Musto’s Marketing Man – Nick Houchin

In this episode, I talk to Nick Houchin, Head of Marketing for sailing apparel brand Musto. We chat about how he got into the business, innovation and challenges around keeping a brand relevant and top of mind.

• 01:22 – The RYA youth squad system includes summer camps and competitions to promote sailing to a new generation.
• 02:26 – The Dark Blue Book was a directory of the Who’s Who of the sailing world loosely based on the F1 Black Book published in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
• 02:33 – Oman Sail is a ground-breaking program to build sailing in the Sultanate and was a great success. It’s still going strong after over a decade.
• 06:34 – SAP has been a strong supporter and sponsor of sailing for a long time. The company sponsored Team New Zealand’s defence of the America’s Cup in 2001, then provided digital and data insights for series like the Extreme Sailing Series and continue to be involved.
• 09:59 – You can keep in touch via Facebook and Instagram
• 10:32 – Nick is now Head of Marketing for Musto, a brand that was born out of competitive sailing.
• 11:32 – The business was founded by Keith Musto.
• 14:05 – What are the main drivers of Innovation? Is it the best technical garments or are there other influences like being more sustainable?
• 16:30 – Rip Curl have a wetsuit recycling scheme. They say my old steamer will be turned into rubberised flooring for children’s playgrounds.
• 17:17 – What does the sailing apparel market look like? Are the barriers to entry too high for new entrants? Is there enough competition to push the incumbent brands to keep innovating?
• 21:39 – How long does it take to bring a new product to market, from design to on the shelves?
• 25:31 – Things change. Offshore sailing used to be about being wet. Now teams are enclosed in cabins for a large percentage of the time. What does that mean for product design?
• 27:21 – There are a lot of buyer persona’s and edge cases in Sailing.
• 29:27 – We spoke to the Australian Boating Industry Association about trends in the market …
• 30:37 – The ‘Trickle Down Effect’ might be a dirty word in economics, but in sailing there are definite advantages of brands innovating at the high-end and letting those developments become normalised over time. Some things never change. See this video from 2011.
• 32:44 – “There is no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothing choice” Nick says that Musto invented that phrase, but ChatGPT says..

The phrase “There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing” is often attributed to the Norwegian saying, “Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlig klær.” This saying reflects the Scandinavian approach to dealing with challenging weather conditions. In regions with cold climates like Norway, Sweden, and other Nordic countries, people emphasize the importance of proper clothing to stay comfortable and safe in various weather conditions. It encourages individuals to be prepared and properly dressed for the weather, rather than simply avoiding or complaining about it.

• 33:32 – Musto is now part of the Helly Hansen Group and the ultimate owner is Canadian Tires!

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