Inside the Industry: Mark Vanderbough I-view - 07/03/30

For people who don't know, about how long have you been involved in the industry?

I started my first company, Six Won Six, in '95. We were pretty much just a small, grassroots company in Michigan for a few years until about '98. [That's] when I started doing it full-time and kind-of branching outside the Midwest.

Where did the idea for Six Won Six first come from?

It wasn't necessarily a company at first--it was more like a crew. It was the guys I skated with and we were the 616 crew. We had a bunch of guys from all over Michigan because, at the time, the area code 616 covered half the state. It was kind of cool because the guys that we skated with lived far away but we were still connected. That was the one connector for all of us. We just started making a couple of shirts to wear at comps for our crew, and people were like, "Where did you get those shirts?" And we started making more of them and selling them at comps and it snowballed.

Could you talk about the heel pads for a second? Because not a lot of people know that if it wasn't for Six Won Six, there probably wouldn't be heel pads in skates today.

The shock absorbers was really what what put us on the map. It was pretty much an invention of necessity. I had bruised my heels on a gap one day and I said, "Man, I have to do something about having better protection in skates." So I started going around to sporting goods stores and looking around for stuff. They had Dr. Scholl's inserts and all those things and I thought, "We need to make something better."

And that's basically how it came about. We started working with factories, testing a bunch of different materials, and trying to find something that was not only comfortable, but absorbed shock well without the heel rise. And that's where we came up with the cup idea--to really cup your heel. And that's how a lot of the things we did after that was just stuff that we felt there was a need for. We saw a problem and tried to address it.

What are some examples of that, besides the shock absorbers?

That was basically the whole concept behind starting Night Hardware, which is another company I started with Al Dolega. We felt there was a good need for quality replacement parts. A lot of the stock parts, I thought, were just dying a lot faster than they should. So we felt we should find a material that lasted longer and grinded better, and that was the concept behind Night.

How long has Integrated Distribution been around?

Integrated started in 2000. Basically it was something that came about when I started talking to Al Dolega about getting involved with Night Hardware. At the same time, I was approached by Spencer about 9mm Wheels--he was just getting started and looking for distribution--as well as a good friend of mine, Drew Bacharach, was doing Life+ and was also looking for distribution. So I got these guys that are looking for something. I already had a pretty good shop base built up from Six Won Six, so I thought I would give this a shot. And shortly after this, we started doing BE-Mag in this US, as well.

What brands is Integrated responsible for?

Right now, it is SIx Won Six, Night Hardware, BE-Mag, and we just picked up for 2007: USD, Deshi, Kizer, Sifika, Undercover and Xsjado.

How did the deal with Powerslide come about? How did you become the American distributor for it?

I had heard through the grapevine sometime last summer that Scott Walker with Big Dan was looking to move on from what they were currently doing. So I contacted Matthias at Powerslide to see what the situation was, and we had been talking for a number of months; going back and forth about how it would best work--the transition. Finally, it was somewhere around the end of 2006 that they gave me the go-ahead--that Scott would be done and they were switching over to the Integrated brand.

What do you think that means for the future of Integrated, now that you've effectively tripled the number of companies you're distributing?

It's a huge deal for us. Basically, we have a lot more products to offer now. We've got a big stake in really helping shape the industry. We're going to be involved with all the shops and doing all kinds of tours, promotions, demos with the the team riders for all the companies, and working with events. We are the title sponsor for Bittercold Showdown this year and so we're going to have a strong representation with all the brands and all the riders. Just really try to help promote the sport as much as possible; get a lot kids involved--grassroots stuff--to try and hopefully turn things around and start bringing a lot more kids into the sport and growing them.

Any final words?

I guess, maybe just to go back when we were talking about distribution and taking over, just one thing I wanted to note: there's been some talk I've heard around the industry and on messageboards about Big Dan and Scott Walker. I just wanted to make it a note that I think the industry owes a lot to Scott and all the work he did. If you look back at the stuff they were a part of, tours like the Pound For Pound Tour and just all kinds of stuff like that, it was a huge, huge role they played in promoting the sport. Even though it was at a high point, I don't think we would be as well off, even today, if it wasn't for a lot of the things that Scott Walker and Big Dan did for rollerblading. I've heard a lot of people talking crap on Scott and stuff that's gone down lately, but I think it's fair to say he was more of a help than anything.

-interview by Cole Wood

Tags: integrated distribution kizer mark vanderbough michigan night sifika six won six stygma usd xsjado