(Editor’s note: This is the 34th installment in a monthly series highlighting some of the region’s unsung manufacturers that make products essential to the economy and, in many cases, our way of life. See previous installments here.)
The air is thick with the smell of maple inside Comet Skateboards Inc.’s Bristol factory as Stephan Vaast oversees the pressing and cutting of wood that will soon be made into an artisanal mode of transportation.
Vaast, Comet’s head of manufacturing and design, and other workers are assembling and fulfilling orders of their eco-friendly longboards – a style of skateboard that uses a longer, more stable board designed for cruising, carving and downhill racing. Simply put, these boards are built for distance and speed. Vaast, who used to race longboards, says he once reached more than 80 mph on one.
Yet the specialized manufacturing equipment inside the 5,000-square-foot manufacturing plant belies the simplicity of the finished product, giving an industrial heft to otherwise handcrafted merchandise. It takes great skill to ride these kinds of skateboards. And even more skill to make them.
“These boards take time to make,” Vaast said. “It’s not something that can be mass produced. And we go above and beyond when it comes to quality components. We use computer numerical control [CNC] machines and power tools to make our jobs easier. But it’s still a very skilled, hands-on craft. Our boards are super tailored and good to ride straight out of the box.”
That doesn’t even take under consideration the artwork and designs on the board, much of which is provided by a friend of the brand, West Coast-based artist Catherine “Cat” O’Dell.
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PIECING IT TOGETHER: Henry Cole, Comet Skateboards Inc.’s lead manufacturing technician, is manning the machines at the company’s facility in Bristol.
PBN PHOTO/TRACY JENKINS[/caption]
The longboards are also made with the environment in mind. Comet uses only formaldehyde-free glue to assemble the boards. The wood comes from responsibly managed forests, ensuring sustainable sourcing. The manufacturing facility also operates on renewable energy sources, and the company prioritizes sourcing supplies locally to reduce carbon footprints.
Comet Skateboards was founded in 1997 by Jason Salfi in California – the birthplace and mecca of “sidewalk surfing” since the 1950s – before he moved to Ithaca, N.Y., in 2007 when he enrolled at Cornell University to explore sustainable materials.
Salfi eventually sold the company in 2014 to Vaast and friend Aaron Breetwor, who relaunched the brand years later in its current home in Bristol.
“At first, these boards were being manufactured in San Diego. They made them for us, and we sold them. We did that for a while, about 300 boards per year with them,” Vaast said.
That changed when the West Coast manufacturer decided to end the partnership because the volume was too low, and then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Vaast decided to produce everything in-house.
“Back then, it was really just a passion project,” Vaast said. “The pandemic pushed us to start making our own boards. People needed something to do at the time, and activities like longboarding actually picked up. There was actually an increase in demand. So we decided, why don’t we just start manufacturing right here?”
This aspect of the business is still fairly new for Vaast. The company initially started production at a shared manufacturing space elsewhere in Rhode Island during the pandemic. Comet moved into its new production space at the revitalized industrial complex Unity Park last September.
It took time to get the factory ready for full-scale production. “We only got set up and properly up and running in, I want to say, December,” Vaast said.
Two part-time employees now handle production and fulfillment. Meanwhile, social media and branding is taken care of by Breetwor, who still resides in California.
Vaast says Comet is building skateboards for 10 to 15 orders per week, or about 700 boards per year. The goal is to eventually increase orders to 60 a week. The company did not disclose its annual revenue.
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WORKS OF ART: Boards that have been completed with artwork await the addition of components before being shipped.
PBN PHOTO/TRACY JENKINS[/caption]
The skateboards are shipped weekly to places as far as Australia and Europe, thanks to a global flat shipping rate. Comet even provides wholesale boards for a company in the Netherlands, selling them in Dutch skate shops.
But the bulk of the orders still come from across the United States.
Because Comet built its brand and presence mostly on the West Coast over the years, the name isn’t as well known in Rhode Island as Vaast would like.
“What’s hurt us the most in Rhode Island is that we only do direct sales at the moment through our website right now,” he said. “That’s something we need to start taking advantage of. Getting our name out there in Rhode Island. We’re just not available in the local skate shops yet.”
Vaast says Comet is in talks with its landlord to create a retail space at Unity Park, where the company could sell T-shirts and skateboards through a brick-and-mortar storefront.
Comet’s signature skateboard, the Cruiser, retails online through the company’s website for $325. Another model, Shred, goes for $100, and downhill boards sell at between $145 and $240.
He believes the market for longboards and skateboards in Rhode Island is untapped and has potential. States near the ocean almost always have thriving extreme sports scenes, he says.
“Rhode Island, despite maybe not having as many hills as Southern California, itself has a history and is very active in the longboarding community,” Vaast said. “And there’s a surf culture here, too. I feel like the state will be very receptive to our product. Funnily enough, one of the best longboard riders in the world, Owen Fox, is originally from Rhode Island.”
For now, Vaast says the company is sticking to two central principles that got it where it is today: Make products that are a joy to ride and environmentally friendly to make.
“We just try to make really fun things as sustainably as we can,” Vaast said. “And we’re digging our roots here in Rhode Island now. Soon, we want to see our boards cruising through Providence, Newport, Westerly and beyond.”
