Fooster Surf Hawaii - the Case for Selling the Obscure

Fooster Surf Hawaii has been one of the craziest board discoveries I made to date. It is a brand that not only sells peculiar products but also does that in an outlandish fashion. Yet somehow, Fooster stumbled upon a brand concept with a gargantuan gravitational field.

I bought one of the first surfboards they ever produced directly from Ron and Raylani, the founders, after I bumped into an obscure-looking board on craigslist and called the number listed. Boy, oh boy, I could not foresee what was coming for me as I dialed that number. A meet and greet with Ron and Raylani in a parking lot in Honolulu brought me not only the mysteriously shaped board but also two sets of merch and a gospel on the fast and loose philosophy.

The alliteration of the two adjectives in the Fooster dogma is no coincidence. Scholars of consumer behavior research identify the so-called associative networks that help brands reach consumers by developing in them the desired associations through marketing messages. Alliteration is known to enhance memory (Brooke Lea, 2008) and so fast in loose stand out for a reason. Furthermore, the terms strongly allude to mysticism, drawing on a semantic field of aquatic predators and venomous reptiles. In short, fast and loose is cool.

Even cooler is the fact that the pattern for Fooster's triangular thruster fin is filed with the United States Pattern and Trademark Office, and that the planing hull technology they use in their boards was initially developed for the navy. Add to that the distinctly Hawaiian choice of diction coupled with the pro-active upholding of the Mana'o (Hawaiian for thoughts, theories, and meaning) aura across social media, and what do you get? The bulk of various factors gradually metamorphoses into a concrete yet highly unusual offering. Finish it off with a sprinkle of biblical quotes and a reference to a cross in the logo. There you have it: a Just Noticeable Difference, just kidding. Everything about Fooster is different, and the differences are not just noticeable but strongly apparent.

Many hypotheses can be made as to why the unique combination of Fooster's differences presents a powerful image. In my opinion, two factors play a role here.

On the one hand, Fooster's social media channels foster numerous customer reviews, even at the cost of obstructing the rest of the feed. This is an example of how Fooster pursuits high relationship quality with its customers by being transparent. The quality and availability of customer reviews highlight an important marketing principle that states that value is co-created, as the company and its consumers benefit from the same bilateral relationship (Babin, 2018).

On the other hand, Fooster offers its customers the simplicity that they seek. Professor Scott Galloway of NYU recently said that "consumers want less choice, they just want to be more confident in the choices presented" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=un3c1yMs1F8). Fooster currently offers one board (in various sizes, with slight shape alterations possible on demand), one set of fins, and one front pad. BOOM!

Ok, you say, so Fooster is a unique, highly niche brand: some may like it,

many may not – take the religious allusions, for example. And you will be right – Fooster is, indeed, a weird fruit. But consider for a second that you are the Fooster's target audience. In your perception, the need for differentiation is strong. You are also not discouraged by an always existing possibility of getting a 'lemon,' typically associated with small private board brands. Are you indeed such a lone wolf? Not really.

Fooster G5 Rocket is priced at 50%-70% of what few other remaining MPH (Modern Planing Hull) surfboard manufacturers, like Vulcan, charge for their products. Tomo, a pioneer in the MPH market, has recently opted in favor of some more conservative designs, making MPH encounters almost unicorn-like these days. Many people who surf all their lives have never seen one: ask around the next time you hit the beach. To top it all off, MPHs provide an extreme buoyancy to size ration, meaning that even relative beginners can ride a 6'2" G5 Rocket enjoying maneuverability far unmatching that of any longboard. Bear in mind that in surfing, consumer choices are tied to experience level due to the shortboard/longboard divide: everyone starts on a longboard, and the transition to shortboard can take years or be entirely discouraged by the wave size in the area.

The bottom line is, Fooster appeals to a broad customer base of surfers of all experience levels looking for an affordable board that stands out and performs differently. That is a lot of surfers if you ask me. So if the positioning of the brand is on point, the question then is: does it deliver? Does Fooster provide the experience that its target audience is seeking?

I got to ride the G5 on the North Shore of Oahu for a few months, and I say yes. I fell for this board so much that I have taken it back to Michigan, knowing all too well how pricey it would be to fly it anywhere from here.

Fooster boards aim to offer both the utilitarian and the hedonic value, where the distinguishment lies in the notion of "a means to an end" (Babin et al. 2018). From a utilitarian value standpoint, they offer a mean to get the gist of a shortboard experience without the complications of transitioning to a less buoyant board. G5 Rocket is also fast, as the name and the slogan suggest, which also appeals explicitly to the utilitarian needs of the speed-loving customer segment. From the hedonic value standpoint, Fooster presents an ultimate eye-candy capable of making a lasting impression among the beginner just as much as among the pros, which translates to a high social value. The speed-lovers also derive an exceptionally high emotional value from riding a board reminiscent of the F-22 Raptor fighter jet striped like a Shelby Cobra. Direct communications with founders and complimentary merch all add up to the hedonic value.

At this point, it is reasonable to ask: "If Fooster so great, why am I hearing about it now?" Fair enough. In the good spirit of an authentic Hawaiian manufacturer, Fooster puts craft ahead of profit (see Mana'o explanation above). The company does not seem to seek the resources to scale and capitalize on its unique value proposition. Some would argue that manufacturing innovation can only increase their quality: substituting epoxy for fiberglass, corrugation, and all that. In contrast, I would say that the mentioned advantages can only come at the expense of jeopardizing Fooster's intangible selling point: it's unmatched obscurity. In the digital age of copy and paste, obscurity is such a rare source of value to come about that the worth of it can hardly be underestimated, especially in such a spiritual culture as surfing. The conclusion to my case for selling the obscure at Fooster comes as a quote from their website (foostersurf.com):

Sources:

Babin, B. J. (2018). Cb 8: consumer behavior. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Brooke Lea, R. (2008, July 6). The Power of Peter Piper: How Alliteration Enhances Poetry, Prose, and Memory. Association for Psychological Science - APS. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/the-power-of-peter-piper-how-alliteration-enhances-poetry-prose-and-memory.html

All pictures courtesy of Fooster Surf Hawaii and myself