Shaun White 4 Target

First, I diddnt know Shaun had a clothing line outside of the Burton outerwear collection.
Secondly, I had to look it up to see if there was any Target stores downunder, apparently there is.

Here is a clip from Transworld business journal:

“Shaun White 4 Target will be back in stores for Fall 2009, with a similar line of men’s and boy’s T-shirts, wovens, shorts and denim, according to an announcement made by Target today. White’s new line - a continuation of the limited edition collaboration he did with the retailer last fall - will hit stores nationwide on August 15 and will be available year-round.”

“The continuation of Shaun White 4 Target features a full range of apparel inspired by Shaun’s lifestyle and exploration of the world. The collection includes fashionable, inexpensive items with prices ranging from $7.99 for boys’ graphic tees to $34.99 for stylish young men’s jackets.”

Shaun is making some serious bucks.
do you think he’s a sell out?

uuuuummmmmmmmmm…

tough question…

no from the sense that he is bringing more exposure and therefore money into the sport by all the kids going from his clothing line to seeing what he does on a snowboard and going “wow he did that when He was my age, I wanna go snowboard!” that kind of thing, and as much as there are a LOT of haters, and he does make a buttload of money from it all, the money the sport makes from the exposure that goes into R & D, and (hopefully) making the sport better as a whole…

BUT there is also the argument that the exposure he is getting for the sport is for the “cookie cutter” contest riders and not for the “pure” side of snowboarding, the going out and doing it because of the moments, and how awesome you feel when you bail and you are waist deep in fresh (not that i’ve experienced that one day…), not because of how good you feel when you are holding a big check and your board on top of a podium…I think First Descent did a lot to kind of alleviate some of this argument, but even then there are some who would say that was a watered down version anyway…

and plus there is the fact that while there might be more money coming in to the sport, there is DEFINITELY a bucketload of money going straight into his pocket, and from where a lot of it is coming from (ie Target, Mountain Dew - the (well a few years ago at least for mtn dew) less traditional snowboard sponsors), it would kind of fit the bill of “selling out”...BUT (another one ) you could also say he has brought less traditional sponsors to the sport who wouldn’t have thought of sponsoring it in the first place, so again there is that counter argument…

I think personally the people who say outright that he has sold out should take a look at the other side of the coin, however those who worship him and only him (I can only imagine because of the exposure he has that has led them to him) should also open their eyes (or have them opened for them) to the rest of the amazing snowboarding world that is out there…

well that went on a bit…/end rant

EDIT: also we do have Target down here but no Shaun White collections just yet could be the 3% of the snowboard market that we fill…Hannah Montana on the other hand has made it down here just fine…*rolls eyes*

I have a feeling the Shaun White stuff will only be available in the US Target store - could be wrong but it wouldn’t suprise me.
Shaun White clothing in Target stores was news when I was in the US in 07/08.

We actually ran into Shaun White on our last US trip - we were lining up for coldstone ice cream in Breckenridge and we was behind us in the line. +1 turned around and said to me “Is that Shaun White - he’s got REALLY bad skin! You’d think with all his money he could afford a decent dermatologist”. He actually looked like a bit of a bogan as he was wearing shocking 1980’s leather jacket. He also had all these “hangers on” who looked like the biggest bunch of losers who were basically praising everything he said - it was kind of pathetic to be honest.

Whilst I am in awe of his snowboarding ability, he could keep better friends as company I think

I dunno.
He has been sponsored by Target for a long time. Maybe he’s just trying to repay them (although im sure he’s getting paid big bucks for it)
Problem is, K-Mart, Target, Big W (Australia), Wal Mart (US) are effectively discount stores.
Im not in marketing but ask anyone who is why Quicksilver, Billabong, Analog, Volcom, etc etc. arent sold in those stores and its because they dont want to bring down their brand by having it sold in discount stores.
World Industries used to be a cool skate brand when they first came out, i even had a few shirts. Then they sold out and started being sold in Target and who buys their stuff now?
I dont know if its a good or bad move for Shaun.

he was/is sponsored by burton, volcom, target, mountain dew and some skate brand

his movie ‘shaun white album’ sorta shows the spectrum of his sponsors and why he is sponsored by target etc but again can easily be seen as ‘selling out’ esp when target is just discount crappy clothes store….

I reckon the stuff sold in Target in Oz is quite different to the stuf sold in Target USA. Not that I take a huge notice of clothing brands, but I recall Mossimo being sold in Target USA. Even though they share the same name, I think they are completely separate companies. I don’t think Target USA think much of Target Oz either.

I thought about Mossimo when Evan mentioned World Industries.
Mossimo isnt what it used to be.

As for Shaun’s clothes through Target. It’‘s not like it’s Burton items selling in Target. It starts as a Target brand and stays that way… So it’s not a step down for those products, know what I mean? Like if Shaun’s Burton collection started to get made and sold by Target, I’m sure we would see a change in quality - like we have with world Industries and like we have with Mossimo (so I hear).

People give Shaun a lot of crap about selling out, but he is the best competition snowboarder and one of the best skateboarders in the world. Brands want to be associated with him and they throw a lot of money at him. It’s only because he is the best at what he does… he deserves to be paid. He gets to do what he loves doing and he gets paid for it. Good on him!

Sure, but you do have to consider your image.
Like with Jordan, you cant say yes to every Tom, Dick and Harry who throws you money otherwise your image is cheapened.
You have to be selective and that keeps up your profile/worth for future endorsements.
Im not saying Target is a terrible sponsor to have, but you have to be smart about it. I dont think bringing out a budget line of clothing is the way to go.
Especially when on the other hand your trying to promote one of the highest profile snowboarding brands out there, Burton, and have your own line The White Collection.
You dont see the Ferrari F1 team sponsored by Aldi or The $2 shop.

And seriously, when you think about it. He’s 22 years old and has probably earnt more money than any of us in a lifetime.

Ultimately I dont think Shaun has sold out - it is a nice topic for discussion, though.
I’d think selling out would be to take a sponsorship with Spyder outerwear or Karbon (any very ski specific company), because they have the dollars, but mean nothing to snowboarding and it wont contribute to the advancement of the sport - probably contribute to it’s downfall.
I dont think Target is selling out, nor is HP. Sure he may be doing it for the money, but he’s not sacrificing the sport.
Now some may argue with me, I’m sure and rightfully so, because there is an important element of the sport’s roots and the CORE values.
Well, snowboarding isnt punk rock, and thought that may always be an element of snowboarding, the sport doesnt hold those values. Many had to accept that when we entered the first Olympics. Snowboarding is now main stream and we have to accept that. We will have punks and Jocks, and parents and children,  doctors and lawyers, and rich and poor alike all snowboarding.
What is the snowboarding demographic? it’s quite diverse.

Shaun has done a lot of good for the sport - much more good than anyone can argue that his contributions have been bad.
But the Burton movie “no correct way” has it dialed.
Jeremy Jones is taking it to the streets while Shaun is taking it to the contests. Both making a career out of it and enjoying it all the while… which one of them is wrong?

Burton and Volcolm’s clothes showing up in the mall stores for an extra dollar could be seen as more of a sell out, and turning the back on the stores that MADE them - this is more of a problem than Shaun and Jake on an HP commercial selling computers, or Shaun flying through the air for Mountain Dew. More of a problem for the future of the sport…
Take it to the extreme and if all the “big box” stores began to sell “half-decent to lame” snowboarding equipment for cheap - everyone would settle for that price option and the shops would eventually close where the population of boarders arent enough to sustain them.
Not good.

Shaun’s T-shirts and jackets hopefully will remain ‘lodge wear’ and not outerwear. Sounds like if it was outerwear that would compete with his own Burton line of clothes and violate a contract somewhere. If all he makes is school clothes, then it doesnt hurt snowboarding one bit.
Snowboarders getting paid well is a good thing.
I hate that it took some “action sport” athletes so long to actually turn a buck, see Tony Hawk and some skaters in his time, they were killing it, but diddnt make much money at all. Tony now reels it in of course, but he wasnt the only one at the time - he’s just still at it now. Look at the names coming bck to try and take advantage of the income now… Hosoi? Caballero? They can actually see it as a job now. these are talented guys, and they can be out there pushing the sport.

Yeah it’s a good point but as mentioned he’s been with target for ages. I don’t think it can hurt him any more than it has already. The longer the partnership remains the more valuable it is to both Target and Shaun. I think we also need to consider Shaun also has a young fan base, which is why he is a perfect match for Playstation for example. You make a valid point though. Athletes need to be careful. At such a young age I don’t think it would have been Shaun calling the shots back them (manager, mum etc… all prob were thinking $$$)