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Tennis Shoes and Alpacas
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Date : 05/05/09
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I recall the event like it was yesterday. My neighbor and best friend, Bobby Perry stepped out of the car with instant recognition. It was 8:00 a.m. and the crowd had gathered. He was the first in our school to lace up the most recognized footwear of all time. Converse High Top All Stars. The year was 1967 and he was the envy of Henderson Middle School. We didn’t have a school paper but if we did Bobby and his white canvas lace ups would have been the headline story. This was the shoe that made everyone better at whatever they did. For a week or two Bobby was in the game, then a funny thing happened. As word spread and sporting goods stores filled their shelves, Converse High Tops began to show up in many places. Ed Coleman was next, but his were black. Wow, the same shoe but black. The World Champion Boston Celtics added to the hysteria with green. At this point not only did everyone have a pair, they came in different shades of color. Tennis shoes were hot ! Sound familiar ?
A few years later in the early 70’s there was a fellow named Steve Prefontaine from Coos Bay, Oregon who ran like the wind. His success as a track star for the University of Oregon helped put the athletic shoe industry into high gear and all of a sudden Converse had competition. Phil Knight was no dummy. “Just do it” became the slogan, “swoosh” was the logo, “Air Jordan” was the home run and Nike made itself into an athletic icon. In July of 2003 Nike purchased Converse for $305 million. This success story is nothing new. It happens all the time. Whether it’s shoes, automobiles, thoroughbred horses, or companies, market forces have shown time and time again that the cream rises and quality wins out. The weak sisters fall by the wayside.
How in the world does the success of athletic shoes have anything to do with Alpacas? Mercedes is a quality automobile company because of its engineering. Big Brown is a champion because of his world class genetics and Microsoft is a success because of their much needed applications. Success is not easy. It’s born from compelling ideas, dedication, commitment and a love for the challenge. The Alpaca industry is no different. In other words, many items are One Hit Wonders but those that endure the test of time fulfill an economic need. The individuals working within those industries labor diligently to improve upon the quality and demand for their particular product. Today our industry is a little like Bobby Perry - the talk of the town. But sooner or later Alpaca farms that prosper will be the ones that understand the quality and value of Alpaca fiber, strive to improve the breed, continually focus on the client experience, doing all of this with blinding enthusiasm. As Don Julio Barreda said, “quality lineage will breed out,” and it has. The marketing campaign that focuses on cute and cuddly will at some point, for the most part, drift away. The low hanging fruit will be no more and the wonderful world of Alpacas will be better off. It’s the next phase of growth. To use a business term, it’s the beginning of the “maturing of our industry.” All of us at Accoyo Partners believe in advancement through genetics. We are focused on quality Suri fiber, the ultimate in luxury, and are dedicated to its success. We look forward to the seasoning of the Alpaca industry and all of the opportunities that lie ahead. If we can be of assistance to you and your breeding program please let us know. By the way, Converse All Stars are still going strong. The last pair I saw was pink.
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 |  Alpaca Business
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Accoyo Partners is the owner of the largest full ACCOYO SURI herd in the world out
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The Historic Importance of Alpacas
Suri alpacas were first brought to the United States in 1991. Importations have brought Suri alpacas from Bolivia, Chile and Peru, giving U.S. breeders access to genetic material from all three countries in South America that produce Suri alpacas.
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