Our recent Virgin Islands sailing trip is still fresh on my mind. Partly because it was so much fun, but also because instead of snow we continue to get rain here in northern Michigan. Rain is not fun. Snow is. Snow will help the sadness of leaving the islands subside a bit easier. Getting lost in the woods with Bailey the dog and a pair of snowshoes, or that first chairlift ride of the season at Boyne Mountain, or building a SnoMon with Savannah will be a great reminder that the ‘Sno’ in Snoloha is just as much fun and relaxing as the ‘loha’.
But there are other reasons that ‘the islands’ are still on my mind.
First, I gotta post the Snoloha photos on the website to prove to my accountant next year that there was a marketing expense to this trip!
Second, well…second is gonna come in the form of another blog post.
Third, I touched on this before the trip here – ‘Oh those temporary feelings’. And this trip confirmed the realization that Snoloha indeed needs to have its own physical presence.
Whether it’s a painkiller at the Soggy Dollar, a Bushwacker at One Love or just kickin’ back at Ivan’s, there are many variables at play that make those moments, those places, those brands, so memorable – the salt air sticking to your skin, the island dialect as you order another round, the beat up portable radio playing reggae music behind the bar, the smell of fresh seafood cooking in the kitchen, and that snow-white sand between your toes as you ease on into a hammock and just stare out into the island dotted horizon.
Of course this kind of feeling can happen anywhere…a ski resort, a coffee shop, a concert, or any other number of ways that help folks escape from the realities of everyday life now and then.
We all know that Snoloha is much, much more than another goofy t-shirt taking up room in your closet. It truly is a feeling. So in order to fully share the feeling and the concept with people ‘beyond the t-shirt’, finding and opening a Snoloha physical location has to happen. And it’ll happen in Snoloha’s homeport of Traverse City, Michigan.
Selling Snoloha gear online and through my retailers will always be an important element to growing the brand. It HAS to be, as I have customers all over the country, and not all of them visit Traverse City (though they should, it’s an amazing place).
That’s what I love about the islands…it’s always a great escape from reality, that at the same time puts reality into perspective.
And now…proof that there was a marketing related reason to the trip:
SnoFlake Palm Tree hat on Virgin Gorda
SnoFlake Palm Tree hat sailing the Caribbean
Snoloha at One Love Beach Bar on Jost Van Dyke
Snoloha at Voyage Yacht Charters on Soper's Hole, Tortola
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