I'll have to change my name now North Kiteboarding is no more..

[Beardytello]

I really wonder how afin people are with brand names.
Do people buy the name or the product?
If everything would be the same would they really jump the boat because of that?

Brand names themselves I'm not that bothered about, I wouldn't not buy North stuff if they changed their name....kind of....If they go with DUOTONE they're getting dumped

It at least has to be a decent name, I don't want to be looking all awesome in front of the girls riding a kite that sounds like some kind of bargain basement Ford engine.

[iriejohn]

I wonder who owns this logo?

[kite_hh]

That's easy. Since 2008 it is registered on North Sails.
https://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/m ... 5&CURSOR=1

Interesting to me was that Rebel, Neo, Mono, etc. are not registered brands. Does this mean we could be seeing a Duotone Rebel next to a North Rebel?

[purdyd]

The change might be a good thing. Its a lose/lose situation. The true NKB will lose custmers to other brands for sure. Imho only way to keep the customers and attract new ones will be keeping the good design and lowering prices. At least for a while.

I’m not sure customers will leave just because of a name change.

I can see a media blitz in July, same performance and quality, new name.

Let’s hope that is also new lower price.

Oddly enough true-iteboarding.com is registered already to the true NKB

I can’t see north sails licensing the north name to another windsurf or kitesurf company.

It would have to be a new company, wouldn’t have the same cred as NKB market share and would hurt the North name.

After all what business in their right mind would saddle themselves with a licensing agreement where they paid a fee for every kite they made just for a name that because it it not the true NKB might actually reduce sales?

[kite_hh]

It seems that Boards and More even made the smart move to patent developments on their own name.

Iron Heart Quick Release for example is patented to Boards and More.
https://patents.google.com/patent/DE202010008687U1/

So North Sails (if they are to continue in the kiteboarding business) would either have to buy licenses or start from scratch.

So maybe there simply won't be any North Kiteboarding. Crazy if you think about the power of North Sails in the sailing business. Then again dropping such a valuable brand name seems just as crazy.

[iriejohn]

That's easy. Since 2008 it is registered on North Sails.
https://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/m ... 5&CURSOR=1

Interesting to me was that Rebel, Neo, Mono, etc. are not registered brands. Does this mean we could be seeing a Duotone Rebel next to a North Rebel?

Interesting, thanks.

[North_Wind]

It all reminds me a bit of when Volkswagen purchased Rolls-Royce (motor cars) from Vickers knowing that the brand name is actually controlled by Rolls-Royce plc (the aero-engine maker) and the latter gets to decide who can and who cannot use the name to produce cars. VW thought they could somehow force RR aero to let them use the RR name for cars whether they liked it or not. Big mistake. RR aero decided to license the name to BMW who have it to this day and VW fell back on using the name "Bentley" for their cars. It all worked out in the end for everybody but for sure VW would not have paid as much for the RR car assets if they had known RR aero was not going to play ball with them!

BA

[flipper231]

I think the name was important when people were switching from windsurfing to kiteboarding. Neil Pryde folks went Cabrinha, Nort, well stayed North, Gaastra was not in Canada so they went to Ozone, Sailworks went Slingshot (same kind of philosophy). But now if you learn on a duotone and see a bunch of them and are being told this is high quality, innovative, performant brand, you don’t care what name it had three years ago...

[Toby]

So, if...will be North used gear worth more or less?
I mean, it will be a classic then

[Osprey1]

As long as the designer and quality are the same North=Ion=Duotone in my book.