The Board of Directors of the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) announced the appointment of industry marketing veteran Vipe Desai as executive director effective immediately.
Desai brings more than 35 years of experience in retail, brand building, event planning, and philanthropy to the position and is tasked with guiding the organization and its members toward new growth opportunities.
Desai began his career in the surf industry as the owner of H2O Surf Shop in Sunset Beach, CA. After ten years in business, he founded the youth marketing agency Propaganda Headquarters, which counted Red Bull, Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge, FedEx, Wahoo’s Fish Tacos, and other clients. He has held leadership roles with Monster Energy and TransWorld Media. Currently, he sits on the board of Ocean Institute, Business Alliance for Protecting the Pacific Coast and Skateistan, in addition to corporate board appointments that include Brix REIT, Inc. and Elevate.Money.
“I am stoked to announce the appointment of Vipe as the executive director of SIMA and that he is excited to serve and looking forward to working with all our members. He brings a vast amount of experience stemming from his days in retail and executing creative collaborations while at his agency that will benefit SIMA and our members,” said Paul Naude, SIMA President and CEO, Vissla. “Vipe represents the depth and breadth of talent and experience that will ensure strong leadership at SIMA as the surf industry navigates new and exciting opportunities to improve business conditions and stewardship of our environmental efforts.”
SIMA represents the consumer brands across the surf community. Member brands range from apparel and wetsuit manufacturers to surfboard builders, footwear and accessories.
“The Olympics have put surfing on the world stage, and consumers have taken notice. The opportunities for welcoming new participants and growth falls on us as an industry to roll out the welcome mat or risk others coming in and building off the foundation we’ve already poured,” said Vipe. “With this growth comes even greater responsibility to innovate, adapt and champion sustainable solutions that protect the health of our oceans. One of my key deliverables leading with SIMA will be to leverage the brighter spotlight that’s on us now and help members take advantage of the new opportunities ahead.”
In March, SIMA said Sean Smith would be departing SIMA as Executive Director to join Emerald’s Elastic division as its director of community engagement.
