The January Tradeshows
This month we've been hitting the trade show circuit and headed out to the contrasting cities of Long Beach, California and Berlin, Germany. These trade shows are essential for us to bring you the most upfront brands, trends and stories from the industry.
First up was AGENDA in sunny Long Beach. This year Agenda celebrated it's 10 year anniversary with it's strongest show yet.
The vast Long Beach Convention Centre showcased two days of the best in skate and street culture and was buzzing with buyers, bloggers, skaters, celebrities and brand owners from all over the globe.
We hung out with Christian Hosoi and Terry Kennedy during the day then partied with The Game and Chris Brown throughout the night.
Agenda will then be hitting the East Coast with Agenda New York this week before returning to California in July.
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After a brief couple of days back in the UK we were off once again, this time trading the California sunshine for the snowy streets of Berlin for two separate shows â Bread & Butter and Bright.
First thing on Tuesday morning we arrived for the opening day of BREAD & BUTTER, Europe's largest fashion trade show.
Housed in the old Templehof Airport the show spans across enormous hangers, all divided into style categories.
The production and budgets are top end at BBB with many brands going to extreme lengths to showcase their collections.
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After a full day at BBB it we hit up the private SUPRA X SOLEBOX HOUSE PARTY at the One Distribution apartment in Muenzsalon to celebrate the launch of the SOLEBOX SKYTOP III.
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The shoe itself is absolutely stunning and the open bar and party joints from DJs Brodinski and Adam Port ensured the spot was jumping from start to finish.
Nursing a mild hangover and a desire for a strong cup of tea we headed over to BRIGHT at it's new home of Alte Munze, Berlin.
The new venue is a huge improvement on the previous location (the former Stasi HQ) and there was definitely a buzz about the show.
Whereas BBB is straight-up fashion, Bright is born from skateboarding and subsequent street wear/footwear brands born from the scene.
Bright is a great opportunity for us to catch up with current brands and discover emerging new labels. It was nice to see such a positive vibe from the skate community which is a stark contrast to the atmosphere this time last year.
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After two days at Bright we were then invited to the BRIGHT EUROPEAN SKATE AWARDS at the Babylon Theatre which saw the cream of Europe's scumbag skate rats taking advantage of a night of complimentary booze accompanied by endless backslapping and heckling.
Props going out to Pontus Alv who took the top nods for Videographer of the Year and Brand of the Year for the excellent Polar Skate Co.
Latvia's Madars Aps was deservedly crowned European Skater of the Year.
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The following morning we woke up to the news that England was under a blanket of snow and, as a result, our flights back home had been cancelled. Cue a long winded 24hr journey home resembling the plot line from the Steve Martin / John Candy classic "Planes, Trains & Automobiles" movie!
Trade show season continues with THE LEDGE, London and PROJECT, Las Vegas so we'll keep you updated with what goes down!