Burton Snowboards Europe is setting up a new office for its Analog and Gravis brands at Hossegor, the European surf mecca on the Basque Coast. It’s located close to the workshop of Channel Islands, a surf shaper acquired by Burton in 2006. The move is intended to boost the market position in the skate and surf retail channel of these the two brands, whose European sales were previously coordinated out of Burton’s office in Innsbruck.

The new operation on the French Atlantic coast is headed up by Philippe Gouzes, a Frenchman who has been working with Burton in Innsbruck for more than six years. He will continue to act as vice president of European sales for the whole group. Gouzes is building up a team around himself in Hossegor. One of its members is Greg Poissonier, formerly with Globe Europe, who is now acting as core and team marketing coordinator for Analog and Gravis.

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