Beef with Gaia

Ok, first I want to say that I think Gaia is a great company, in theory, and has the potential to really kick ass in ultimate gear production. However, there are a ton of things about the company that I can't stand and I wish they would do something about it.

First and foremost, make the gear that your sponsored teams have, available. Before Gaia changed their website layout, you could buy Furious, JAM, Dog, team USA, team Australia, and whoever else, jerseys, beanies, head bands, discs, the works. It was a bit pricey but hey, you couldn't get it anywhere else. Now, for whatever reason, all of those goods are unavailable. I had the good fortune of having a friend at club nationals last year who managed to secure me a Furious jersey and shorts, hopefully he can do the same thing this year. However, this should not be the case. I think that people would love to be able to buy their favorite teams' Jerseys (ok, maybe its just me), and if Gaia sponsors them, why not make it available to the general public. There may be some administrative complications that I am unaware of and/or production costs that may supercede profit margins, yada yada yada, stuff I don't know about. All I gotta say is, you used to be able to buy stuff with specific teams on it and now you can't. I think that sucks.

Second, their stuff straight up sucks half the time. I got a pair of furious wristbands and a hat and I could not be more disappointed. I mean, first, the wristbands aren't elastic, come on, are you serious? They are a pain in the ass to get over your hand and then when you get them on they just slide down because you have stretched them out. I know that there are things like product development or R&D but it doesn't take a designer genius to design a wristband, come on. Their hats also suck ass as well. I mean the depth of the hat is so shallow that it doesn't sit right on a person’s head. Maybe I just have a huge melon but the thing doesn't rest on my head right. I basically have to wear it like a yarmulka, which results in a few raised eyebrows my direction, but I care not, I want to support my team. In any event, once again, I don't see why they can't just take your standard trucker hat that you can buy off any website, poach the general layout and just slap "GAIA" and whatever else on it. It doesn't seem to be all that difficult.

Third, what’s with the college/elite/standard jersey design BS? I mean come on, they have all these design layout schemes that are supposed to make your team look more legit, but it just ends up making it look like the company is trying too hard. It seems to me that Patagonia and then maybe Under Armour produce a majority of the ultimate jerseys out there and there is a reason for it. They are comfortable despite the fact that they basically all look the same, your standard T-shirt made out of that elastic sort of material. Now GAIA has gone with this mesh sort of thing, which is cool, I suppose, not my first choice, maybe its cheaper, whatever. But what the hell is with the odd seams and bizarre layout schemes. They have weird color combination patterns and what not, and I don't think the general public gets it or cares. It seems like GAIA is putting so much effort into these jersey designs but they are actually hurting themselves in the process.

Fourth, along the same lines as 3, why does GAIA want to make everything? They have to make jerseys, and bags, and clip boards, shorts, wristbands, hats, sweatshirts, cleats, collared Ts, fleeces, nalgenes, it just goes on and on and on. Why spread yourself out so thin when obviously the things you make could be better? I hear the cleats are all right, a bit expensive but their warranty or whatever is good, fine. Great job, you got an ultimate specific cleat on the market, people actually buy them, and teams will endorse it. They may be hideous, but you succeeded there. Why reinvent the wheel? Why do you have to make all this other junk? Why devote so many resources in so many opposite directions to try and slap GAIA on everything? You want to make jerseys? Fine, make jerseys, but why make 9 different styles? Why not let a team give you a logo and have that be it? Why have elite or college or sleeveless or long shorts or short shorts or skirts? I mean I am looking at their website and they could not have more options. It's staggering and I am sure the problems that I have with the products I have purchased are equally prevalent in just about every other GAIA product. Why not just focus on 3 things, cleats, Shorts and Jerseys? Keep it to 1 maybe 2 designs for men and women. Focus on producing what customers actually want (take a few pointers from Patagonia) and then market surplus material for sponsored teams. Maybe there are GAIA enthusiasts that want to support the company, not necessarily the product (which would be un-intelligent) but I think developing a better marketing plan would be a better suggestion.

I want GAIA to succeed, I see the name on a lot of stuff that I want, but I can't get it and the stuff I can get sucks. I think GAIA should focus their efforts on what is easy and marketable, ie Furious gear (cuz I think that’s all they are sponsoring now) and try and make their current gear better. Maybe that means cutting back on product diversity (a very good idea) but come on, take a few lessons from Five Ultimate or VC. Companies that make decent stuff (sort of, those five ultimate fuzzy hats are soo ridiculous) but don't necessarily make everything. Also, the way VC has team bio information, why not carry other team merchandise in a similar fashion? Was anyone at College Nationals this past year? Did you see Hodag nation? My GOD!!! I would love to be able to have jerseys for my favorite teams. They make great gifts and plugging a company and a team is a lot better than just plugging a company.

Now maybe this is nothing but a long wish list or a bunch of requests that are wayy out of the realm of possibility, but I just think that GAIA has 1 HUGE thing going for it. They have a sizeable market (frisbee players) and a decent foot hold on team sponsorship. Why not use it to build your customer base as well as rearranging your efforts to make a few products better?

My thoughts

match diesel

PS This might not be something anyone wants out there, but if anyone is interested in writing something and having it published here, feel free to send me articles (airmatch24@gmail.com). I know a few folks have asked about it and I figure if anyone has something they want to say but not necessarily want to start a full blown blog or write it on RSD, they can post it here. Please no death threats, I get enough of those at work.