I wrote this because there is a lot of confusion about England and what's going on with it. For example, people think that Jon Julio founded England and they don't know who Ethan Jenkin is. I hope that this clears things up.
In the mid 90's, skaters were always looking for things that would give them (I say "them because i haven't started skating yet) their own identity. The first real noticeable difference was with the evolution of skating anti-rocker and using grind plates, which set aggressive skaters apart from regular inline skating. Fasion was important, so there had to be clothes that would represent the aggressive skaters. First Birth and then Fiction started producing skate clothes, but Jess Dyrenforth wanted something more exclusive and mature, so he decided that when he stopped skating professionally, he would be a part of a clothing company.
In late '96, Brooke Howard-Smith was living with Jess Dyrenforth. They were both motivated and had the whole concept worked out, but some aspects were missing. One of the aspects was Jon Julio, who was the person which they molded the style and the marketing after. Jon had been a close friend of theirs, and they had several conversations on the idea of skaters needing a skate clothing company that would be able to represent a more style conscious and street look.
Ethan Jenkin and Jess Dyrenforth are both English and have a lot of pride in their roots and their heritage. But that wasn't the reason that the name is England. Actually, Brook Howard-Smith thought of it. You probably thought that their would be some meaning or ironic twist because of the title ("Why 'England'?"), but you're wrong. Anyways, a lot of people criticized that a name like that wouldn't work, but they were wrong too. If you look at England's clothing lines, you will often see references to parts of England; like the Newcastle pants, the Hampstead shirt and the Highgate Jersey. Highgate was actually the town in North London where Jess and Ethan grew up.
One day Brooke and Jess were sitting in a Cafe and they were discussing the fact that they needed a person who would run the company on a day-to-day basis and who would be 100 % dedicated. At that presise moment, Ethan Jenkin drove up and joined them for some coffee. Brooke and Jess described the whole concept to Ethan, who was initially a little hesitant, but when they told him that the name would be England, and Ethan being English, he replied, "get your fu*king tits out, where do I sign up?"
Along the way, Dustin Latimer and Josh Petty got a piece of the company. They weren't the original owners so they came after Julio. (The three original guys are Jess Dyrenforth, Brooke Howard-Smith, and Ethan Jenkin) My personal theory is that Petty and Latimer were either buds with the owners and got in on the action, or they worked their way up from being team riders to ownership.
Jess Dyrenforth-owner/founder
Brooke Howard-Smith-owner/founder
Ehtan Jenkin-owner/founder
Jon Julio-Team rider/owner
Dustin Latimer-Team rider/owner
Josh Petty-co owner/team rider
Dominic Sagona-Team rider
