After a 6-year partnership with Boardworks Surf in Carlsbad, Calif., which is part of the Confluence Outdoor stable of brands, Badfish SUP has announced it is not renewing the licensing agreement with Boardworks and is once again handling all aspects of its business from its corporate headquarters alongside the Arkansas River in Salida, Colo., effective immediately.
Badfish says it has forged its own production company in order to expand its creative offerings. The new Badfish remix will focus on a variety of inflatable SUPs, performance river-runners and high-end epoxy river-surfing boards in both SUP and shortboard shapes. Co-founders Harvey and Zack Hughes have brought in Luke Hopkins for added expertise in design, manufacturing, sales and distribution.
“I like to think of it as Badfish+,” says Hopkins, a passionate paddler and longtime outdoor industry guru. “Zack and Mike have done something great: They’ve created their own sport of river SUP that other brands have been trying to catch up to ever since. Now Badfish+ is expanding into even more innovative products, features and designs, with the ability to offer service that parallels product quality.”
“Rivers and surfing are still our core passion, but going back out on our own allows us to offer more cool products for all types of paddling,” says Harvey. “We’re expanding into categories we previously didn’t offer. From everyday family use on flat water to adventure paddling, fishing and travel-friendly boards, now we’ve got a board for anywhere there’s water.”
Badfish SUP will be introducing its complete line of inflatables, performance surfers and river-runners to retailers this winter, with boards available in spring 2018.
