ALISO VIEJO, Calif.- The Surf Industry
Manufacturers Association (SIMA) is proud to announce the winners for
the fourth annual SIMA Image Awards, a program
designed to recognize surf industry companies for their outstanding
achievements in eight categories: Ad Campaign of the Year, Product
Innovation of the Year, Breakthrough Brand of the Year, Retailer of the
Year, Board Builder of the Year, Women's Brand of the Year, Men’s Brand
of the Year and Manufacturer of the Year. Winners were honored in a
ceremony on May 20 at SIMA Surf Summit 9 in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
The winner in the category of Manufacturer of
the Year is Volcom. Volcom previously won this award at the inaugural
Image Awards ceremony in 2003 and again in 2005. The nominees for
Manufacturer of the Year were: Billabong, Quiksilver, Sole Technology,
Surftech and Volcom. This award was given to the manufacturer that
successfully pursued an ambitious business strategy to grow its current
business; exemplified industry leadership through areas such as market
growth, product development and/or economic impact on the industry; and
contributed to the growth of the industry as a whole in 2005.
“The profile of the SIMA Image Awards and the
excitement surrounding them continues to grow each year,” said Dick
Baker, SIMA president and president of Op. “The ballots poured in this
year and the race to win each category was tight. It sounds cliché, but
all nominees should be stoked to have been nominated and recognized by
their peers. It is quite an honor. SIMA’s goal is to continue to
recognize more companies for their achievements each year.”
Billabong emerged victorious in this year’s
new category, Men’s Brand of the Year. The category was introduced to
recognize the men’s apparel, footwear, wetsuit or accessory brand that
best grew its business in 2005 and featured the category’s most
exciting designs, as well as having increased its brand appeal in the
past year. Nominees for Men’s Brand of the Year were Billabong,
Quiksilver, RVCA, Vans and Volcom.
Roxy claimed the Women's Brand of the Year
award. The Women’s Brand of the Year category recognizes the growing
and influential women's brands in the surf industry. The nominees for
Women's Brand of the Year were: Billabong Girls, Nikita Clothing,
O’Neill Girls, Roxy and Volcom Girls. The award criteria for Women's
Brand of the Year specified the honor was to be awarded to the women's
brand that grew its business and exhibited category leadership in
design, brand appeal and recognition most in 2005.
The winner of the 2006 SIMA Image Award for
Breakthrough Brand of the Year is Electric Visual. This award is given
to the new or established small-to mid-size brand that created the most
buzz in the surf industry in 2005, through product development and/or
increased brand recognition and appeal. The nominees for Breakthrough
Brand were: Electric Visual, Insight, Mada, Matix and Vestal Watch.
Receiving top honors in the category of
Product Innovation of the Year is the Quiksilver “Deep” Tide
Watch. The nominees for Product Innovation of the Year were:
the Aviso USA Carbon Fiber Hollow Surfboard, the FIREWIRE (nev)
“Superflex” Surfboard, the Freestyle Audio Waterproof MP3 Player, the
Pavel “Speed Dialer” Turbo Fins by LokBox, and the Quiksilver “Deep”
Tide Watch. The winner and nominees for Product Innovation of
the Year were selected as the companies that developed/created the most
innovative surf or surf-related product in 2005.
Volcom also took home the award for Ad
Campaign of the Year. With this award, Volcom was selected as the
company that demonstrated the most creative advertising campaign to
convey a cohesive and consistent brand message in print, digital and
point-of-purchase formats throughout 2005. The nominees in the category
of Ad Campaign of the Year were: Billabong, Hurley, Reef, Vans and
Volcom.
Surftech took the award for Board Builder of
the Year, recognized as the surfboard manufacturer that exhibited
industry leadership and grew its current business in the surfboard
category through market growth and/or innovation in 2005. The
nominees for Board Builder of the Year were: Channel Islands, FIREWIRE
(nev), Lost, Rusty and Surftech.
The award for Retailer of the Year, honoring
the specialty surf retailer that showed exemplary service to its
customers through staff, store and product offerings as well as
significant involvement in and commitment to surfing in 2005, went to
Jack’s Surfboards.The nominees in the category of Retailer of the Year
were: 17th Street Surf Shop, Virginia Beach, Va.; Hansen Surfboards,
Encinitas, Calif.; Jack’s Surfboards, Orange County, Calif.; Town
& Country, Hawaii, and Whalebone Surf Shop, Nags Head, N.C.
The SIMA Image Awards give surf industry
manufacturers and retailers the opportunity to identify candidates and
vote for the industry's most influential companies in each category. A
call for nominations for the eight award categories was sent to SIMA
member companies in February and the five companies that received the
most nominations were named as the nominees in each category. SIMA
members and surf industry retailers selected the winners in each
category through a confidential voting process conducted by mailed
ballot. The winners were announced at an awards ceremony during SIMA
Surf Summit 9 in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
The 2006 ceremony built the excitement of the
crowd with an MTV awards-style video montage of each nominee in the
eight award categories, produced by Propaganda Headquarters. Winners
this year also received new Image Awards trophies, courtesy of Elliott
Rabin at Ridout Plastics.
The Surf Industry Manufacturers Association
(SIMA) is the official working trade association of more than 300 surf
industry suppliers. Founded in 1989, SIMA is a non-profit organization
that serves to promote awareness of the surf industry and participation
in the sport of surfing through public relations efforts and a variety
of services, educational programs and research. In addition, SIMA
actively supports oceanic environmental efforts through its 501(c)(3)
charitable environmental foundation, the SIMA Environmental Fund. In
the past 16 years, SIMA's Environmental Fund has raised more than $3
million for environmental groups seeking to protect the world's oceans,
beaches and waves.
The 2006 SIMA Image Award Winners
and nominees:
AD CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR - Winner:
Volcom
Billabong
Hurley
Reef
Vans
Volcom
PRODUCT INNOVATION OF THE YEAR - Winner:
Quiksilver "Deep" Tide Watch
Aviso Carbon Fiber Hollow
Surfboard
Freestyle Audio Waterproof MP3 Player
Pavel
"Speed Dialer" Turbo Fins by LokBox
FIREWIRE (nev) "Superflex"
Surfboard
Quiksilver "Deep" Tide
Watch
BREAKTHROUGH BRAND OF THE YEAR -
Winner: Electric
Electric
Visual
Insight
Matix
Mada
Vestal
Watch
BOARD BUILDER OF THE YEAR - Winner:
Surftech
Channel Islands
Lost
FIREWIRE
(nev)
Rusty
Surftech
RETAILER
OF THE YEAR - Winner: Jack's Surfboards
17th Street Surf Shop
- Virginia Beach, Va.
Hansen Surfboards - Encinitas,
Calif.
Jack's Surfboards - Orange County, Calif.
Town
& Country - Hawaii
Whalebone Surf Shop - Nags Head,
N.C.
WOMEN'S BRAND OF THE YEAR - Winner:
Roxy
Billabong Girls
Nikita Clothing
O'Neill
Girls
Roxy
Volcom
Girls
MEN'S BRAND OF THE YEAR - Winner:
Billabong
Billabong
Quiksilver
RVCA
Vans
Volcom
MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR - Winner:
Volcom
Billabong
Quiksilver
Sole
Technology
Surftech
Volcom
What are the SIMA Image Awards?
Introduced in 2003, the goal of the SIMA Image
Awards is for surf manufacturers to honor their peers —to identify the
surf industry’s most influential companies and recognize them for their
efforts to advance and grow the industry during the past year. Award
categories include Ad Campaign of the Year, Product Innovation of the
Year, Buzz Brand of the Year, Retailer of the Year, Board Builder of
the Year, Women's Brand of the Year and Manufacturer of the Year.
Surf manufacturers and retailers are most
familiar with the achievements of other surf industry companies and,
therefore, SIMA members exclusively are asked to nominate and then
vote, with retailers, to recognize their peers in each award category.
The five nominees and winner in each category are honored in an awards
show at the annual SIMA Surf Summit in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, each
May.
For more info and to watch the
award's videos visit
sima.com