Special guest, overseas sales ratio 60%
Maintaining functionality, street fashion design
Expanding global business to China, the US, etc.
"Instead of typical snowboarding wear, I wanted to create a brand that had the feel and fit of street fashion. I tested the products myself in high-intensity environments to improve any inconveniences and actively reflected feedback from enthusiasts around me."
In an interview with Asia Economy on the 25th, Special Guest CEO Ahn Young-tae said, "As a snowboarding enthusiast who has enjoyed snowboarding for over 19 years, I started making snowboarding suits myself to resolve the discomfort I felt while wearing them." He added, "I applied a neat street fashion design that can be worn in everyday life while maintaining the functionality necessary for snowboarding suits, such as waterproofing, windproofing, and moisture resistance. I have also been running an online shopping mall for 10 years based on the global e-commerce platform Cafe24."
Special Guest entered the Japanese snowboard market and has been growing by about 30% every year since recording sales of 1 billion won in 2020. CEO Ahn said, "As of last year, about 60% of total sales came from overseas sales," and "In particular, we are very popular by collaborating with Japan's number one snowboard brand to introduce snowboards and snowboarding wear." Its signature product, 'Easy Pants,' is receiving a good response for its comfortable and light material. CEO Ahn explained, "Existing snowboarding wear pants had to be made with wide hems to completely cover the boots due to the constraints of having to wear boots." "Special Guest has narrowed the hems of its Easy Pants and designed them to be tightened with straps, and the waist area is designed with band material to increase activity." Special Guest's products boast a return rate of less than 1%. CEO Ahn said, "We use domestically produced fabrics and materials, and we have improved quality by checking and inspecting each process individually," and "Most people see the actual product from people they know and then purchase it, so the satisfaction level is very high." Special Guest is planning to fully expand its global business. CEO Ahn said, "Currently, our Japanese shopping mall is growing, and we plan to expand our sales area to China and the United States," and emphasized, "We will optimize the shopping mall design for each country and provide customers with better services and products by producing detailed pages using Edibot."
