Hey everyone! Welcome to our brand new blog series Brand Knew. If you're huge skate/snow nerds like us, you're probably always on the hunt for interesting new info on the brands in the skateboarding and snowboarding industries. We're starting this series to give you some info on the brands you see in our Edmonton and Leduc skateboard and snowboard shops. Today we're starting off with one of our favourite brands here at Rumor, Polar Skate co.
#1. Polar Skate Co was founded by Pontus Alv, in Malmö, Sweden
Thats right! Polar Skate co hails all the way from the great nordic country of Sweden. Being able to bring such an awesome brand from so far away into Edmonton and area is a big point of pride for us. We're always trying to hunt down new and exciting brands to bring into the Edmonton skateboarding community.
#2 Pontus Alv doesn't give a f*ck.
Polar Skate Co was never built to be just another skate brand. As Pontus put it in his 2014 interview with Jenkem Mag "I mean the reason you start a company is to be able to do whatever the f*ck you want basically. That’s the main point." he goes on to say "That’s the whole point. We are not driven by money, we are doing this for the passion and love." Which is probably a good thing. Very few people in Skateboarding ever really make it big. Just like here at Rumor, we're doing it for the love, not because we ever expect to strike it rich. That said though, it does seem like Polar might be on of the brands that has managed to 'make it.'
#3 Polar Skate co relocated from Sweden to Portugal.
With the majority of production for the Polar brand being moved to Portugal some time ago, Pontus finally decided it was time that for him and the brand to be closer to where their products are manufactured. As Pontus said in his 2020 interview with Slam City "I’m just living down here, it’s hot as hell, nicer weather all year round, palm trees. Then of course I’m close to my production, a lot of my Polar stuff is made here around the corner, 40 minutes away."
Polar Clothing and Skateboards Selection at our Edmonton Location
It makes sense to us that moving somewhere you can skate year round would make sense for the Polar Skate co brand, that's for sure. For now though we'll keep busting it out in summers here in Edmonton.
#4 The Polar Big Boy Pants kind of blew up out of nowhere.
As Pontus says in the same 2020 Slam City interview from above "I don’t know what happened with those damn Big Boy jeans." Even he wasn't expecting them to blow up like they did! But, he says, when big name skaters like Tiago start to rock them, you just never know what'll happen. Skateboarding is funny like that sometimes, where out of nowhere a new trend will kick off, whether its being hesh, or big baggy jeans or bucket hats, sometimes all it takes is a few really good skaters to try something a bit outside the norm and BOOM! All any skater can talk about is the new hot thing.
#5 Pontus Alv is also the man behind Last Resort AB.
If you haven't heard of them before, now is the time to take a good long look at Last Resort AB. As Pontus says on the Last Resort AB website "The past years or so when I look out at the so called skate shoe landscape there is something about it that feels off & weird these huge corporations running things their way..."
Ultimately Skateboarding is still made by skateboarders. And as brands like Es and Lakai keep having to compete with the big dogs like Adidas or Converse, the going can get tough. The more you read about Last Resort AB, the more you realize that the brand, in some ways at least, is about putting skateboarding back in skaters hands as much as possible.
We see it all the time as an independent skater owned and operated skateboard shop here in Edmonton. There's always the constant threat of competition from the mall brands. We're extremely fortunate to have the support of our community. Hopefully some of that support keeps going to the little guys with great product like Last Resort AB.
#6 Speaking of Last Resort AB, they've got Vegan shoes!
A lot of brands are trying to find different ways to make their companies and products more sustainable and ethical nowadays. Last Resort AB is of course aware that skaters are keeping a closer eye on their environmental impact than ever before, and have introduced a canvas shoe that is completely vegan and more environmentally friendly because of that. Head over to our Last Resort AB Collection to check their kicks out!
#7 Polar has some of the most incredible skateboarding videos you've ever seen.
With an amazing team that includes rippers like Shin Sanbongi, Dane Brady and Aaron Herrington, it's no surprise that Polar puts out some amazing content. Pontus is a big believer in holding onto content and making full length skateboard movies, as opposed to just dropping clips and short edits. What that results in is videos that feel like complete entities, with purpose and vision beyond the oh so common, "Oh look we went here and did some tricks," that feels so prevalent in the skateboarding industry.
Check out their most recent release "We blew it at some point"
We love Polar Skate Co. As a brand they've been pushing what it means to be an independent skateboarding company. They make phenomenal boards, with great and interesting shapes. They sponsor amazing riders. They make comfortable, functional clothing. You really get the feeling that this is a brand thats built with skaters at its core, and it's a brand we here at Rumor are incredibly proud to sell.
You can find Polar Skate co at our Edmonton Location, Our Leduc Location and of course online, right HERE.
Thanks for reading! Got a brand you want to know more about, or questions about Polar? Hit us up on our instagram and let us know!