Mervin Manufacturing have been making snowboards, surfboards and skateboards for more than three decades. Lib Tech and Gnu are the snowboard brands they pump out of their factory ‘near Canada’ and co-founders Mike Olsen and Pete Saari are so stoked on the progressive, footprint-limiting setup that not only have they produced a video charting the evolution of the factory (see below), they’ve gone a step further and built a MERVINMADE.COM micro site.
This navigable micro site allows you to take a virtual tour of their “eco-minded board sports manufacturing lifestyle.”
Gnu, Lib Tech, BMBW and Roxy are all made there by some colourful characters under the stewardship of the equally colourful Mike and Pete. Or rather, according to them they’re not ‘just made”, they’re Mervin Made!
Here’s just some of what they’re stoked on:
HISTORY: We’ve been building boards and innovating technology for thirty plus years!
TESTING GROUNDS: 24 hour rapid prototyping and testing in our amazing front and back yard.
ZERO HAZARDOUS WASTE: Mervin is the only board factory in the world that doesn’t leave toxic waste behind
ECO MATERIALS: Eco Materials are the best to ride, the best for our Kraftsmen to work with and the best for the planet
ECO PROCESS: What’s good for us is good for the planet!
ECO POWER: Our electricity is 89.6% hydro electric.
SAWDUST TO SOIL: We’re turning saw dust to soil, celebrate the dirt bag!
As Saari says: “Mervin Manufacturing is a dream factory in a dream location producing dream boards with dream materials and processes.”
With a list of product innovations over the years as long as your arm, a definite ‘out there’ ethos and a family of riders that regularly blow minds, Mervin have long cemented their status in snowboarding, and being able to surf through how their gear is produced with a focus on sustainability – while in your underpants – is pretty tidy.
Dive right in there on mervinmade.com.
