‘We aim to deliver quality, but we don’t want things to feel overpolished. It should still carry the raw vibe of skateboarding.’
Stefan Schwinghammer
Bubble
GERMANY
Can you tell me something about Cologne, Germany no one knows?
The Rheinauhafen underground car park in Cologne is the longest in Europe and the second longest in the world and it starts right at Kap 686 skatepark. Isn’t that great?
You guys did other skateboard magazines before and encapsulate the true spirit of a skateboarder to never give up. Where does the passion for skate media and publication come from?
Actually, I don’t really know. It’s kind of the same as with skateboarding itself – we’re just drawn to it. We love telling stories about skateboarding, we’re fans of skateboard photography, and we love the look, feel, and even the smell of magazines.
Why do you call it Bubble?
It’s always nerve-racking to find a good name that perfectly expresses what you want to say. We had a long list of options and asked a lot of friends for feedback, and in the end Bubble stuck. It was actually Gino Fischer’s idea, who was part of the original Bubble crew.
Who is part of the Bubble crew?
It’s Felix Adler as a photographer and editor, Thomas Courteille who does our insta together with support from Lukas Weinberger. Stefan Vogtländer is our Art Director, Nich Kunz is proofreading and I do all the rest.
On your website you talk about being a little messy, a little unpredictable. Can you give me some examples?
We aim to deliver quality, but we don’t want things to feel over-polished. It should still carry the raw vibe of skateboarding. You want to do a trick as stylish as possible, but at the same time you want to keep it a bit rough – not present it in crisp 4K HD with tons of drone shots. Also, we always try to find stories that haven’t been told or deliver new angles.
Bubble is an independent skateboard magazine. What do you mean by being ‘independent’?
It means we fund it ourselves and run it completely independently. There’s no publisher behind it and no one telling us what to do. But I guess that’s how it is with most skateboard magazines these days.
‘I’d say we focus a bit more on the nonskateboarding side of skateboarding.’
Is there anything you would not print from a content or ad perspective?
We’ve declined one advertising deal so far – even though it would’ve been really lucrative – simply because it didn’t feel right. When it comes to articles, there are so many skateboarders and stories out there that it’s easy to choose the ones we genuinely want to feature. Overall, we want Bubble to be a place where we present everything we love about skateboarding. Sometimes we address problems we see in the scene, but in general it should remain a positive space.
How is your mag different to other German skatemags like Irregular or Pocket?
I don’t think it’s all that different. The skatemag world is pretty tight knit; we know almost everyone, and many of us are friends because we share the same mindset: we’re passionate about skateboarding and want to pass that passion on to anyone who reads the mag or watches our videos. When it comes to differences, I’d say we focus a bit more on the non-skateboarding side of skateboarding. We’re less fixated on the tricks themselves and more on the people and the stories around skateboarding. For our Biarritz issue, for example, we went fishing with Lucas Puig.
Proudest moment so far?
We developed a multifunctional tool together with Friedel Schlör which finally is out now for a few weeks and sent the prototype out to a few people. New Balance filmer Kyle Camarillo was one of them. When he sent us a photo of Tom Karangelov holding the key – and mentioned that he and Andrew Reynolds were hyped on it – we were honestly pretty proud.
Most funny or embarrassing?
I’m pretty bad with funny anecdotes because my memory isn’t the best, but embarrassing moments definitely happen – especially when you discover a typo in the mag or realize you messed something up. That’s why I have a hard time looking at the magazine when it first arrives. I always need a few days before I can actually open it. Luckily, we haven’t messed up too much so far.
Any skatemags around that inspire you?
When I started working at skateboard magazines, Dank from Norway was a big inspiration, as well as Desillusion and Monster Children. One issue that really stoked me recently was a Sneeze mag they did about Violet. The story was so well written, and together with the photos and the way everything was presented, it genuinely made me feel like I was out in the streets with the crew, really understanding what they’re about.
‘It’s always nerve-racking to find a good name that perfectly expresses what you want to say.’
What is on your wish list?
I’m happy if we can contribute even a little to skateboard culture, and I hope that people will enjoy the tool we have released, as well as the coffee table book we’re currently working on.
Last question. If you could interview one person, who would it be?
Heath Kirchart, because he’s been my favorite skateboarder since I first started, and he’s such a mysterious character. I’d also love to visit Chad Muska on his farm.