Howzit Swaylockians, Just got off the phone with my FCS rep and the the Hawaii branch will be closing sometime in August for good. Seems that the hawaii branch has been losing money from the start but the original owners felt it was a viable market for exposure. Well over the last 2 years ownership has changed a couple of times and the new owners are only interested in the bottom line. They may keep a couple of reps here but all products will come from Cali. I was also told that where before FCS was the main fin system in Aust. that is no longer the case there. The rumor from the peanut gallery is that they are going for tax write offs and this could finish off the co. This is a bummer since a lot of builders in here tried Futures and decided to go back to FCS for 1 reason or another. One question for the Aussies is if FCS is no longer the big system in Aust then what is the system being used now? Also was told that FCS might go after Pro-Box for some infringement BS which is total BS since Mitch and Robin started from scratch with their system and just because FCS may have been trying to do something similar doesn’t mean that they have the right to sue somebody. I personally don’t want to have to order from Cali or even deal with them since I understand the Cali reps are not that good and this would definitly change shipping times on top of having to deal with a new rep. On top of all this Futures is in the process of building a warehouse on Oahu so they can better serve board builders. Aloha,Kokua
i have been trying for months to get a fcs rep to come into my store and all he can say is that “he is to busy bro” how about that shit. somebody willing to spend money and make him money yet he is to busy just order over the phone and give me my commission for doing nothing! total bullshit!
There’s no case for FCS.
They lost in the Supreme Court trying to do the same thing to Surfco.
Poor Dave had to pay to take it all the way to the Supreme Court to win his case.
So if Dave’s allowed to do it with his Surfco fins as well as Soar fins then ProBox should be okay…
They might not be able to advertise the word FCS but their if FCS fins work in their boxes the only one benefitting is FCS who can sell more fins…
Too bad for SurfHardware… they are a great client…
Maybe bags and leashes are good enough…
or maybe they spent too much developing the H2…
I think Redex and Lokbox should ramp up production and give Futures a run for the money…
Way better box system in my opinion
Ever see those boxes used in the local and “Island Creations” chinese boards at the factory in Campbell Industrial Park? The take FCS fins but are designed different. I think they are from Kauai too…
Howzit pierpontscott, That’s just the kind of reps you have. Our Hawaii reps are/were the best, they were always available and ready to help in any way they could. They were open to any problems and feedback about their system which is a plus when it comes to customer service. Sure I could just give them my order in a couple of mins and hang up, but instead I spent many minutes talking to and establishing a good rapport with my Rep. In Cali they hire young surfers as reps who have no expierence and no clue to what customer sevice is all about. I like the part about the Bro I’m to busy to help you since that just goes to show how right you are about them and their commisons,just give me the order so I can get my money. On Kauai I’d say that FCS’s loss is going to be Pro-Boxes gain. I think any body who deals with them should e-mail the home office with complaints about bad reps and maybe they will wake up and open thier eyes befor the Co. bites the dust. Aloha,Kokua
My brother, who works at a glass house in Southern California, has been telling me for a few years now that FCS might be on its way out. His reasoning wasn’t from a business perspective but from more of a technical perspective. They’re seeing FCS plugs failing left and right and they prefer installing other systems.
Also, this brings a few questions to mind. Why wouldn’t FCS work out some sort of licensing deal w/ manufacturers (if they haven’t already)? It would be like free money!! You license a company to use the trademark, they pay you. They already have tons of market exposure and there’s still demand for a few of their signature fin lines. What would the harm in selling a license to company X to market a Joel Parkinson signature or a Mick Fanning signature fin line? Kids go crazy for that sh*t.
Also, it will be interesting to see who becomes the dominant player. Futures would seem to be a natural, but they could use to market more user-friendly names and fewer uber-nerd concepts. I buy the science behind some of it, but most surfers and not well versed in hydrodynamics and laminar flow.
Kokua, that was the other point I wanted to mention. Why would FCS keep reps who are basically deadweight to the company? Sounds like poor management.
Howzit josh, Funny you should bring up the plugs since they have come up with a new plug that is supposed to be stronger and you don’t have to wipe them with acetone before installation. In my mind this is an example of bad business as opposed to some one like Tom of RED-X who took a system(Rip Curl) and made it better and there fore popular. I’m going to e-mail FCS and tell them just what I think of them and their decision. Aloha,Kokua
Howzit josh, It's possible they don't realize the dead weight as long as they are making money in Cal, That's why I suggest e-mailing them with complaints about bad Reps. What is strange is the head Rep is a older guy and awhile back when I thought I would be moving to mainland I talked to my Rep about Repping in Cal and wouldn't it seem better to have some older Reps who know everything about the system and care about good service. On the same note they are lowering the pay of the Hawaii reps and have laid off most of the guys already. Like you said,Bad management or just a bunch of dumb s%*ts.Aloha,Kokua
if i did not need to buy plugs from them i’d pretty much say that i am over there company. I heard new plugs from them will be out in the fall as soon as current stock runs out. many better options out there. late
Howzit oneula, From what my rep says, our glassing factories here in Hawaii tend to wait til the last minute to place orders which really isn't a problem since Barney makes deliveries every week and probably even makes special deliveries if needed. But if they have to wait for the mainland reps to process and ship the order it could take a while to receive your order. Other then Fiberglass Hi. who carries Futures I don't know of any other fin co's with inventory in Hi.( other than Probox) so we still have a problem. The other thing is if you order other products like board bags, they are shipped via UPS and those costs from Ca will be higher than if it's shipped from Oahu. This will really affect the retailers since they order a lot of those products. We have been lucky to have the great Reps here who take good care of us where as I hear nothing but crap about the mainland Reps. FCS is probably the most used system here in Hi and since they are basically abandoning us they are going to lose out. I'm guessing that in the next couple of years we'll see less and less of their products on the shelves until the time when they will be nothing more than a memory. Hows this I tried to send them an e-mail with my opinion and they don't even have a contact link on their web site. What would be an idea would to let somebody else here take over the manufacturing products line. That co or person could add $1.00 to the product price and resell the fin systems, it could be a win/win set up since FCS still makes money and the resaler makes some money also. I would pay a buck or 2 extra if I knew get what I need without dealing with out of state. All of us in Hi are familiar with the paradise tax. Need to talk with my Rep again and ask him just what kind of volume they do to see if it's financially feasible. Aloha,Kokua
Howzit pier, Do you buy only plugs or the whole fin/plugs package. When ever a person asks for just plugs I tell them that it will cost $15.00 for 6 plugs. They usually reply that they already have some FCS fins and at that point I tell them that for only $ 10.00 more they can get a set of fins also, so why not get a set that they don't already have, they could sell the fins for more than $10 if they wanted to. All I can say is I think FCS is making a big mistake leaving Hi. Aloha,Kokua
Thats to bad that they will be leaving, as you said they are widely used, almost every off the rack board has FCS plugs in them. Im not a real fan of there plugs but still have a couple of boards with them, maybe there new plugs will change things. I really like some of there fins though, they have good foils.There other products like there bags and racks are really good, but looks like prices will go up. Also fiberglass hi is now the only dealer left of boxes now like kokua said, they sell futures and o’fishels, but I went down there today and they were low on stock. I hope lokbox comes here some time soon, Im really intrested in there boxes and products, I havnt seen them around yet.
This is the best news I have read on Swaylocks! I introduced the company that became FCS to plug systems in the first place, but they did not consider the tradeoffs regarding lateral force that had to be made.
Hopefully the Surfboard Industry will now go back to Surfboard and Fin designers who know what they are talking (and advertising) about.
As you know the main thing driving the FCS was hype and marketing. They were the first to push into the Tri market with the right timing and hype and was the leader due to the selection of fins. Classic business failure due to their own arrogance. The problem was the way they marketed the system (not selling the plugs separate) and shitty service. Not to mention the terrible design of the system, which is the primary cause of their demise.
What good is nice foil when you have a shitty base? The base is one of the most crucial areas in fin design. By the time FCS gets aroung to redesigning and remarketing they have left too many mfgrs with a bad taste, it’s going to have start from the ground all over again. It would be much wiser for the new guys at FCS to remarket the new system under a new name. I know for a fact most mfgrs will not go back.
Howzit josh, It’s possible they don’t realize the dead weight as long as they are making money in Cal, That’s why I suggest e-mailing them with complaints about bad Reps
“Bros and Hos”…clouds the judgement…
I talked to my Rep about Repping in Cal and wouldn’t it seem better to have some older Reps who know everything about the system and care about good service
The problems with your line of reasoning come from the terms “older Reps”, “know everything about the system”, and “good service”. This is the mainland surf industry, Kokua! You might have had better luck challenging them to meet your “salary demands”. MONEY!
You guys in Kauai must be living in another century. I’m checking air fares… 
Howzit Nels,First I don’t understand the Bros and Hos response,sorry. I know that a lot of manufacturers have been unsatisfied with FCS’s customer service and one thing I’ve learned over the years is if nobody tells a company about bad service then they will think everything is A OK and won’t address the problem. I’ve always stressed good customer relations and service in my businesses and it has always paid off.
As for the older reps,it seems that FCS in Cal takes the young surfers from their ware house and promote them to Reps with out any sales backgrouind in their resume. Maybe older isn't exactly the right word, should have said expierenced instead. But in a lot of case expierence comes from time on the job which means the person is probably older. In todays job market employers are looking for more expierenced workers so they are hiring older people who have just that. If you are doing business with a company who would you rather deal with , the "hey Bro I'm to busy to take your order" or the person who says " good to hear from you, what can I do to help you today". Over the years I've heard some real horror stories about some FCS reps and bad reps can and will hurt a business. Our Hawaii FCS Reps are some of the best and it's a shame that FCS is just tossing them out. By the way if we on Kauai are living in another century why would you want to come here. Are we to far behind or tof ar ahead. Aloha,Kokua
GEtT the connection
start the enterprise with a great I dea
run up an astronomical advertizing bill sell out to guys that dont surf of wanna surf and then who cares ? not the guys that sold out…where is Jim Ganzer? not makin’ jimmy Z>>>
Where is greg NOLL… not workin at sportsways
…whos next selling out the surfing NATION?
watch and wait
they will reveal where their loyalties reside
and come to face the reprecussions of heir actions…
on an island
accross the sea
fernando carlos sepulveda ,the original FCS, rests beneath a banyan tree in a hamock.oblivious to the seriously dropping tide beyond norm…
…ambrose…
Howzit BigBrother, I think we are getting away from the real subject here. It's not about the integrity of fin systems but availability and customer service. How would you like it if the fin company you've done business with for years just up and moved thousands of miles away and all of the sudden you can't get your supplies on time. There have been more than a few threads about how long it takes to get a board from a manufacturer and this is an example of just what can cause such delays. An example is a board I'm doing now that gets a yellow tint/blue abstract foam stain and there was no yellow tint on Kauai so I had to order from Fiberglass hi on Oahu. Lucky for us F.H. takes very good care of their customers and the tint arrived 2 days after ordering, but it still caused a 2 day delay in the making of the board. The reason FCS doesn't like to sell plugs is all about quality installation, if they sell plugs to a person who doesn't know the proper way to install then when that persons system fails the blame falls on the company and not the installer That's one reason I guarantee my installs of what ever system I put in a board. I take great care and pride in the boards I make and haven't had any boards come back with a failed system ,FCS or what ever brand. Clyde Rogers of EDGE Fin systems also does a lot of fin system repair work and he tells me that he never sees any of my boards with broken systems in his shop. Just re-enforces the fact that there are no bad systems only bad installations.Aloha,Kokua
Kokua, for me and the majority of the mfgrs it was about the INTEGRITY of the company and the system. That was one of the main factors why I choose not to continue with FCS, I have not offered the FCS system for a few years now. I refuse to even have an FCS option, if the customer wants FCS they will have to go somewhere else. I haven’t lost one customer. Majority of the customers have agreed that is an inferior system compared to others, once they have made the switch. Like you I have had to stand behind the system and take it on the head with repairs, which at time can take upto 50% of my time and or cost me in repairs to set straight with some customers. As with many mfgrs here on the mainland.
If the theory of bad installations is a main reason, why do they continue with a teqnique sensitive installation? This alone is a major fault. With other systems it’s much easier to install and have much, much, less failures and perfrom better.
If the reason is they don’t want to sell just plugs, isn’t it in there best interest to check and see who and which mfgrs are trained correctly? All this is too much BS. I’m over it. As with many mfgrs here on the mainland.
I also think if you do not buy all of fcs’s gear board bags leashes traction then you are considered not a very good customer is the way I’ve been treated by them in cali so maybe that could have some thing to do with it too.