Intro: K2's Mike Powell Talks About the Company's Skate Division

Intro: The K2 Interview

K2's marketing manager says sagging sales haven't sunk the company's commitment to skates

By Robert "One Skate After the Other" Burnson

The latest bad news for K2's inline skate division arrived in October. The company reported a drop of $4.2 million in skate sales for the third quarter of 2004.

Fortunately, the bad news in skates was more than offset by good news in skis and snowboards, which both saw double digit jumps in sales.

But still, you've got to wonder: What's the company thinking? Is it still committed to inline skates?

We recently put that questions, and others, to Mike Powell, the marketing manager for K2's skate division. He assured us that though the sagging sales had caused some pain, they have not --- at least, not yet --- dampened the company's support for its skate division.

To back up his claim, he provided a preview of the company's 2005 skates. And we have to say, although we have yet to put any of these beauties on our feet, we were impressed.

The new skates --- the big wheel Radicals and VO Max and the Soul Series freestyle skates --- show that the company is still investing in research and development.

And we hope it stays that way! But that all depends on the vagaries of the market. As Powell put it, "The future is based on how much we are selling now."

So if you can, buy some new skates in 2005. There's lots of great looking stuff coming out. And you only live once!

In the meantime, here's the Planet Interview with K2's Mike Powell:

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