Welcome to the Board Retailers Association (BRA) website. Below you will find helpful and relevant articles that we carefully curate for the benefit of our BRA Retail Members several times per week. Be sure to scroll through the most recent articles or use the Search/Lookup feature in the Menu above to find topics and keywords related to recent and not-so-recent articles that may help you lower costs, increase margins, or create more remarkable customer experiences. We deliberately made this our site landing page to demonstrate our commitment to “Protecting Retailers and a Lifestyle” for over 20 years (since 2003).
Be sure to visit the About Us, Retail Member Benefits and Join pages on this site to learn more about and benefit from our resourceful nonprofit trade association committed to helping board specialty, outdoor specialty, and lifestyle specialty retailers to survive, thrive, and keep “the special in specialty” for free.
“How to Increase Retail Sales in 2022 With Virtual Queuing” by Steve Covate via Total Retail
Photo Credit: Getty Images If the last two years have taught retailers anything, it might be that workforce trends can be just as unpredictable as consumer trends. The industry has always faced challenges in hiring and retaining talent, but the current labor shortage...
“The Evolution of Skate Videos, From VHS to TikTok – The medium might have changed over the past 50 years, but interest is still riding high.” by Guillaume Patigny via Vice News
This article originally appeared on VICE Belgium. When it comes to skateboarding, the only thing more important than actually going skating is making sure that you have footage of you doing it. You can tell people you’ve pulled off this, or jumped that, but...
“Five Takeaways for Retailers from CES 2022” by Arick Wierson via The Robin report
Well, that was interesting. When CES 2022 came to a close, one day ahead of schedule; attendees were dismissed early as “an additional safety measure” for minimizing the risks of Covid-19. (Apparently the brain trust at the Consumer Technology...
“‘You Can’t Feel A Fact: The Analytical Sales Personality Style’ plus ‘Why Training On the Salesfloor Doesn’t Work (video)'” by Bob Phibbs via The Retail Doctor blog
When I was looking for a lawn spreader, I asked the sales clerk, “Why should I buy this one?” He quickly answered, “Because it makes sense.” At that moment he confirmed my suspicions that he had an Analytical personality style. I've previously shared my thoughts...
“World Surf League Announces Its Finals Event Will Return to Lower Trestles” by staff writers via The Inertia
If it ain’t broke. Photos: WSL Well, it went so swimmingly, why not do it again? Following a World Surf League finals event in September that saw a fantastic mix of swell and conditions, the League announced today that its championship tournament...
“TEST YOUR INNER SKATE NERD WITH THIS NEW TRIVIA CARD GAME” by Alexis Castro via JENKEM MAG
photo: gordon eckler Skateboarders’ brains contain tons of factoids that matter very little in the “real world,” like who the first person to skate up a handrail was, or who invented the salad grind. We love to tease each other about who knows more about short-lived...
“December retail sales were strong, no matter what the clickbait headlines said” by Steve Dennis via Retail Wire
Photo: RetailWire Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion, is a summary of Steve Dennis’ recent Forbes article. Steve is President & Founder of SageBerry Consulting and a senior Forbes Contributor. He is the author of Remarkable Retail: How...
“A Brief History of Snowboarding – Rebellious youth. Olympic glory. How a goofy American pastime conquered winter” by Max Ufberg via Smithsonian Magazine
Snowboarder Shannon Dunn competes for Team USA in the 1998 Winter Olympics, where she won the bronze medal in half-pipe. Alexander Hassenstein / Bongarts via Getty Images Long before the term “snowboarding” existed—and at least 80 years before it was an Olympic...
“Managing Sales Behaviors to Improve Sales Performance” by Bob Phibbs via The Retail Doctor Blog
What are sales behaviors? They are a series of actions comprised in a sales process, the way salespeople act and talk with shoppers. It is not as some have said your thought process; it is something specific other sales associates can see or hear you do. For...
“Outdoor Retailer Releases Education Schedule and Floor Plan For Snow Show” by Outdoor Retailer via Shop Eat Surf (plus free hotel room scholarship opportunity for BRA Retail Members)
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, California – Outdoor Retailer Snow Show returns to Denver this month with a full schedule of in-person education and a redesigned floor plan structured around The Resource Center, a new information hub to access industry insight directly from...
“Content That Converts” (helpful downloadable report) via Total Retail
How retailers can grow e-commerce sales in a heightened competitive environment Over the past year, retailers have had to evolve their businesses to account for growing consumer demand for e-commerce. And for many consumers, the shift to online shopping is likely to...
“Volcom Unveils U.S. Olympic Snowboard Uniforms” by Tiffany Montgomery via Shop Eat Surf
Men's Brighton pullover jacket and the USST Hotlapper pant. Courtesy of Volcom Click on the following link to view additional official uniform photos from Volcom and related words via Shop Eat Surf: Volcom Unveils U.S. Olympic Snowboard Uniforms Be sure to visit...
“Rusty Preisendorfer Explains Why Your Surfboards Shouldn’t Be Bulletproof” by Rusty Preisendorfer via The Inertia
If your surfboard doesn’t dent up a little bit, it’s not a good thing. Photo: Rusty Surfboards/Instagram Editor’s Note: This feature was made possible by our friends at Rusty Surfboards. Like a fine pair of shoes, new boards need to dent up a bit....
“18 Retail Trends That will Shape 2022 and Beyond” by Werner Geyser via Influencer Marketing Hub
Clearly, the most significant factor affecting retail trends in 2021, continuing from 2020 and undoubtedly continuing through to 2022, has been the global emergence of COVID. We have examined the effects in detail, including a massive post looking at COVID-19...
“Shopping on Social Media Seen Hitting $1.2 Trillion by 2025” by Martine Paris via Bloomberg
Parcels inside a shipping container at the UPS Worldport facility in Louisville, Kentucky.Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg Shopping on social networks such as Facebook, TikTok and WeChat is going to grow three times faster than sales from traditional...
“East Coast Surfing Hall Of Fame Inducts Class Of 2022” via Surfing Heritage and Culture Center (SHACC) newsletter
Photo: Mez/ESM The East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame inducted its esteemed class of 2021 yesterday in a ceremony at Surf Expo in Florida. A star-studded class featuring world champs, matriarchs, shapers and media moguls. Congratulations to all those who’s names are now...
“4 Ways to Manage Your Company’s Online Reputation Without Ads” by Dave Lehman via Total Retail
Credit: Getty Images by Eva-Katalin As you might expect, advertisements don’t win over customers anymore. Why? Consumers are annoyed with ads. And so are marketers — 20 percent to 40 percent of clicks on paid ads are fraudulent. For these...
“Will 2022 be the Year of the Dark Horse in Retail?” by Arick Wierson via The Robin Report
My father grew up on a farm in central Iowa in the 1930s and 40s, and although life in the post-Depression heartland was pretty harsh, among his fondest memories from his childhood are those of his many horses, each one of them different shades of black. As a...
“How To Set A New Direction For Retail 2022” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
The start of a New Year is a good time to assess retail trends and where you’ve been and where you want to go. Otherwise, it can be just the same problems, different day. You have to believe there has to be more to running a retail store than a paycheck. Thank your...
“Watch: How a Snowboard is Made at the Never Summer Factory” by Lucky Lopez via Snowboard Mag
You may want to share the following video with your snowboarding customers: https://youtu.be/JzLR_b2uDHE Since its inception, Never Summer has made all of their snowboards out of their Denver, Colorado HQ. Attached to the offices and showroom is the factory, which is...
“Customers want you but choose Amazon, WHY?” by Dan Pankratz via Exchange Collective blog
70% of Americans Prefer to Shop Local You hear it all the time, “I love your store,” or “I want to support local,” and “I am over Amazon.” But it is no secret that millions of customers are going to Amazon’s market place to shop and buy. But in a survey of 1,500...
“Director Jacob Rosenberg Discusses His Early Work and the Impact of Skate Videos” by Anthony Pappalardo via ONE37pm
Portrait by Brett Simon Video content is the driver of modern skateboarding, but for being so integral, it’s a relatively young medium that’s still evolving. During the 1980s, Stacy Peralta saw the potential and power of video, creating a string of influential...
“Lake Tahoe Breaks Record for Snowfall in December, Closing Resorts and Roads” by Staff writer via The Inertia
Yeah, it’s deep. Photo: Palisades Tahoe It’s safe to say that Lake Tahoe, Calif. is off to a good start for winter. Maybe too good. The region smashed its record snow total for December, receiving a recorded 193.7 inches, topping the previous record of...
“JENKEM PRESENTS: THE 5TH ANNUAL SKATEBOARDING SUPERLATIVES” by James Lee via JENKEM MAG
The world may have exploded twice over in last year but we weren’t really paying attention because 2021 was a historic year for skateboarding. Not only was it the first time that our hobby/sport/whatever was showcased on a worldwide scale, but it was also the year...
“Managing Sales Behaviors to Improve Sales Performance” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
What are sales behaviors? They are a series of actions comprised in a sales process, the way salespeople act and talk with shoppers. It is not as some have said your thought process; it is something specific other sales associates can see or hear you do. For...
“That Fun TikTok Video? It’s Actually an Ad.” by Sapna Maheshwari via The New York Times
Anna Layza is one of many TikTok users making money by advertising products in their videos. Ms. Layza posted an ad that involved wearing a unicorn onesie and retrieving a box of cookies at Target. Credit...Todd Anderson for The New York Times Brands are flocking to...
“Help Wanted” by Pam Danziger via The Robin Report
In advance of the holiday season, the National Retail Federation (NRF) reported retailers will hire between 500,000 and 665,000 seasonal workers in November and December. At least some of retail’s 8.5 percent to 10.5 percent projected growth for holiday sales is...
“Retailers: Here’s How to Manage Your December Cash Flow” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
When it comes to cash flow at the end of a year for most retailers, it is very easy to be overwhelmed. During a pandemic with supply chain disruptions, the threat of shutdowns, and limited occupancy it's easy to miss the basics of December financial management....
“Four Retail Lessons from the Hospitality Sector” by Robin via The Robin Report
It’s no coincidence that people have a love affair with cooking shows, and I’m certainly no exception. Whether I’m scrolling through Netflix, Hulu, FuboTV, or even the Travel Channel, a wide variety of chefs are ready to take viewers on a journey from individual...
“We Reviewed The Best Women’s Wetsuits for 2022” by Rebecca Parsons via The Inertia
Interested in staying warm? Look no further. Kelin Victoria Editor’s Note: Welcome to The Inertia. Find out more about us and explore some of our archives here. Wetsuits are both the biggest blessing and curse of surfing. They keep us...
“GROUND GLASS: MARK SUCIU” by James Thompson via Jenkem Mag
2021 SOTY = Mark Suciu https://youtu.be/aVpvvB66_Xk Everyone loves to say contests and awards don’t carry any weight in skateboarding, but every year, skaters seem to give a lot of weight to Thrasher’s Skater of the Year award. “SOTY Season” gives us a lot...
“Gen Zers relied on buy now, pay later during the holidays. It’s time to pay up.” by Maria Monteros via Retail Dive
ViewApart via Getty Images What may be a beneficial feature to retailers poses risks to young consumers who've increasingly flocked to installment services. The busiest days of the holiday shopping season may be over, but some young consumers have yet to pay their...
“12 Secrets of a Successful 2021 Holiday Season for Retail Managers” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
Taking on retail manager responsibilities is a big job at any time but especially during the holidays. Making an awful lot of people happy at the holidays doesn't happen unless you have already put the effort in with your own team. When I was in college, I worked...
“Are skateboarders really solving the world’s problems, one trick at a time?” by David Wharton via Los Angeles Times
Members of the Aunt Skatie crew gather at the South Pasadena Skate Park on Nov. 14.(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times) The women keep their distance. At first. Dressed in T-shirts and sneakers, skateboards in hand, they stand by a chain-link fence, talking,...
“Bettylou Sakura Johnson Bests Carissa Moore to Win Haleiwa Challenger, 2022 CT Rookie Class is Set” by Will Sileo via The Inertia
Bettylou Wins Haleiwa Photo: Tony Heff/WSL No better way to start your rookie season than by beating the best of the best. And 16-year-old North Shore local Bettylou Sakura Johnson did just that yesterday in the finals of the Haleiwa Challenger, overcoming...
“SIMA Announces Vipe Desai as New Executive Director” press release via Shop Eat Surf
PRESS RELEASES | Published Dec 7, 2021 - Reposted with permission from Vipe Desai of SIMA Orange County, CA (December 7, 2021) – The Board of Directors of the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) are excited to announce the appointment of industry...
“With omicron landing in the US, do retailers actually need the vaccine mandate?” by Daphne Howland via Retail Dive
andreswd via Getty Images The National Retail Federation won a stay against the government's plan to have big companies immunize or test their employees. That squanders a chance to thwart the pandemic, experts say. As the omicron variant of COVID-19 made headlines...
“How to Improve Talent Retention This Holiday Season” by Dr. Natalie Baumgartner via Total Retail
Credit: iStock.com by Drazen Retail workers are leaving their jobs at a record pace, with 721,000 workers quitting in August alone, maintaining an industry high for employee turnover since April. What’s more, employers in the retail space that were already...
“Retail Sales Training: Pepper Your Presentation to Remove Insecurity” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
Ever been at a great dinner and used the salt instead of the pepper? The whole entree is ruined. This retail sales training blog is about peppering your approach to avoid the salt of insecurity. A colleague of mine, Carol Spiekerman posted this on her blog. I...
“Concerns over omicron could shift spending away from experiences, retail trade group says” by Melissa Repko via CNBC
A person with a hand full of shopping bags walks by as Black Friday sales begin at The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass in Simpsonville, Kentucky, November 26, 2021.Jon Cherry | Reuters KEY POINTS National Retail Federation CEO Matt Shay said Tuesday that the new...
“Jump on Board with Locally” by Calista Tufankjian
Come ride the Locally wave Are you Looking for a new way to connect brands and shoppers? Locally is your answer. Locally is a dynamic store and product locator company with thousands of retailers integrated providing shoppers with nearby, in stock products...
“The Future of Surf Pools” by Dashel Pierson via Surfline.com
Anyone with even the faintest interest in surfing can likely remember where they were, what they were doing, when the first video of Kelly Slater’s wavepool dropped. (I was on the couch, soaking in the reality of Adriano de Souza’s World Title win, which...
“Investing in Associates is Good for Business” by Rob Klitsch via Total Retail
The tide is turning in retail. Despite staff and supply shortages that may burden shoppers and encumber stores during the holiday season, signs of growing optimism for the future abound. While last year the industry underwent a scourge of bankruptcies and...
“Virgil Abloh dies at 41” by Daphne Howland via Retail Dive
Courtesy of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Dive Brief: Fashion designer Virgil Abloh, founder of Off-White and artistic director for men's at Louis Vuitton, died on Sunday. He was 41.Abloh had been undergoing treatment for a rare and aggressive cancer, cardiac...
“How To Use Email Marketing To Increase Retail Sales In December” by Bob Phibbs (the Retail Doctor)
Are you looking for how to use email marketing in December to lure holiday shoppers back to your store again and again? You've come to the right place for ideas. Customers are out there shopping for a once-in-a-generation spending spree, but how focused are you on...
“HALF OF HOLIDAY GIFT SPENDING WILL BE SPENT ON GIFT CARDS” via Industry Resource
People around the world plan to spend more on holiday gifts this year, and more of that spending is targeted at gift cards according to the 2021 Global Holiday Shopping Forecast released by global branded payments provider Blackhawk Network. The report...
“Selema Masekela Talks About Mami Wata’s Mission to Redefine Surf Lifestyle” by Will Seleo via The Inertia
Mami Wata seeks to change the global perception of African surf culture through establishing itself as a major brand in the surf lifestyle space. Photo: Mami Wata. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1dZ4N2-x58&feature=emb_imp_woyt Brands, and especially clothing...
“6 Essential Strategies to Make Your Holiday Creative Stand Out” by Polly Wong via Total Retail
In case you missed it, the holidays are in full swing. Media outlets have started reporting on the top toys for the season, Amazon.com is moving up Black Friday to start now (!), and the threat of supply chain snarls and shipping delays are...
“ICSC: 86% of consumers will shop over Thanksgiving weekend” by Tatiana Walk-Morris via Retail Dive
image by Libby Penner Dive Brief: As shoppers prepare for the busiest shopping weekend of the year, a new report from ICSC predicts that consumers will spend $491 on average between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, bringing in a total of over $108 billion for the...
“How To Determine If Your Employee Scheduling Is Too Lean” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
Almost every retailer looks at employee scheduling as their most expensive operating cost. I see employees as an asset, not a liability, but that’s another post... Stores that were designed to run on six employees are now limping along on two...or even one. How do...
“TikTok usage surpassed Instagram this year among kids aged 12 to 17, Forrester survey says” by Salvador Rodriguez via CNBC
Adam Mosseri speaks onstage at the WIRED25 Summit 2019 - Day 1 at Commonwealth Club on November 08, 2019 in San Francisco, California.Matt Winkelmeyer | Getty Images KEY POINTS More Americans between the ages of 12 and 17 are using TikTok than Instagram on a weekly...
“Your In-Store Customer Experience and Bottom Line Are Linked. Here’s Why” by Bobby Marhamat via Total Retail
Credit: Getty Images by Maskot Regardless of retail’s latest headwind, brick-and-mortar organizations continue to embrace their enduring mission: get consumers into retail locations and convince them to part with their money. The emphasis on e-commerce over the past...
“The Big-Wave Season Officially Opens for Jaws and Nazaré” by Alexander Haro via The Inertia
Big wave season is open. Grab your big wave guns. Photo: WSL/Bryanna Bradley On November 15, the World Surf League’s Big Wave season window officially opened. Two of the most exciting events in all of surfing are on standby for the next few months: the Quiksilver...
“Top 5 KPIs for Actionable Retail Decisions” by RICS Software (BRA Supporting Vendor Partner)
A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) is a measurement of business performance and health. The best KPIs help you make decisions and take action towards achieving your goals. At a minimum, we recommend you review these Top 5 KPIs for Actionable Retail Decisions weekly,...
“The Jobs Problem In Retail Isn’t What You Think” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
Much is being written about people quitting and the Great Resignation. People quit all the time and oftentimes find the grass isn't always greener. But the jobs problem in retail isn't what others are telling you. I was in Manhattan last week shopping and enjoying a...
“GROUND GLASS: BRAD CROMER” by James Thompson via Jenkem Mag
Over the last few years we’ve seen a few videographers include 16mm film in their edits. While it’s common to see a couple of seconds of b-roll or a trick thrown in as an artsy break, very few attempt to capture an entire video on film. At $50 a minute, you’re at the...
“Vans Marketing Executive on the Evolution of the Triple Crown of Surfing” by Tiffany Montgomery via Shop Eat Surf
John John Florence, who won the digital Vans Triple Crown of Surfing in men's in 2020 - Photo by Ryan Miller courtesy of Vans Click on the following link to view this interesting Shop Eat Surf Article: Vans Marketing Executive on the Evolution of the Triple Crown...
“Why Retailers Should Focus on Online Reviews to Improve Credibility and Drive More Sales” by Heidi Sullivan via Total Retail
Credit: Getty Images by Kiyoshi Hijiki It’s not a novel concept anymore, but in an age of instant gratification when consumers have all the information they need right at their fingertips — and at a moment’s notice — many retail businesses are finding that sometimes...
“Retailers Future-Proof the In-Store Experience with Digital Precision” by Steve Mauchline and Min Chen
Lately, though, this “dot the i’s and cross the t’s” mindset has gone by the wayside more frequently than is ideal. We know that the most enjoyable and exciting shopping experiences happen when it’s clear that associates care not just about the retail and...
“How To Prepare For Small Business Saturday Nov 27” by Bob Phibbs (The Retail Doctor)
Small businesses have survived the judgment made about them as “non-essential” and now there is a groundswell of support for them this Small Business Saturday that didn’t exist just a few years ago. We collectively woke up and realized it really mattered that we chose...