Ryan Clements | The Nine Club With Chris Roberts - Episode 51

[Tyroneshoelaces]

Interesting as hell.  Im kinda torn,  is it better if everyone around skateboarding  makes money while the actual skaters make not a whole lot?   Skater and "core" everything while the actual skateboarders do the work for their buddy who started a shoe company and makes filthy money off his homies?

Or the nike way.  "Lets drain these corporate suits for every cent they have."  Its kind of a toss up because a lot of shady ass side homies have been 'core' and also shit.  Like the savier shoes company and ronnie creager.  He got fucked by his bro.  Maybe should have been getting 5 digits a month from adidas

[Sold Out]

I thought this episode was interesting as hell. I think Clements sounded like a good dude, not sure why people are mad at the fact he enjoys dealing with money, some people find that stuff interesting (I took a bunch of finance classes in high school and find it super interesting). He says himself he lives a modest lifestyle. Didn't get the impression he was "money hungry" just got the impression he was financially literate and helping out a bunch of skateboards who were far from it. Not many finance managers are going to do work for you pro bono because they like you. The Fred Gall stuff was rad.

[oldgoodburger]

i dropped out of school because the nine club told me to

[Robert Baratheon]

Loved this episode and was stoked on the guy 'til the part where he called out Kelly directly on air. What an incredibly shitty, jockish, and unprofessional thing to do-- Kelly's current employer and role in the show means he is going to have zero ability to really respond in that situation. Clements knew, and took the opportunity to steamroll Kelly and add to his narrative as the skater's defender.

And then the part where Kelly is describing the actual situation (spoiler: skater with agent is poached by shoe company X with large sums of money from a smaller, skater-run brand with a TM that supported the skater when nobody gave a shit and had a years worth of shoes/vids lined up for him) and Clements is just going "yeah bro that sucks!!! but that's what I'm paid to do" and "bro, you had a good eye with him" (subtext: we appreciate the small brands' ability to farm talent until they're ready for big shoe money, the big boys will take it from here).

In the end, you can see by his own admission that Clements has pretty much been on the forefront of developing the formula for big money in skateboarding for 10-15 years, with taking on the Nike sponsorship to doing these huge contests (e.g. Kimberley Diamond Cup), and now with his apparently ruthless contract negotiations. Your opinion on that, and him, I guess is a matter of perspective ("the homies finally getting hooked up" vs. "nike and adidas are buying the entire industry with basketball money").

Interesting take.

- I'm not sure that Clements should have brought that up. Sounds like the negotiations/situation got more heated than is being let on. I'm not sure that Ryan was bullying him really. Maybe he was trying to coach Kelly up a bit on how these things can go. Keep the relationship going.

- That said, it kinda doesn't matter. No matter what Kelly does or says, money talks. Skater owned businesses develop and authenticate the talent, then the corporate-owned companies come in and buy it. The corporations will soon not need the 'core' people to validate the talent. The pros don't need Girl, DLX, Baker when they have Nike money and wood shops that will make them small amounts decks.

-'Ruthless negotiations' are a part of life. Not saying this dude is perfect. Or that his ability to recognize these trends make it 'ok' and therefore good for the future of pro skateboarding. I don't think that he's creating the 'problem' of Nike and friends buying everything up. He's just riding the wave.

[ill_Murray]

Fuck this guy and his "skaters expect everything for free" bullshit.

I've paid for product my entire life but I will never fucking pay to watch a contest online. 

[Sarcasm]

This guy made me feel like people who are smart with dealing with money don't deserve any

[Dead Horseman]

This episode was great as usual but Clements definitely steered the convo a bit more than usual. It was almost like he low-key went on the show just to tell Kelly whats up with that deal...? Maybe not, but a little strange how business-y it was. What happens behind the scenes in skating is definitely interesting and complex and Clements appears to be doing a solid for a lot of people who would otherwise be poorly managed, and it's great that he's fighting for people to succeed- so that is a clear positive. If I were to be super critical, he seemed kind of, i dunno, slick...

[thebacker]

This episode was great as usual but Clements definitely steered the convo a bit more than usual. It was almost like he low-key went on the show just to tell Kelly whats up with that deal...? Maybe not, but a little strange how business-y it was. What happens behind the scenes in skating is definitely interesting and complex and Clements appears to be doing a solid for a lot of people who would otherwise be poorly managed, and it's great that he's fighting for people to succeed- so that is a clear positive. If I were to be super critical, he seemed kind of, i dunno, slick...

He may come off slick because of contracts and nda's he signed with people so he can't say much. I do totally understand where he's coming from on the whole "Im getting MY client (the skater) the best deal and I'm sorry if i step on toes." He seems like a total stand up guy who puts the interests of the skaters first.

[shit_for_brains]

If I rode for eS I'd want someone to get me out of there too.

[Sleazy]

any entrepreneur who's worked his way up selling services is going to be really "slick". that's the whole thing, being able to spot opportunities, come up with the right solutions, the right messaging, execute with the right timing and team, etc... that's a lot of moving parts, it's a lot of things to manage, a lot of people to get buy in from. there's no way you can succeed without being slick.

[ice nine]

i only listened to half so far but it seems like a few people in here are blaming clements as if he is bringing in these corpo scumpanies and their contracts. when really it seems like he is just negotiating the best deal for the skaters.

nike would be here anyways, making a killing. he is just making sure that skaters are getting their fair share and not blowing all their money at the same time.

[iwishilivedinfinla]

i fucking loved this episode

fuck bitches get money

[Dead Horseman]

any entrepreneur who's worked his way up selling services is going to be really "slick". that's the whole thing, being able to spot opportunities, come up with the right solutions, the right messaging, execute with the right timing and team, etc... that's a lot of moving parts, it's a lot of things to manage, a lot of people to get buy in from. there's no way you can succeed without being slick.

True. I agree. It's not easy to be both "cool" and be a business savvy go-getter agency at the same time. Depending on what the specifics are, somebody at the table is probably going to look less than great, or get the short end of the stick eventually. Which I think is what happens sometimes in any business dealings, so I'm not faulting anyone for being overly slick or whatever. Somebody has to be sharp and make moves like that or no one would get anywhere. I guess I felt bad for Kelly Hart in that situation. Skateboarding is generally laid back on the surface, so I suppose it takes go-getters like RC to move and shake. I have respect for what the guy does, I just found the dude to be a little bit, straight or something, if I'm being honest.
 

[coyote2425]

First Olympics comment.

[Hevonen]

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Loved this episode and was stoked on the guy 'til the part where he called out Kelly directly on air. What an incredibly shitty, jockish, and unprofessional thing to do-- Kelly's current employer and role in the show means he is going to have zero ability to really respond in that situation. Clements knew, and took the opportunity to steamroll Kelly and add to his narrative as the skater's defender.

And then the part where Kelly is describing the actual situation (spoiler: skater with agent is poached by shoe company X with large sums of money from a smaller, skater-run brand with a TM that supported the skater when nobody gave a shit and had a years worth of shoes/vids lined up for him) and Clements is just going "yeah bro that sucks!!! but that's what I'm paid to do" and "bro, you had a good eye with him" (subtext: we appreciate the small brands' ability to farm talent until they're ready for big shoe money, the big boys will take it from here).

In the end, you can see by his own admission that Clements has pretty much been on the forefront of developing the formula for big money in skateboarding for 10-15 years, with taking on the Nike sponsorship to doing these huge contests (e.g. Kimberley Diamond Cup), and now with his apparently ruthless contract negotiations. Your opinion on that, and him, I guess is a matter of perspective ("the homies finally getting hooked up" vs. "nike and adidas are buying the entire industry with basketball money").

[close]

Interesting take.

- I'm not sure that Clements should have brought that up. Sounds like the negotiations/situation got more heated than is being let on. I'm not sure that Ryan was bullying him really. Maybe he was trying to coach Kelly up a bit on how these things can go. Keep the relationship going.

- That said, it kinda doesn't matter. No matter what Kelly does or says, money talks. Skater owned businesses develop and authenticate the talent, then the corporate-owned companies come in and buy it. The corporations will soon not need the 'core' people to validate the talent. The pros don't need Girl, DLX, Baker when they have Nike money and wood shops that will make them small amounts decks.

-'Ruthless negotiations' are a part of life. Not saying this dude is perfect. Or that his ability to recognize these trends make it 'ok' and therefore good for the future of pro skateboarding. I don't think that he's creating the 'problem' of Nike and friends buying everything up. He's just riding the wave.

I agree, business is ruthless and you can't expect the big corporations or anyone for that matter to be cool about stuff when money is on the line. If anything the small skate shoe brand should figure out how they can invest in a skater for years and base their future on him and not get screwed the second the dude gets popular. Feeling bitter about it afterwards does nothing

[ChronicBluntSlider]

I thought it was pretty telling that when talking about stepping on toes in the course of doing business, and crob asked if he ever felt bad about burning friends, his response was something about how he feels bad burning relationships, not the individual at the other end of that relationship. Seems like a hard working dude who regurgitates self help books. "Always be closing." Yuck.

[CRAILFISH TO REVERT]

i zoned out almost immediately. I'll give it another try at some point.

[essal]

i wonder how much money TK could make if he had a white man negotiating his deals

[RCB3]

I thought it was pretty telling that when talking about stepping on toes in the course of doing business, and crob asked if he ever felt bad about burning friends, his response was something about how he feels bad burning relationships, not the individual at the other end of that relationship. Seems like a hard working dude who regurgitates self help books. "Always be closing." Yuck.

That line's from Glengarry Glen Ross. I always thought this scene was hilariously amazing.

[Madam, I'm Adam]

i zoned out almost immediately. I'll give it another try at some point.

It's taken me two days to get halfway through so far. I've started to log my progress, like Heath with his travel diary.

[MexicanSpaniard]

I'm trying to ride for three shops at once, help me clem!

[natenola forever]

His everyone should be riding Sole tech, Lakai, or Huf comment made me think that a lot of these dudes in the industry see this all coming to an abrupt end. Skateboarding is set to tank very soon and lets get all of the money we can right now, he seems like on of those weird guys that lives by friendship is friendship, business is war, which is fine in a sense but that's the reason skateboarding is a "sport" now and kids are raised and trained to be pro skateboarders and corporations have taken over this industry.

[Stoop Kid 2.0]

i wonder how much money TK could make if he had a white man negotiating his deals

One of the funniest comments on here in a while.

[too much]

You can tell by the comments on here and youtube, this episode was fucking lame. Either it's just straight hate or peeps are trying to make light out of an hour 48 minute rapid fire lecture on business solutions. I can just picture this asshole reading my comment and being, "ah core skater doesn't have a business sense..." Fuck off, your interview was wack. It's a fucking nine club interview you aren't lecturing a college course, which in you doing so made you sound like a rookie, or a tool. Lighten up have a beer and just bullshit with the nine club...fucking Sinclair is a businessman too and they talked about junk food the entire time. I think Crob knew he was a twat and had him, "quote me on the nine club contest in the Outback." Chris Roberts is a business man.

[NickDagger]

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i wonder how much money TK could make if he had a white man negotiating his deals

[close]

One of the funniest comments on here in a while.

+1

[CossRooper]

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Loved this episode and was stoked on the guy 'til the part where he called out Kelly directly on air. What an incredibly shitty, jockish, and unprofessional thing to do-- Kelly's current employer and role in the show means he is going to have zero ability to really respond in that situation. Clements knew, and took the opportunity to steamroll Kelly and add to his narrative as the skater's defender.

And then the part where Kelly is describing the actual situation (spoiler: skater with agent is poached by shoe company X with large sums of money from a smaller, skater-run brand with a TM that supported the skater when nobody gave a shit and had a years worth of shoes/vids lined up for him) and Clements is just going "yeah bro that sucks!!! but that's what I'm paid to do" and "bro, you had a good eye with him" (subtext: we appreciate the small brands' ability to farm talent until they're ready for big shoe money, the big boys will take it from here).

In the end, you can see by his own admission that Clements has pretty much been on the forefront of developing the formula for big money in skateboarding for 10-15 years, with taking on the Nike sponsorship to doing these huge contests (e.g. Kimberley Diamond Cup), and now with his apparently ruthless contract negotiations. Your opinion on that, and him, I guess is a matter of perspective ("the homies finally getting hooked up" vs. "nike and adidas are buying the entire industry with basketball money").

[close]

Interesting take.

- I'm not sure that Clements should have brought that up. Sounds like the negotiations/situation got more heated than is being let on. I'm not sure that Ryan was bullying him really. Maybe he was trying to coach Kelly up a bit on how these things can go. Keep the relationship going.

- That said, it kinda doesn't matter. No matter what Kelly does or says, money talks. Skater owned businesses develop and authenticate the talent, then the corporate-owned companies come in and buy it. The corporations will soon not need the 'core' people to validate the talent. The pros don't need Girl, DLX, Baker when they have Nike money and wood shops that will make them small amounts decks.

-'Ruthless negotiations' are a part of life. Not saying this dude is perfect. Or that his ability to recognize these trends make it 'ok' and therefore good for the future of pro skateboarding. I don't think that he's creating the 'problem' of Nike and friends buying everything up. He's just riding the wave.

[close]

I agree, business is ruthless and you can't expect the big corporations or anyone for that matter to be cool about stuff when money is on the line. If anything the small skate shoe brand should figure out how they can invest in a skater for years and base their future on him and not get screwed the second the dude gets popular. Feeling bitter about it afterwards does nothing

My point, if I have one, is that smaller shoe companies will never be able to put up the money to keep guys like Diego around in the face of big shoe money. Never. So the culture Clements is fostering with these negotiation tactics is going to follow the money right on up to the sports companies.

I don't have a problem with it, because that's real life, and I get it. And I don't think for a second that skater owned companies are without flaw. But let's at least be honest with ourselves in terms of what type of environment this cutthroat, money-oriented agent industry will create, with Diego's story as an example.

[the canadian suit]

Diego isn't even listed on the Adidas website, I guess Clements forgot that clause in his negotiation? I want to hate him, but then he said he helped Uncle Freddy. Can Uncle Freddy confirm?

[fangen]

Ryan does things for free to even out all the other bullshit he has caused.

[Hevonen]

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Loved this episode and was stoked on the guy 'til the part where he called out Kelly directly on air. What an incredibly shitty, jockish, and unprofessional thing to do-- Kelly's current employer and role in the show means he is going to have zero ability to really respond in that situation. Clements knew, and took the opportunity to steamroll Kelly and add to his narrative as the skater's defender.

And then the part where Kelly is describing the actual situation (spoiler: skater with agent is poached by shoe company X with large sums of money from a smaller, skater-run brand with a TM that supported the skater when nobody gave a shit and had a years worth of shoes/vids lined up for him) and Clements is just going "yeah bro that sucks!!! but that's what I'm paid to do" and "bro, you had a good eye with him" (subtext: we appreciate the small brands' ability to farm talent until they're ready for big shoe money, the big boys will take it from here).

In the end, you can see by his own admission that Clements has pretty much been on the forefront of developing the formula for big money in skateboarding for 10-15 years, with taking on the Nike sponsorship to doing these huge contests (e.g. Kimberley Diamond Cup), and now with his apparently ruthless contract negotiations. Your opinion on that, and him, I guess is a matter of perspective ("the homies finally getting hooked up" vs. "nike and adidas are buying the entire industry with basketball money").

[close]

Interesting take.

- I'm not sure that Clements should have brought that up. Sounds like the negotiations/situation got more heated than is being let on. I'm not sure that Ryan was bullying him really. Maybe he was trying to coach Kelly up a bit on how these things can go. Keep the relationship going.

- That said, it kinda doesn't matter. No matter what Kelly does or says, money talks. Skater owned businesses develop and authenticate the talent, then the corporate-owned companies come in and buy it. The corporations will soon not need the 'core' people to validate the talent. The pros don't need Girl, DLX, Baker when they have Nike money and wood shops that will make them small amounts decks.

-'Ruthless negotiations' are a part of life. Not saying this dude is perfect. Or that his ability to recognize these trends make it 'ok' and therefore good for the future of pro skateboarding. I don't think that he's creating the 'problem' of Nike and friends buying everything up. He's just riding the wave.

[close]

I agree, business is ruthless and you can't expect the big corporations or anyone for that matter to be cool about stuff when money is on the line. If anything the small skate shoe brand should figure out how they can invest in a skater for years and base their future on him and not get screwed the second the dude gets popular. Feeling bitter about it afterwards does nothing

[close]

My point, if I have one, is that smaller shoe companies will never be able to put up the money to keep guys like Diego around in the face of big shoe money. Never. So the culture Clements is fostering with these negotiation tactics is going to follow the money right on up to the sports companies.

I don't have a problem with it, because that's real life, and I get it. And I don't think for a second that skater owned companies are without flaw. But let's at least be honest with ourselves in terms of what type of environment this cutthroat, money-oriented agent industry will create, with Diego's story as an example.

I totally agree, and I think it's a sad and disgusting direction where things are progressing with skateboarding. I would still put the blame for that Diego situation on Diego himself though.

But my only point is that it just irritates me how badly these skate companies, that I want to see succeed, do their business sometimes, like how can you have a pro shoe line all lined up if you can't even guarantee the dude is gonna be on the company anymore when the shoe is supposed to come out. I don't know much about contracts, but can't be that hard to make a proper contract that doesn't allow the dude to go anywhere without a nice payout. Isn't that what they do in other sports all the time

[redux]

I'm going to be spending my shoe money on Sole Tech, DC, and Lakai for awhile and see how I like it.