Behind the Brand - Mystic
Issue 61 / Fri 3rd Feb, 2017
Max Blom from Mystic drops by for a chat, they've just won our reader's awards for the fifth year in a row, and they seem to be unstoppable at the moment. We find out what makes them tick and how they keep on top of their game.
Winners of our Best Accessories Brand Readers Award for five years in a row, Mystic have been a dominant force in the kite industry for years. They have an impressive roster of riders, including Ruben Lenten, BrunaKajiya, Marc Jacobs and JalouLangeree, plus a huge range of accessories with products aimed at every style of kiter out there. We sat down with Max Blom the Global Brand Director to find out a little bit more about Mystic, the company and their ethos…
When did you start the brand and how did it come about?
The brand was founded in 2002, during my university studies I had to do an internship. I joined the windsurfing brand Maui Magic, which was based in Holland. At that time kitesurfing was coming along, and the owner of the company wanted to transfer Maui Magic into the kiteboarding market. As part of my internship, myself and the team at MM started Mystic especially for kiteboarding.
We came out with the Darkrider harness, which was the first ever, kiteboarding specific harness. After that, we signed Ruben Lenten & Youri Zoon as faces of the brand and went to Ireland for the photo shoot to kick-start the brand. The Celtic feeling and harsh conditions from Ireland have been an inspiration for Mystic ever since. For us it's not about sunshine and white sandy beaches, it's about putting yourself out there in challenging conditions. We want to build products that push riders further, allowing them to break all existing boundaries. Products that reflect our unique vision, our style, and we don’t stop until we get to where we want to be.
How have your Dutch roots shaped the growth of the brand?
Holland is one of the leading the countries in kiteboarding. We have the best conditions; some of the best riders, many champions and our industry is relatively big for such a small nation. Next to that the Dutch people are eager to travel around and be entrepreneurs. I think that combination helped give Mystic the global presence it has managed to develop.
What challenges do you have as a brand focusing on accessories instead of kites and boards?
I think we deal a lot more with personal preference. Accessories are a part of what people wear. Every human body is different, and therefore sizing, quality, support and other needs are crucial. Dealing with the ergonomics is critical; you don’t need to worry about this as much when producing kites and boards. Next to that the styling of the products is crucial too, in a wetsuit you want to perform but next to that you want to look good. We call it Functional Fashion at Mystic!
Arguably just about every kite surfer has used one of your products at some point during their kiting adventure, what is it that makes the brand so popular do you think?
The Mystic family is a unique family. Everybody around the globe working for the brand does it with a lot of commitment and passion. The crew at the HQ, the distributors and the riders are so involved; this is what you see in the brand. Mystic is all about pushing forward in many aspects, and it seems kiteboarders like that. For me, it's great to see that people like our brand. It shows appreciation for all the hard work.
Everybody has a different shape, is it hard to develop harness that fits properly across a broad spectrum of body shapes? Are different harness ranges aimed at various body shapes?
Yes indeed that’s a big challenge, as I said before every back and body shape is different and having a comfortable harness is all about personal preference. Setting up a different range with a broad selection of shapes and designs helps to cover all these individual needs. Another factor to consider is that some riders like to spend 400 Euros on a carbon harness while others want regular comfort for an affordable price.
You are very invested in the ladies side of kiteboarding, with the products you offer and the riders you sponsor. How important is the female market to your brand?
I think the ladies are an important aspect of our industry. Kiteboarding is fairly easy to learn and therefore we should embrace the fact girls enjoy the water with a kite. I think the market is growing which is a very positive thing. Next to that, let’s be honest, we all like beautiful girls in bikini’s ripping waves and pulling sick freestyle tricks.
Are there different challenges when designing products for women and men?
Yes, women are far more critical on the design aspect of the products like colours, fit, etc. We are fortunate to have girls like Jalou and Bruna in the team; they have a strong vision when it comes to women’s products, which helps us a lot.
From a business perspective what has been your most successful product to date?
Without a doubt the Warrior harness. Next year we launch our 5th version in his 12th year. I think we can say it’s the best-sold harness in the industry.
You've won our Readers Awards now for five years in a row in the Best Accessories Category, why do you think the brand is so successful?
We love what we do, and we are trying to make products better and let people enjoy riding them. We also try to do a lot for the industry, supporting riders, events, magazines, shops, etc. It's good to see we are getting a lot of love back by winning the award four times in a row, it means the people appreciate what we are doing.
How many people do you have working for you in Holland and around the globe, is it a big team behind the brand?
At the HQ in Holland, we have around 25 people working. At the office, we have everything in-house. R&D, marketing, sales, warehousing, you name it. Around the globe, I think we have another 80 people pushing the brand in every country. It’s a big team but that makes it special, and when all these people come together, great parties are guaranteed. We try to work hard and play hard.
What is the development process for a new harness like, the new Legend launched last year, for instance, was entirely different to anything the market had seen, how does a product like that come about?
We have been in the harness business for a long time and are constantly trying to look for new construction methods and ways to improve existing designs. Innovation is what the sport needs; we would always rather it comes from us than the other brands.
For the Legend we have been testing this injection mould process for a long time. We felt there is room for a lighter harness that does not absorb water and still offers the right support. Our R&D team develops it; we at the HQ test it first, as we all ride ourselves, and then give it to the riders to test it as well. After this procedure, we work on adjustments for the next sample. We repeat this until we think it's right and working.
Neoprene is a huge part of the business for you now, what do you do to keep the wetsuit development ahead of the curve, are you developing fabrics with the factories or relying on them to offer new materials?
Since we are in the kiteboarding business, we develop our suits for that market. Of course we have multi-purpose suits for all watersport including surfing, but we work with some key features specifically for kiteboarding. For this reason, we develop new materials. We work with the best supplier in the industry; they consult us on what to use for our ideas.
A lot of your products seem to be developed from a real rider point of view, the lightweight Elevate board bags, for instance, offer riders a real advantage at the airport. Do you have one person developing ideas or is it born from the needs and suggestions of the whole team?
We have a good R&D team and all work in close cooperation together. Once one person has an idea we discuss it. As far as saving money at the airport, this is something we are very keen to develop, not just for our customers but for us as well!
We travel a lot for testing, photo shooting and our riders travel all the time. They come up with good ideas, which we try to adapt ideas and ensure they are suitable for the end consumer. The Elevate project has been an interesting one as we have developed a lighter material but it's as strong as other board bags by using different materials. We get great feedback on that product.
What’s your most popular product?
The good thing about the brand is we don’t have a particular product that really outshines the others. We have a broad range of products within the range selling really well. If I have to pick out some products, I think it’s the Legend & Warrior harness and the Legend X wetsuit. These three products have been selling really well over the last season.
You are a real multi-sports brand with windsurfing, wake, SUP and surf all have it a focus in addition to kitesurfing. Are there similar needs across all the sports or are they very individual and does that make it hard to develop products across the range?
They all need individual focus. Because the sports are so different, you have to develop unique products per sport. Back in the day windsurfers and kitesurfers used similar equipment but the further we get, the more it separates. Wakeboarding is different in many ways, the connection it has with kitesurfing is water, but as far as the lifestyle, wakeboarders are another cup of tea. We like to be diverse and connect with more industries; it keeps you fresh and open-minded.
Which sport is the biggest in terms of products sold for Mystic?
Kitesurfing
What's the next big thing in the accessories market, where are we going to see most of the development?
I think the hardshell harness is a new development, which goes in an exciting direction. We have been working on a model, but we faced some issues during development, so it took longer then we expected. Because of some challenges we decided to work with the best carbon materials and manufactures out there to achieve the best outcome. This was a new road as it has not been done before. The Majestic X will be on the market spring 2017. For other accessories, we have some interesting things lined up, but it's too early to talk about it.
What has been the proudest moment for you as a brand over the years?
So far it has been a long ride with many great moments. First of all entering the industry and become part of it while adding something to the market was a proud moment.
Seeing Youri, Bruna and Christophe winning world titles was great, winning the IKSURFMAG Readers Awards Best Accessory Brand four times in a row felt good. Ruben surviving cancer was a great moment for all of us as he is the face of the brand since day one. Amongst this, there have been many other highlights it’s been a fantastic journey so far.
Thanks for taking the time, Max!
Thanks for the opportunity guys!
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