Tell us about how you got into skateboarding?
I got into this lifestyle/culture by watching this white stoner getting pulled by his dog on his board. I begged him to buy his board every day for a minute, finally, he gave in. I never looked back.
How did you come up with the name Strength Skateboards?
Back in 2002, I got shot 8 times and I thought I wouldn’t ever skate again. But I never gave up no matter how bad my body felt from that lead in me. 6 months later I was pushing again;
Is it hard to build a team? What does it take to be part of your team?
It’s 50/50. This is something I love and it’s in my heart. Strength is in my heart. So, you try to fall back and see who loves it like you do (skate life, the brand, etc.). But then again, it’s a business too. So, it depends. On the real. I had mad skaters come thru and promised what they would do. Then you know how that is. In other words. Fall off and don’t keep their side of the agreement Then you can have a skater be with you for years. Then the relationship can end over ego loyalty etc. You got to show these skaters that they want to be a part of something worth being a part of and if we work together we can get it done. Communication is the key.
Hmm, what it takes to be a part of the team, A gallon of Henny…Jamaican rum… Original art pieces. Vinyl…Nah…It’s really about timing and budget.
With the industry being flooded with new pros that we never heard of from smaller brands. What’s your opinion on that?
Shits great. there are all levels of this skate life. He’s pro for different reasons. And if your brand can do it. Do it! I would love to make a cat pro for the right reasons. To me, that’s hard work on both sides the skater and the brand. They got to both see eye to eye on all aspects of this. Business and the skating
What makes Strength Skateboards different than other brands out there?
To me personally. The name. The name’s self. You use strength to do all action from just thinking to poop. Plus, Strength is based out of one poorest city in American. So, when you have all these adversities thrown at you. What do you do? You use. Strength. Just like that inner push to land that tricks you been trying for hours. Plus, I turned a personal negative incident into a positive one.
Do you or do you have someone come up with the Strength Skateboards graphics or designs?
Depends. I might see something I like then freak it. Or have someone else freak it. Always cheaper to do it yourself. But never hurts to have outside input because that’s the consumer.
Do you think it’s hard from being from Strength Skateboards to get your brand out-there compared to some brand from Cali?
Depends where you want your brand to go. Everyone wants to be known by everyone, but this culture is choosey. They like what they and hate what they hate. So it’s up to the brand skaters to do that work to get known. Social networks baby. But I love what I do. So, it can be one skater liking my shit and I would be stoked
Let’s say: I’m a shop owner, you come to my shop & you want me to carry your brand. How would you get me to carry Strength Skateboards in my store?
I don’t do any of this. I have fam that does this for me, I mostly do everything online myself. But the first thing you should do is get some type of relationship with that shop. Since we our skaters and all. This business thing can suck. But just introduce your brand, Give them a history of how you got this far and direct them to all your networks.
What is BFGs day like?
WOW!, I have a 9-5 so I mentally prepare for that, because working for someone else isn’t fun. A lot of texting emailing answering. Preparations for my next moves. Keeping in contact with the Strength fam. A lot of errands running around. Always looking at how to improve the brand and fam. sneak yoga in. Read a chapter of a book…Just being on point to what I do.
Thank you for talking with us & wish you the best of luck with Strength Skateboards. Is there anything you want to say to someone that wants to start their brand?
Paperwork. Don’t let anyone dictate how you do things unless its to improve the brand. Show & Prove Skate Tuff & Overcome Resistance #keepitmoving #strengthteeoflife
