HISTORY + INFLUENCE = YES.
YEAR 11 COMES WITH A NEW SENSE OF MATURITY AND PURPOSE THAT YES. ENTHUSIASTICALLY EMBRACE.
YES. Established. Solid. Reliable. Leading. Not that any of them are surprised. But there were skeptics that thought a few pros launching a brand in 09’ would not survive when the giants of the industry were scrambling to keep their losses to a minimum. In the midst of a recession, YES. pushed back against the relentless race-to-the-bottom the establishment had normalized throughout the retail world the previous 2 decades. They stayed away from bulk sales strategies, unsustainable margins and the hyperbole being shamelessly peddled in the tech pages. YES. has since day one, focused on delivering real value through design and rider experience that sometimes costs a little more. But you can bet that the material descriptions are honest. The shapes are innovative for a reason. The ride is real and their confidence is simply a result of the same passion they had as groms, growing up and finding their groove.
“Freestyle”
A word that gets used a lot in snowboarding.
It’s also a word that gets slapped on the YES. crew and one they’ve spent almost a decade steering away from for fear of it pigeon-holing them into something less than what they are. So YES. thought it was time they looked back at the word and asked themselves what it really means.
YES. history begins with the simple definition most people would think of. Kickers, spins, rotations, park jumps, half-pipes and backcountry cheese wedges. Contests or not, this is where the genesis of the founders and the brand lie. Truth be told, this is where much of their own day-to-day riding still is. But when their passion and focus evolved beyond the kickers, and YES. sought an experience far outside the park, they thought that maybe they had outgrown the labels of their youth. YES. thought it wasn’t surf enough. It wasn’t backcountry enough. And it most certainly wasn’t pow enough. But the truth is, freestyle is not an X-Games or Olympic discipline, it's the attitude and approach to their brand that goes way beyond the act of snowboarding. It’s the freedom to express themselves with style. YES. style. On YES. terms. And they express this every day through board design, graphic development, campaigns, collabs, marketing initiatives and attitude. YES. do it by reaching deep into their true selves, ignoring the noise and allowing themselves the freedom to do things differently. To pull influences from unexpected places, approach choices from a new angle and sometimes to deliberately go in the exact opposite direction of everyone else, just to see what happens. And that’s why YES. looks a little different. It’s why a YES. board rides a little different and why this brand just feels different. It’s because they’re free style.
Over the years and more increasingly, YES. has been honorably recognized by industry thought-leaders and various media channels. When you consider that an almost-non-existent ad-budget does nothing to sway or influence these voices, it is with true honor that YES. appreciate and value these awards. For you the customer it means un-biased, 3rd-party validation that their innovative design theories make a difference on-snow. Adding enjoyment to an already blissful experience, and adding value to whatever board you decide on.
These are just a few of the awards Yes are most proud of:
Here’s our short interview with JP and DCP, founders of YES. Team.
What are some of your fondest memories / stories of your trips to Australia?
JP: I think my fondest memory was back in the day when we did an official UNINC tour with DCP, Romain, Gigi and Danny Davis.
Remember Volkswagon had gifted us the new Touareg and a new bus to take from the Goldcoast back down to Sydney so we could incorporate it in the footage and we had a food fights while driving to Falls Creek, nothing was ever off the menu in terms of what we were tossing at each other. We actually ended up sinking the Touareg in a river and watched it float downstream and the bus suffered from a yeasty/moldy ventilation system from food all the food that ended up there. Ultimately I think both cars were totaled but the content from that trip was priceless. I have to add that I’m not particularly proud of that outcome but I don’t think I’ve ever laughed as much as I did on that trip.
I’m grown up now lol.
DCP: I love travelling to Australia a lot. It's great every time but I think when my trip involve some snowboarding, surfing and partying is when I created the best memories. Riding with let's split crew , showing the balance movie, surfing empty bells on a Sunday and even the times I came with Uninc when I was younger ... Oz is always good !
What are you looking forward to in your future snowboarding?
JP: I think to enjoy it as much as possible, especially in the wake of all this pandumbic shit. There are so many things I took for granted like a good turn or pointing it down the hill, I think my boarding will improve because I’ll appreciate it that much more!
DCP: I' m looking forward for deep powder with good friends. Anywhere . But also, I am hoping to keep mixing snowboarding and surfing in the same location. I live for that kind of stuff ... Truly
Yes has expanded into apparel. Can you share a little about that journey and why?
JP: We really wanted to get that message out there and also promote the cause beyond snowboarding, maybe pull some poor souls in that never even got on a board. We all live the YES. lifestyle and it’s about uniting positivity, something the world could do with more of right now.
So if YES. snowboards is about the action YESonLIFE is all about the moments in between :)
DCP: YES. we did , it's called YESonLIFE , we wanted to create a premium line of clothing that would fulfill those '' moments in between '' , as we say YES. Snowboards is the action in snowboarding , YESonLIFE is all those moments in between, so truly lifestyle-oriented. It's an extension of our message , we want to spread the positive vibes and the love of snowboarding and that lifestyle.
If you had to ride the one board for the rest of your days, what would it be?
JP: GREATS without a doubt in my mind.
DCP: I would love to ride the Hybrid 53 I guess then... It's great in pow, but also great on the resort to go around ... And you can ride it switch too ... Maybe if I could have a 157 as well though ... Haha for the deeper days and the faster-more committing terrain.
If you had to ride the one location for the rest of your days, what would it be?
JP: Japan
DCP: Whistler Backcountry
What is your favorite YES. graphic that you guys have done so far?
JP: The ChiModu Collab with his images of 2Pac, Biggie, Wu-Tang/ ODB and Eazy E before money ruined what people now consider Hip Hop.
DCP: I really liked that Greats Series : the one with Terje, Peter line etc on them. I liked them because it was giving respect and honouring the legends of our sport.
Has the board length you ride (for 1. regular resort riding & 2. pow riding) changed much in the last 10 years?
JP: Well considering that surface area is now how I determine what the board will do for my ride length is less important. Length does a play a vital roll in how you wanna draw your turn while dancing down big faces on big mountains. Less length makes it easier to flow in tight trees.
DCP: It has. I always used to ride a 160 cm or a PYL 159 for everything. 164cm for ak sometimes even ... Then we introduced the 420 , which is a shorter-wider board designed to ride powder but that you can totally do freestyle on ... From that moment on, I started loving shorter -wider board better ... Since I love powder lots ... That's why my new favourite is the hybrid 153 or 157.
Yes has started making some custom surfboards. Can you share a little about that journey and why?
JP: It’s just a thing where we all love to board whether it’s on snow, waves or concrete… We have the opportunity to make really really good high performance boards with graphics that we rock on our snowboards, its just an added opportunity that we are having tons of fun with.
DCP: Because surfing is deep in our DNA , from what we love doing in the off season to the inspiration for board designs , surfing is very important for each of us. We have this friend Basti in Bali, Indonesia, he runs a surf factory and loves snowboarding. We all decided together that we would love making surfboards as display for tradeshows and for us to ride , that way we could add snowboard graphics to the boards ... JP has been involved with the shaping a bit while visiting Bali and the YESonLIFE factory there, so, now, we can make custom boards to order ... I am very stoked on them, as they are high-performance boards and I love the shapes.
What things are most stoked on for the 20/21 YES. line?
JP: Well our powder hull technology will take a quantum leap this time around so I’m extremely stoked on that! We finally have a hybrid in a smaller size. (153 ) and the Greats look amazing! All in all I’m very pleased with what we are bringing to the table!
Thank you guys for all the love over the years, Australia has a very special place in our hearts and we can not wait to come back back down when the time is right!
DCP: I'm super excited for the 420 family - Quiver Series . We now are offering 2 lengths for kids, and 3 other lengths for the grown-ups men and women. The 420 quiver goes from 125, 135, 145 , 148 and 152. I also am very excited about introducing a split board. I wouldn't say we are late to the party but we are fashionably late. Never on schedule but always on time !!!
