In what appears to be a growing trend, a Western New York native has gone off and acquired an out of state company, in order to bring it home. Matthew Morinello purchased a San Diego skateboard company called Flexdex Skateboards, and has now brought the business back to his hometown. According to Robin Makula, Director of Sales for Flexdex Skateboards, “With the cross-country move, the supply chain required adjustment, and we have a local Buffalo machine shop cutting one of our lines. These particular boards are now branded with the iconic buffalo symbol. We have some limited product in local stores including Stuart Sports in Lewiston and Urban Threads on Elmwood in Buffalo.”
Morinello, CEO of Flexdex Skateboards, purchased the 19 year old California company around two years ago and is happy to be bringing the brand to Buffalo. The young entrepreneur, a skater himself, feels that he will find the hometown support that he needs, as Buffalo grows alongside his lifestyle brand.
The Flexdex company puts out lines of skateboards that are coveted for their speed, durability and flexibility. The company’s brand was founded and crafted by a devoted team of surfers, skaters, snowboarders, and motocross riders, who set out to create a deck like no other.
“Outside of the fiberglass “Buffalo” line, we are completing arrangements for our polycarbonate line to also be cut in Buffalo,” said Makula. “This would include the LED boards and Clear29’s. What we are keeping in Cali is our 60” birchwood Fat Daddy. This board is too cool.We are a longboarding company (as opposed to a skateboarding company), so our boards are definitely built for cruising and transportation. What we believe our edge is, is the material we utilize and, then, the rider experience because of the material. Our fiberglass and polycarbonate lines are not the standard. As our name indicates, our boards have a unique amount of flex to them as well. You also won’t see much birchwood out there. Maple, bamboo, other variations of wood seem to blanket the market. Birchwood remains a bit more rare.”
The skateboarding community is growing in Buffalo. There are new skate parks and plazas being built throughout the region, and expansion plans for the LaSalle Skate Plaza are still in the works. Getting around Buffalo, with its flat topography means that the city was built for longboarding. And now we have a local longboarding company that has big plans for co-branding this city as a different type of skate town – one where it wouldn’t be so unusual to see a gal skating to work, or a dude skating (at night with an LED deck) to meet some friends for a beer. Thanks to Morinello and his vision/love for his hometown, Buffalo gets to come along for a ride that will hopefully be as smooth and fun as the Flexdex products themselves.
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