A Global Skateboard Industry? Interview with Jeff Kendall of NHS
Jeff Kendall, President of NHS, Inc., a US skateboard distribution company based in Santa Cruz, California
NHS donates 1% of the NHS Skate Direct online store sales to various causes and MLSL is very grateful to be one of the beneficiary organizations. How important is it for NHS to give back to skateboarding?
NHS is proud and stoked to partner with MLSL this year. You guys are the ones giving back to skateboarding. We're just happy to help you guys with your mission.
After being pro for Santa Cruz and Independent in the late 80’s early 90’s you quickly set foot in the skateboard industry. How was business back then compared to now?
First thing that comes to mind, at least in the 90’s when I started working in the industry, is that it was very small and very DIY in the sense that a lot of us at NHS had to wear several hats, so to speak. It was a great time for us ex-professionals to learn a lot of different aspects and roles in the business. Oh, and pants were really big, wheels really small.
Jeff Kendall at a demo in London in 1989
Skateboarding in its early beginnings is associated with a Californian lifestyle. Today, all kinds of different skateboarders come from all parts of the globe and the attention for skateboarding is increasing even more with the Olympics. How does the industry adapt to this development? Would you say that the industry is also becoming more inclusive and diverse?
I was going to add the diversity in skateboarding in my answer above until I saw this question. Skateboarding’s reach and appeal are wider now than any booms that have happened before. Skateboarding is geographically way more disperse now. We are witnessing a truly global rush. Demographically, it's more common for a grandfather (grandmother too?) to skate with their grandchild than any other time in skateboarding's history. There're more females skating. The industry is adapting by broaden its distribution globally and developing products for all types of skating. Skateboarding is more inclusive than a lot of the world and definitely other sports.
What role do you think emerging skate scenes play when it comes to the growth of skateboarding internationally and how was it back in the day? Which markets outside of the US have you seen evolve the most and how high do you think the potential is for growth in Asian, Middle-Eastern or African low-income countries?
The small skate scenes you guys are supporting all over the world with the parks you’re building are and will continue to organically create lifelong skateboarders. You mentioned the Olympics earlier and I do feel that the addition of skateboarding to the games has helped grow participation in Asia quite a bit already.
How come skateboarding is able to withstand the pandemic while other industries are going down the drain?
Skateboarding’s accessibility, affordability and straight up fucking coolness has definitely helped it thrive, not just survive, the pandemic so far. Kids and adults are at home and not at school and work in a lot of countries and skateboarding can be fun in the driveway, street and garage. It also hasn’t hurt skateboard sales that organized sports have been in hibernation mode in a lot of the world for the better part of a year. We were already seeing some serious growth in skateboarding but the pandemic expedited and amplified things.
NHS production floor
What role have skateparks played for you in your skateboarding life?
Having started skating in the early 80’s in the middle of America, skateparks were what I fantasized about skating while flipping through all of the old skate mags. I can remember rolling into the first park I ever went to, Surf n Turf skatepark in Milwaukee Wisconsin, like it was yesterday- the smell, the lights, the music all the bowls and pools. Endless Summer in Detroit and Kona in Jacksonville were two parks I got to skate in the mid 80’s. Every park was several hours away by car so we had to create or own “parks” in the form of backyard ramps and quarter pipes. It goes without saying that the prevalence of skateparks all over the world is a huge reason for the growth in skateboarding.
Where is skateboarding heading in the next 10 years?
My guess would be continued growth for another 3-5 years followed by a significant decline in participation for years to follow. It’s the 10-11 year cycle that we’ve seen since the 70’s. However, each decline is supported by more skaters than the previous dip. And Make Life Skate Life is guaranteeing that by building skateparks and lifelong skaters all over the world.
