Rusty

group Y Panel Discussion & Gathering; “Inside the La Jolla Group”

Watch it LIVE at 6:30pm on lajollagroup.com/live

presented by Fuel TV

Thursday, December 10, 2009
6:30pm – 10pm

La Jolla Group headquarters
14350 Myford Rd
Irvine, CA 92606 map

A panel discussion on the inner workings of the La Jolla Group (Rusty, O’Neill, Lost & Metal Mulisha), presented by group Y and FUEL TV.

Execs from the company will discuss various topics including: the dynamics of having multiple brands under one roof, developing and designing a collection from A-Z, the importance of maximizing athlete relationships to engage & influence brand perception and purchase behavior, and more. Guests are encouraged to mingle outside the discussion and enjoy complimentary drinks and appetizers – and a holiday gift bag at the end of the night.

Executive speakers will include:

* Bill Bussiere , LJG President & CFO
* Steve Ward, O’Neill VP of Marketing, All Categories and VP of Sales, O’Neill Men & Boys
* Michelle Devine, O’Neill VP of Sales, Juniors & Girls
* Ryan Rush, O’Neill VP Men’s M&D
* Michael Tomson, Design Consultant
* Ryan Divel, Lost VP Sales & Marketing
* Ryan Hagy, Metal Mulisha Marketing

Panel moderated by Jim Shubin

Registration

$25 pre-registration, $30 at door (cash only) CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Apps, drinks, beer and wine will be provided.

The panel discussion will begin promptly at 7:30 p.m.

group Y and La Jolla Group invite all those involved with the action sports, youth marketing, brand marketing, entertainment & communications industries to attend. College Students interested in action sports and youth marketing are welcome to join us.

PLEASE READ:
-Pre registration ends on Wednesday, December 9th at midnight. If you are not pre-registered and paid before it closes, you must pay the walk-up fee of $30–CASH ONLY–at the door.
-If you need a receipt for business purposes, please use pre-pay!
-If you have any other questions and/or problems with registration, please email us.

By DAN BEIGHLEY
Orange County Business Journal

Clothing maker La Jolla Group Inc. has made a big investment in a new Irvine headquarters.

The company, which makes clothes under the O’Neill, Lost, Rusty and Metal Mulisha brands, recently consolidated operations in Irvine, where it used to be spread among five buildings.

La Jolla now operates from 200,000 square feet of space at 14350 Myford Road near Tustin, where it has 150,000 square feet in one building and 50,000 in an adjoining one.

About 140,000 square feet of warehouse space makes up the bulk of the operation.

La Jolla employs about 350 people in Irvine.

The new space is double La Jolla’s old headquarters in the Irvine Spectrum.

The company sells clothes inspired by surfing, skateboarding and motocross through J. C. Penney Corp., Pacific Sunwear of California Inc., Macy’s Inc. and other retailers.

La Jolla has revamped its Irvine building to include skateboard ramps, a gym, an indoor basketball court, a 2,000-square-foot store as well as 6,000 square feet of conference and showroom space.

Chief Executive Toby Bost, clad in jeans and a T-shirt, declined to say what the company spent on the improvements.

“We built the building around action sports,” he said.

La Jolla Group has yearly sales of more than $200 million. Last year, sales grew 15% in a tough economy, Bost said. In 2007, they were up 30%.

Sales last year were helped by La Jolla’s opening of six of its own stores in California and Las Vegas, as well as a flagship O’Neill store in Anaheim.
The stores employ about 100 people.

Half of La Jolla’s business comes from its O’Neill brand, which it licenses from brand owner O’Neill Trademark BV under a “long-term” contract, according to Bost.

The other half of La Jolla group’s revenue is split evenly among its three other brands.

The company is feeling the clothing industry’s challenges, as shoppers pull back on purchases and stores such as Wal-Mart and Kohl’s have come up with their own lines of surfwear, Bost said.

“There’s definitely a recession going on in surf,” he said. “Fall is usually the toughest time for the industry. This one should be the toughest.”

For more on this story, see the July 6 edition of the Business Journal.

Irvine, CA (April 9, 2009) – La Jolla Group, the premiere multi-brand company in action sports with a prominent portfolio that includes O’Neill Clothing USA, Lost Clothing, Metal Mulisha Clothing, and Rusty North America, today announced a new collection of Rusty surf apparel for JCPenney, consisting of an exclusive line of graphic tees, shorts, boardshorts and hoodies for young men and boys to drop in stores this July. Featuring a customized “crown” logo, the Rusty collection for JCPenney will offer a fresh assortment of styles ranging from $26 for tees to $55 for shorts and hoodies. Rusty will also continue to design and distribute a specialty line for core retailers, reinforcing the brand’s high-quality, performance-driven products bearing the signature R-dot logo.

“We’re excited to bring Rusty’s rich surf heritage to one of the nation’s leading department stores,” said Toby Bost, chief executive officer, La Jolla Group. “Rusty has been a core surf brand for 25 years, and has one of the most recognizable logos in the industry. The Rusty collection for JCPenney will offer authentic, beach-inspired products that appeal to a diverse, aspirational and highly impressionable young audience. We’re stoked to add JCPenney to our growing list of premiere retail partners, while enhancing our growth at the core level.”

“With the growing interest in action sports everywhere, we have an exciting opportunity to further segment our distribution channels with product differentiation and distinct branding, while maintaining Rusty’s core authenticity, quality, and innovation,” added Charlie Setzler, president of Rusty North America. “We are now able to make the entire core line available exclusively to specialty stores and more actively explore trends, fabrications and ideas; and at the same time, drive demand at core stores, thanks to the increased exposure in a national retailer like JCPenney.”

The Rusty Collection for JCPenney joins the retailer’s growing list of national, exclusive and private brands for teens such as Vans, Arizona, American Living, RS by Sheckler, Southpole, Third Rail a Zoo York Production, and the extension of Decree into young men’s. Rusty’s specialty retailers will continue selling an exclusive collection of sportswear, printables and boardshorts bearing the iconic R-dot logo. Rusty’s premium boardshorts category, including its unique Global Cooling Boardshort series featuring the brand’s trademarked Ecostretch fabric, will maintain distribution at specialty stores as well.

For more information, visit rusty.com

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About Rusty
Rusty is a brand with its roots firmly planted in the pursuit of the surfing lifestyle. By 1984, Rusty Preisendorfer had already established himself as a young legend in the surfboard shaping world. When the Rusty brand officially launched in 1985, there were few people who didn’t recognize the R-dot logo on surfboards across the globe. With the initial goal of making the best surfboards on the planet, it soon became clear that the tremendous demand for Rusty boards and recognition of the name would easily translate to apparel. What began with t-shirts quickly grew into a comprehensive collection driven by authentic surf roots, progressive product, edgy style, and the signature R-dot.

Decades later, Rusty continues to be an iconic brand in surf culture, featuring a product mix for guys and girls that includes boardshorts, hoodies, tees, knits, dresses and accessories; all available at leading surf shops worldwide. Inspired by art, fashion, music and design, Rusty delivers surf products that represent the classic, casual beach lifestyle defined by the risk-taking spirit and irreverence of today’s youth.
To get a closer look, visit www.rusty.com.

About La Jolla Group
La Jolla Group is the premiere multi-brand company in action sports, with a prominent portfolio that includes some of the most recognized names in the industry: O’Neill Clothing USA, LostClothing, Metal Mulisha Clothing, and Rusty North America. Enhancing the successful model perfected with the company’s acquisition of the O’Neill Clothing USA license from Jack O’Neill and family in 1992, La Jolla Group has applied its core competencies in design, marketing, sales, production, and distribution to each of its licenses, creating a diversified brand mix specialized in surf, skate, snow, motocross and beach lifestyle.

With four successful brands, over 300 employees across the U.S., six successful retail locations — including O’Neill’s flagship store in Anaheim, CA and the expansion of its Irvine, CA headquarters into a new 200,000 square foot facility — La Jolla Group continues to evolve and leverage synergies across its platforms. La Jolla Group brands are sold in over 3000 retailers across the country, and can also be found in Europe, U.K., Canada, Latin America, Australia, and Japan.

About JCPenney
JCPenney is one of America’s leading retailers, operating 1,101 department stores throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, as well as one of the largest apparel and home furnishing sites on the Internet, jcp.com, and the nation’s largest general merchandise catalog business. Through these integrated channels, JCPenney offers a wide array of national, private and exclusive brands which reflect the Company’s commitment to providing customers with style and quality at a smart price. Traded as “JCP” on the New York Stock Exchange, the Company posted revenue of $18.5 billion in 2008 and is executing its strategic plan to be the growth leader in the retail industry. Key to this strategy is JCPenney’s “Every Day Matters” brand positioning, intended to generate deeper, more emotionally driven relationships with customers by fully engaging the Company’s approximately 150,000 Associates to offer encouragement, provide ideas and inspire customers every time they shop with JCPenney.

Media Contact:
KurenT, Inc.
310.397.9025
Andrea Tagliareni // Lauren Kay
andrea@kurentinc.com // lauren@kurentinc.com

Rusty
949.428.2891
Shelley Sheppard
shelley.sheppard@lajollagroup.com

La Jolla Group
Erik Forsell, Vice President New Business Development
949.428.2969
erik.forsell@lajollagroup.com