When I saw my first Hurley hat, I thought immediately of the logo used by Bobby Hunter. Now the Hurley logo is everywhere. Bobby's cues look and play great...but did they inspire a nation wide trend? You decide. :grin:
Hurley or Hunter, whos logo came first?
- Thread starter Drawman623
- Start date
3Bros Billiards
Registered
There are only so many ways you can make an "H" look cool...
From the Hurley website -
The history of Hurley traces its roots back to the surf industry in Southern California in the late 1970's. Hurley Surfboards was established in Costa Mesa in 1979. Well into the early 1980's, Hurley Surfboards was excelling as a company and Bob was shaping surfboards for many of the best surfers in the world. In 1982, Bob and his business manager, Joe K., began pursuing a hot Australian clothing brand, Billabong. Bob was attracted to the company because of their super long, punk rock boardshort styles. With the help of friends and family, Billabong USA was established as a separate entity and licensee for Billabong.
By the mid-1980's, Billabong USA was doing really well. Bob and his team were committed to thinking and doing things differently. The team took full responsibility for design, sourcing, marketing and financing.
Around 1995, the Billabong USA team began noticing a shift in the collective consciousness of the consumer. Bob and his group realized that the modern surfer also loved fashion, skate, snow, music and art. The Internet and digital technology put more power in the hands of the consumers. The team began to re-think what it meant to be a "surf" brand. By early 1998, the internal Billabong USA team was formulating a new idea for the future.
By the end of 1998, it was clear that the team had it's own vision for the future that did not necessarily serve the interests of Billabong globally. Coincidentally, the license agreement between Hurley and Billabong was also up for renewal. With much gratitude, Bob and his team gave back the Billabong license and decided to launch Hurley.
USA sales at that time were at 70 million dollars. The management team was both confident and dynamic. Things were very good. Planning the first year of Hurley business was very exciting. There were 150 employees with families, house payments, car payments, and etc. that trusted the management team to future success. Miraculously, the first year of Hurley resulted in a major achievement. Not only were the sales excellent, but also the company was profitable and no jobs had to be cut.
Sounds like Hurley has been making surf boards longer than Mr. Hunter has been making cues but it also appears that the "Hurley" of today didn't come about until 1998. When did Mr. Hunter start making cues, does anyone know? I don't know timelines on Mr. Hunter, all I know is that he was an accomplished player (14.1 champ) before he was a cue maker.
The history of Hurley traces its roots back to the surf industry in Southern California in the late 1970's. Hurley Surfboards was established in Costa Mesa in 1979. Well into the early 1980's, Hurley Surfboards was excelling as a company and Bob was shaping surfboards for many of the best surfers in the world. In 1982, Bob and his business manager, Joe K., began pursuing a hot Australian clothing brand, Billabong. Bob was attracted to the company because of their super long, punk rock boardshort styles. With the help of friends and family, Billabong USA was established as a separate entity and licensee for Billabong.
By the mid-1980's, Billabong USA was doing really well. Bob and his team were committed to thinking and doing things differently. The team took full responsibility for design, sourcing, marketing and financing.
Around 1995, the Billabong USA team began noticing a shift in the collective consciousness of the consumer. Bob and his group realized that the modern surfer also loved fashion, skate, snow, music and art. The Internet and digital technology put more power in the hands of the consumers. The team began to re-think what it meant to be a "surf" brand. By early 1998, the internal Billabong USA team was formulating a new idea for the future.
By the end of 1998, it was clear that the team had it's own vision for the future that did not necessarily serve the interests of Billabong globally. Coincidentally, the license agreement between Hurley and Billabong was also up for renewal. With much gratitude, Bob and his team gave back the Billabong license and decided to launch Hurley.
USA sales at that time were at 70 million dollars. The management team was both confident and dynamic. Things were very good. Planning the first year of Hurley business was very exciting. There were 150 employees with families, house payments, car payments, and etc. that trusted the management team to future success. Miraculously, the first year of Hurley resulted in a major achievement. Not only were the sales excellent, but also the company was profitable and no jobs had to be cut.
Sounds like Hurley has been making surf boards longer than Mr. Hunter has been making cues but it also appears that the "Hurley" of today didn't come about until 1998. When did Mr. Hunter start making cues, does anyone know? I don't know timelines on Mr. Hunter, all I know is that he was an accomplished player (14.1 champ) before he was a cue maker.
Thanks for the history on Hurley. green rep to urackmIcrackm. Bobby Hunter started building cues in 1992, not long after his world champion straight pool win in 1990. Sounds to me like the "H" should go to Hunter Custom Cues.
Drawman623 said:
My pleasure. I always enjoy learning new things & your question gave me a reason to learn something new. In return, you gave me some history on Mr. Hunter's cue business, thank you. :thumbup:
I agree, the "member appointed copyright" belongs to Mr. Hunter!
anybody interested in a bobby hunter?? its all ebony and ivory with two searing shafts and the original bobby hunter shaft