Base gone under

[diggerdickson]

I heard from fong that base has gone under, damn shame really, so many people out of work or lost jobs, thats not good, I mean I wasnt a base fan and how they did business but for all those people who lost jobs thats just not a good thing, espically in this economic climate.

[speedneedle]

I do agree Digger, on one level...

The jobs lost - sad yes...

Also the bad signs for the local industry...but then, It'll outlive the fading of one big banner factory. Maybe it's just four shapers who have go back to small sheds in the backstreets...or take the pension...

But watch the other name manufacturers who live and die by the numbers scramble over each other to get orders with the two dozen retailers who won't have stock next week.

Maybe a shining new business model failed? The integration of labels was an interesting concept.

But also - The price wars that took aussie-built boards down to a level on par with imports. The vicious undercutting. And the insider stories of backstabbing skullduggery have given me pause.

Nobody really won there, as the closure shows. Miss that corporate based management style?

No...

[speedneedle]

How the hell did they amass over $5 million of debts against $70K of assets?

I dunno...but it makes me happy I don't sponsor any pros! Maybe make the likes of Fanning PAY for their 70-odd boards a year...

JD

[brendo]

How the hell did they amass over $5 million of debts against $70K of assets?
I think the ATO will have some hard questions for their accountants and management


I hope Larry will dig deep into his journo/surf/accounting skills and give us some insight into the events preceding the closure ?

their website, which is still up and running, shows 15 teamriders. lets saythey av 25boards each per yr @ $400 cost = 1.5mill of boards made for no dollar return, just the hope they recoup in masses of boards sold. big ask.....

[alakaboo]

How the hell did they amass over $5 million of debts against $70K of assets?
I think the ATO will have some hard questions for their accountants and management

I hope Larry will dig deep into his journo/surf/accounting skills and give us some insight into the events preceding the closure ?

their website, which is still up and running, shows 15 teamriders. lets saythey av 25boards each per yr @ $400 cost = 1.5mill of boards made for no dollar return, just the hope they recoup in masses of boards sold. big ask.....

might want to check your sums, Brendo.
Maybe that's their problem, they've been selling boards for 400c?

[Beerfan]

I reckon they'd make that money back per board. Every time a 16 year old ripper sees mick fanning doing a lightning fast cuttie, he then buys a DH mick model. Advertising at its most powerful really.

[buzzy]

The durability of those boards was bad. Sorry. They really need to make better quality as in more durable boards. Then people will pay more than $700 for them. That may mean looking at alternative technlogy (such as epoxy resins) or more refinements to the existing tech. If they can charge more then maybe they can keep manufacturing here, but either way I suspect that off the rack boards will need to be manufactured offshore, and the local industry will be limited to supplying custom orders, or local manufacturers with a low cost base. That doesn't seem to be such a bad thing as pretty much everyone reading these forums buys custom anyway.

[Nick Carroll]

Yeah I don't think you can call Base a "monopoly". It was conceived a lot more along the lines of a farmers' co-op -- combine the operations of several top boardmakers, achieve economies of scale to allow increased r and d and marketing efforts, and combat the perceived threat of Asian sourced mass production.

An attempt to change the standard surfboard manufacturing business model in the wake of other big changes, which after just on eight years of operation has clearly failed in spectacular fashion.

It's a real bummer for the employees and investors alike. But I dunno why anybody -- rich pro surfers or otherwise -- should have been expected to hurl more millions down the hole.

Meanwhile a range of other business models are succeeding and failing in the same marketplace.

The main thing I notice is that generally, if you're a surfer, you have a wider and better choice of equipment than ever before in the sport's history.

[Davros]

As said by combining their resources they tried to acheive some sort of economies of scale but lost control of the margin on product somewhere along the line. Maybe if 20 shapers got togther and outsourced evrything accept the brand name to Asia or similar then maybe just maybe they may turn a profit. Anyway should be some cheap boards floating around.

[Beanpole]

I remember going in to the one at Coolangatta. Pretty helpful staff but I found it funny they were trying to steer us towards Sydney shapers rather than the local ones. Basically if I was going to buy a Sydney board I'd buy it in Sydney unless it was heaps cheaper.

Also sick of stores palming off old comp boards to grommets. Given that they are going to be flogged to death a super light high performance board is a false economy at best.

[daryl]

I remember going in to the one at Coolangatta. Pretty helpful staff but I found it funny they were trying to steer us towards Sydney shapers rather than the local ones. Basically if I was going to buy a Sydney board I'd buy it in Sydney unless it was heaps cheaper.

Also sick of stores palming off old comp boards to grommets. Given that they are going to be flogged to death a super light high performance board is a false economy at best.

reckon they'd go okay for a little guy and 'd go all right, even if they don't last . Can't ya be careful with it?

[Beanpole]

reckon they'd go okay for a little guy and 'd go all right, even if they don't last . Can't ya be careful with it?

13 year old grommet. Carefull?
Ride it to death?
No worries.
Snap it in the shorey in a couple of weeks?
No worries.

From my experience they really set young surfers back. Happened with my son and I've seen exactly the same with a couple of his mates.
We were lucky because we happened to spot a really good eggy shaped board on the Central Coast which he rode into the ground and allowed him to progress to the level where a more high performance board would work for him. We still had this previous ex comp board and I ended up getting a good deal trading it in. A lot of current designs work a lot better for grommets.

As far as Sydney shapers goes they showed me a couple of Simons boards. Poor old Murray Burton didn't get a look in.

[daryl]

The few dozen boards I learnt on were rarely what I should've been on, still wouldn't have it any othrr way. There's more ? let's say lots u can get out of having done hard ropes on different shapes.

[Beanpole]

You put two boards in front of a grommet tell em one is an ex pro board the other isn't. I'll bet you sydney to a brick which one they go for every time.

Thats the trouble. I went through exactly that. Saves up money. Gets a bit of help. Sees a banana curved, potato chip thin number. Thats the board. Thats fine if you don't care about whether it actually goes well for them or not.
Anyway after watching this happen and then watching the difference when they get on a board with a little less rocker and a little more volume its a shame to watch the same thing happen to one of his mates.
As for Simon Anderson. Great but I'm not looking for one of his boards in particular. Growing up around Coolangatta I just found it funny they wouldn't support some of the local shapers more. I guess being international was what it was all about. Its like going to by a pair of shoes and only being shown one brand in the shop.

[Beanpole]

I should point out this isn't particularly a chop at base. While maybe not what I was interested in it still was an appropriate board unlike some things I've been shown in other shops. Juniors board wasn't from base but I got a great deal up at Local Knowledge at Miami.

[Yuke Hunt]

I should point out this isn't particularly a chop at base. While maybe not what I was interested in it still was an appropriate board unlike some things I've been shown in other shops. Juniors board wasn't from base but I got a great deal up at Local Knowledge at Miami.

If you spell Local Knowledge backwards it reads ... Egdel Wonklacol.

OK ...

Spell Billabong backwards ... Gnoballib.

Kind of irrelevant but either way you spell them ... both have the same meaning ...

[Larry]

hey saltman, any company who has $70k in assets (and that isn't necessarily cash) and $5m in debts has been sick for a long time - that cash position doesn't just come out of nowhere - and from what I've read good old LSD bailed out a month or so ago and Shorty reckons it was a BIG SURPRISE ... !

Those directors will be asked a whole lot of nasty questions - this is what might happen if the answer is wrong -

(1) were you trading whilst insolvent? - yes - (go to jail)
(2) did you provide super for your employees? - no - (go to jail)
(3) did you deduct tax from employees pay and send it on to the ATO? - no - (go to jail)
(4) did you collect net gst and pay it to the ATO? - no - (go to jail)
(5) did you engage in illegal cash payment contracts? - yes - (go to jail)
(6) did you maintain proper accounting records? - no - (go to jail)
(7) did you pay your suppliers? - no - (hard luck for them)

anyone who gets into shit that deep should never be allowed to operate a business ever again -

[swvic]

Agreed that businesses should be conducting themselves properly, but there's some very good boards been made at base. I've had 2. The shapers are good communicators and will do a custom - including a strong glass job if requested. It would be a great loss to surfing if shapers of that caliber were not back producing surfboards very soon.