Costa Mesa-based Rvca Clothing has what all skate and surfwear makers want: serious buzz.
Teens from trendsetting Orange County and across the country are raving about the company’s mix of fashion, art and music, said Dave Hollander, president at Torrance-based surf shop operator Becker Surfboards.
Even parents,teens cover your ears,can’t get enough of the garb.
“I know plenty of older guys that wear it,” Hollander said. “It’s like the cool brand that everybody wants to wear.”
Rvca,pronounced Roo-kah,is big on cachet. But it’s still fine-tuning its operations and looking to grow its business. Company officials won’t divulge numbers. The Business Journal estimates yearly sales in the $5 million range.
The company started in 2001. Cofounders Conan Hayes, a professional surfer, and Pat M. Tenore launched Rvca from Tenore’s Costa Mesa garage.
It was something the two wanted to do for some time.
They’d chat about the idea when Hayes stayed at Tenore’s house during his time on surfing’s World Championship Tour. Hayes eventually turned down a professional surfing contract to work on Rvca.
They came up with “Rvca,” a series of symbols and chevrons meant to represent the balance of opposites and how everything co-exists, Tenore said.
“I didn’t mind name confusion because Rvca is a lifestyle and a culture,not just another brand on the shelf,” Tenore said.
Tenore, who lives in Newport Beach, said he didn’t want Rvca to be seen as the typical action sports label, which often has design constraints.
He positioned Rvca as a lifestyle brand rooted in American work wear with fashion influence. Think denim jeans with cool washes and a men’s belt with pin stripes and a buckle with Rvca’s artsy logo.
Boutiques, Skate Shops
The company’s clothes are made to fit in as much at a trendy boutique as at a skate shop.
Rvca is big into music and art, which inspires its clothing lines and is featured in its marketing. Rvca puts designs from artists on its garb and donates part of its T-shirt sales to a charity picked by the artist.
Tenore started mixing art and music with fashion when he was 19 years old. He was running a boutique in Costa Mesa.
He said it was the first sports boutique in OC carrying then startup brands like Triple Five Soul, Diesel and X-Large, along with skateboards and accessories.
Tenore drew crowds by hosting concerts with bands Sublime, Will I Am and Apple from the Black Eyed Peas. Los Angeles graffiti artists painted murals inside the store, he said.
“It was a great part of my life and I learned a lot from those experiences,” Tenore said.
Rvca is rooted in the same culture.
“Art and the people behind Rvca is what set us apart,” Tenore said.
It’s not just a “commodity” or “marketing tool,” he said.
The formula has worked.
Rvca has struck a nerve by being “a little left of center,” said Peter “P.T.” Townend, owner of Huntington Beach-based The ActivEmpire Inc., a marketing consulting firm.
“Rvca’s marketing mix has carved them out a pop culture niche across the board sports community,” Townend said.
Volcom Echoes
In some ways, Rvca reminds people of Costa Mesa-based Volcom Inc. in its early days, said Rob Robinson, sales clerk at The Frog House in Newport Beach.
Volcom, which has swarms of teen followers, is one the first action sports brands to use music and art in its marketing. The brand, which had a blockbuster initial public stock offering on Wall Street last year, has been on a tear.
The music and art angle also makes Rvca more “avant-garde,” Robinson said.
Rvca sells a full line of clothing for men and women. It also has accessories, including belts and knit caps.
The garb ranges from $24 for a Rvca T-shirt to $280 for leather pants. The company also puts out a quarterly magazine called ANP (Artist Network Program) Quarterly, which focuses on aspiring and established artists.
“Not everything in business has to be for sale,” Tenore said.
Rvca’s garb is sold in boutiques and surf stores around the country, including Fred Segal in Los Angeles and Atrium in New York. In OC, stores include The Frog House, Jack’s Surfboards in Huntington Beach and Becker Surfboards, which has locations in Huntington Beach and Newport Beach.
“As a brand, we set goals every season to raise the bar in every avenue, including production, design, delivery, warehousing, distribution and marketing,” Tenore said.
Rvca now employs about 45 full-time workers in OC. About half are at its 14,000-square-foot headquarters in Costa Mesa. The rest are in a warehouse and distribution center in Santa Ana, which is about 20,000 square feet.
Team Riders
The company sponsors riders in skateboarding and surfing, has some workers in showrooms and employs U.S. and international sales staff, Tenore said.
Rvca is finalizing plans to open its flagship store later this year. The site: Tokyo.
“Rvca has a lot to share with the world and what better place than your own platform,” said Tenore on opening the store.
Rvca is one of the few young brands that’s been able to get a foothold in a market that’s dominated by heavies such as Huntington Beach-based Quiksilver Inc. and Irvine-based Billabong USA, Becker’s Hollander said.
Despite the fierce competition, Rvca has gained shelf space in stores, something that’s not easy, Hollander said.
“If they continue to gain my trust I’ll continue to increase” the amount of Rvca clothes I buy and sell, Hollander said.
Rvca has fine-tuned its clothing, which now fits better. It also has improved its deliveries, which were early or late, Hollander said.
“They started to overcome those barriers about a year and a half ago,” Hollander said. “They’re cool guys. You’re cheering for them.”
Rvca has kept close tabs on where it sells its garb. Where the clothes are sold is just as critical as designing and making them, Tenore said.
“Rvca is a brand that actually still stands for its customer and community and not just a profit margin,” Tenore said.
Rvca has been approached by bigger companies looking to buy it. Though Tenore said he’s flattered by the offers, he wants to stay private and “hold true to the vision.”
He said he doesn’t want to be “marketed by a bigger company to help someone else’s growth on the pure basis of numbers and the need for growth for shareholders.”
“It is great to be a small brand in Orange County,” Tenore said. “The challenges are to stay true and not sell out your brand to poor distribution centers.”
