It’s official. Rip Curl USA has made the move to Orange County.
The maker of surf clothes and wetsuits, formerly based in Carlsbad, had eyed the area for some time. It even bought land in San Clemente to build new offices.
But Rip Curl opted instead for Costa Mesa near John Wayne Airport, according to David Lawn, the company’s group chief executive.
“This area is the world headquarters of our industry,” he said. “All of the brands that are our partners worldwide are here.”
Rip Curl’s Costa Mesa office is about 70,000 square feet, double the size of its old space in north San Diego County.
The company, which sells clothes, shoes, wetsuits, watches and sunglasses, occupies a 40,000-square-foot warehouse and 30,000 square feet of office space, Lawn said.
Rip Curl employs about 70 people, half of whom moved from Carlsbad, he said.
The move is part of the Australian company’s bid to get more aggressive in the U.S., Lawn said.
Until now, Rip Curl International Pty. Ltd., based in the Australian surf hub of Torquay, has tried to run its U.S. operations from afar, Lawn said.
“It’s not the answer,” he said.
Rip Curl’s following the lead of industry heavyweights Huntington Beach-based Quiksilver Inc. and Irvine-based Billabong USA, which have their roots in Australia and opened U.S. operations.
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In Quiksilver’s case, the company’s OC office became its worldwide headquarters.
“In the land of (Rip Curl’s) roots,Australia,they are part of the big three with Quiksilver and Billabong,” said Peter “P.T.” Townend, surf industry veteran and founder of Huntington Beach-based marketing firm The ActivEmpire Inc. “Outside Australia, though, they have not had the success of their Aussie counterparts.”
Rip Curl’s European and Brazilian operations are strong, according to Townend. The “American market has been their stumbling block,” he said.
“The move to ‘Velcro Valley’ is a positive step,” Townend said. “If you’re going to compete in the American market, the battleground begins in OC.”
Lawn moved here in June from Australia to head the operation. He’s overhauled management and added executives to oversee new efforts, such as global marketing and clothes for girls and young women.
Former chief executive Jimmy Olsson left the company and went to New York for personal reasons, according to Rip Curl.
The company also moved its shoe business from France to OC so it can “get closer to local trends and inject Southern California influence,” company officials said.
Rip Curl has its challenges.
The company, which came to the U.S. in 1979, must regain the “trust of retailers in California,” Lawn said.
“We’ve been a fairly unreliable wholesaler,” he said.
The company has had trouble with quality, delivery and consistency of its clothes and other products, Lawn said.
Rip Curl sells at its own stores, including an outlet in San Clemente, and at surf shops such as Becker Surfboards in Corona del Mar, Irvine-based Tilly’s, Jack’s Surfboards in Huntington Beach and Beachcombers in Huntington Beach.
Anaheim-based Pacific Sunwear of California Inc., the largest surfwear retailer, sells a small amount of Rip Curl stuff.
Rip Curl is honing in on its clothes for men and girls, which “are expected to improve,” he said. And it’s revamping its image with a marketing campaign expected in 2006, he said.
“They could be the new guys on the block,” said Dave Hollander, president of Torrance-based Becker Surfboards, who recently visited Rip Curl’s headquarters and said he was impressed by its showroom and the money the company is putting behind its U.S. effort.
But it won’t be an easy sell.
Chris Andrews, owner of Killer Dana surf shop in Dana Point and San Clemente, said he doesn’t like that Rip Curl has an outlet store near his shop in San Clemente.
“If they get rid of (the outlet) I’ll consider” carrying Rip Curl’s clothes, Andrews said.
Plus, he said there hasn’t been much demand for Rip Curl at his stores.
“If (kids) aren’t asking for it, I’m not going to sell it,” Andrews said.
Instead, Killer Dana goes with the popular brands that sell quickly, such as Quiksilver and Billabong, he said.
“If I bring someone else new in, I’ll have to cut someone,” Andrews said. “It’s not fun. It’s like breaking up with someone.”
Rip Curl has a following for its wetsuits and hopes to build on that name, Lawn said.
“This is one of the most valuable brands in the world,” Lawn said. “It’s really just an execution game.”
