sporting goods retailer Blue Tomato, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, is growing steadily in Europe and expanding into new markets, such as Italy recently. In addition, the board sports expert is also on the road with his amateur skateboard tournament ‘Best Foot Forward Europa Tour’. Adam Ellis, CEO at Blue Tomato, explains what gets customers rolling, what expansion plans the company has and what influence skateboarding has on fashion.
About Blue Tomato:
- Blue Tomato was founded in 1988 by former European snowboard champion Gerfried Schuller in a garage in Schladming. Over the last 35 years, the Austrian sporting goods retailer has developed into an international company with around 850 employees and more than 80 stores in eight countries, which has been owned by the US clothing retailer Zumiez since 2012.
Which pieces are doing well at Blue Tomato right now?
We saw strong performance in men’s and women’s clothing, accessories and footwear. Our customers look for brands and products that are on trend, such as wide pants and new brands that are different from what is generally found on the market.
Which brands are particularly popular with your customers right now?
Brands that focus on environmental sustainability continue to resonate with our customers, as do brands that authentically reflect the lifestyle we represent.
Fashion brands are currently relying on models that are reminiscent of the chunky skate shoes of the early 2000s. Does this trend also play a role for you as a specialist retailer?
We continue to work with footwear brands to explore new trends and it’s clear that Y2K fashion and chunky shoes have been part of the recent footwear trend. We also see the response from shoe retailers that their most important streetwear models come from the skate sector.
What other trends are you seeing coming out of boardsports and now influencing fashion?
The skateboarding lifestyle has always been closely linked to streetwear and emerging trends. Even though these trends can be cyclical in nature, there are always new combinations that are unique to the time. It’s clear that skateboarding has made the pants trend in recent years, but when you look at other core trends surrounding logo basics, they too grew out of the skate lifestyle.
Blue Tomato is now active in stationary retail in eight countries. Which markets are you targeting next?
After opening in Italy in the spring, we will continue to expand our presence in the market and expand to Belgium in the fall.
Is expansion beyond European borders also conceivable?
We focus on going where we have customers and giving them the opportunity to shop how and when they want. We have had a lot of success identifying opportunities based on our digital demand and building markets where we have an established customer base. There are clearly opportunities for Blue Tomato globally, but we still have many opportunities to serve our customers in Europe and that is our focus.
How many new openings are currently planned?
We will open ten stores this year. This number is a sustainable way for us to move forward in terms of store count. Opening in new markets brings with it a certain level of complexity for the company and our teams. As such, we try to balance new market growth with store growth to ensure we are preparing our teams for success.
After the extreme urge to move and be active during the pandemic, are you noticing a declining trend in interest in board sports products?
Since the end of Corona, we have seen a decline in consumer goods. The great thing about a lifestyle business is that you have the flexibility to adapt and still meet customer demand.
While consumer durables were challenging, we saw gains in streetwear, footwear and accessories that more than offset the loss in consumer durables. The teams have done a great job of understanding what appeals to our customers and meeting that need.
In conclusion. How will you close the current financial year?
If you can tell me how much it will snow, I can tell you how we will end the year. Of course, seasonal winter business is an important part of our brand and the way we serve our clientele, so much will depend on the conditions in the markets in which we operate. I am confident that we will achieve profits and finish the year strong because I have confidence in our teams, our product range strength and the importance of Blue Tomato for our customers.
This interview was conducted in writing.