When Don Hansen originally started his surf board business on Oahu’s legendary North Shore in 1961, he probably didn’t expect that 45 years later it would be one of the largest surf and snow retailers in San Diego. But, in 1962, Don moved the small shack across the Pacific and landed in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, across the street from the Cardiff Reef, where his shaping business began to grow. Soon he was shipping boards all over the world, and eventually Hansen transitioned from a small surf shop owner to a major retailer. Today, Hansen’s carries over 700 surfboards and every beach related item imaginable.
With the poor economy still shuttering surf shops, even long-time shops like Star Surfing Co, we wanted to talk to retailers that are surviving the downturn. Since it is always wise to learn from the best, we visited Hansen’s to talk about business.
One key to Hansen’s continued success is their staff. Hansen’s employees are friendly, live the beach lifestyle that they sell and they are treated well, so most people work for many years, giving the place even more of a family feel. Employee Nicole Falco says, “I walk to work and I surf on my lunch break.
These relationships with their employees extends into their relationships with their vendors and suppliers. Longtime employee, manager and surfer, Mike Koffman said, “All of the companies work well with Hansen’s because Hansen’s has established a history of paying it’s bills. Once you build a relationship, companies will work with you.”
He also said that Hansen has an online business. He said, “Burton-Channel Islands Surboards is the only company that updates their product on our website automatically. When you look at their products on our site, they are very currentâ€
Of course even a larger surf shop feels a down economy. Koffman reflects, “This is the first time in Hansen’s entire existence that we will not be up this year.” They are able to deal with it better than most shops because of their cash reserve and their experience on how much to buy. He says, “We are a little down money wise but margin wise we are buying accordingly. We watch inventory levels and keep margins decent. Since volume is lower we are not doing as much dollars. Hansen’s and bigger stores can fall back on their cash reserves to weather hard times.”
