Leeds entrepreneurial graduates riding waves of success with new surf, snow and skate shop

A duo of entrepreneurial graduates from Leeds Beckett University have launched a surf, snow and skate website selling clothing and accessories alongside a blog and social community.

Simon Lomas, who graduated from Leeds Beckett in 2009 with a degree in Consumer Marketing, and Emma Wright, who graduated in 2010 in Events Management, have launched the Blue white and grey website following a year and a half of work generating followers through their surf, snow, skate and music-focused blog.

Simon said: “We began work on the online store in early 2014, starting a blog on the domain we were planning to use for our website and building up a following on social media ready for the launch. We now have just under 40,000 followers and fans across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.”

Simon, who travelled for two years after graduating, and Emma, who previously worked in London, relocated to Manchester to kick-start their new ecommerce business venture.

Simon added: “We both try to spend as much time outdoors as possible, we both surf and snowboard, whilst I also skateboard. Coupled with the fact that we both have a keen interest in fashion, we wanted to combine these interests into something that we can make a living from. I also specialise in web development and online marketing so it made sense to set up an online store.

“As part of my course at Leeds Beckett, I studied some modules in retail which have really helped me when running my own store, as I applied the theories I learnt to running a business online. Emma manages a lot of the relationships with the brands we stock, and she has found the networking required in events management very transferrable to our business and industry.”

Blue white and grey showcases new labels as well as continuing to support a selection of well-established brands in the surf, snow and skate industry. Brands currently on offer for the Autumn/Winter 2015 season, include Analog, Mink Pink, Afends, Rhythm, Volcom, WESC, RVCA and Passenger.

The blog established by Simon and Emma continues to run alongside the online store, delivering content such as news, features and interviews, across surf, snow, skate and music.

Simon concluded: “The aim of our business is to present fashion-conscious surfers, snowboarders and skateboarders with a carefully selected group of brands and products. We want to showcase companies that are producing exciting new product lines and provide customers with a user-friendly shopping experience that doesn’t involve them having to trawl through pages upon pages of products from hundreds of different brands. Our mission is to bring back the alternative side of the industry, placing up-and-coming surf, snow and skate brands in the forefront of customers’ minds. Blue white and grey aims to be more than just a lifestyle store, it’s a social community and leading source of up-to-date industry content.”