Pacific Sunwear, Vans Plan Line of Skate Clothes

Driven by the boom in skateboarding, shoemaker Vans Inc. and teen apparel retailer Pacific Sunwear of California said Monday that they are teaming up to make and sell a line of Vans skate-inspired clothing.

The deal weds Vans, the biggest name in the fast-growing skateboard business, with one of the hottest and biggest retailers specializing in the fickle but lucrative teenage market.

“Kids are driving business today,” said Steven A. Richter, an analyst with Tucker Anthony in Boston. “A great brand name in Vans teaming up with one of the leading retailers in that marketplace seems to make a lot of sense to me.”

Among other things, Pacific Sunwear will get exclusive rights to sell the Vans clothing line in most of its stores. The new line will be sold in 321 Pacific Sunwear stores and 106 Vans stores.

Although other manufacturers have granted exclusive rights to a specific retailer in an effort to enhance the brand, analysts said they were unaware of any arrangement similar to the one the two Southland companies announced.

“This goes beyond your typical . . . vendor-retailer relationship,” said Joseph Teklits of Ferris Baker Watts, a Baltimore investment firm.

The new venture, Van Pac, will be 51% owned by Santa Fe Springs-based Vans and 49% owned by Pacific Sunwear of Anaheim.

According to the agreement, the two companies will work together to design the clothing, and Pacific Sunwear will handle manufacturing and distribution and will identify trends to help direct product development. Vans will provide the licensing and its logos.

Vans boosted its profile last year by opening the new Vans Skate Park at the Block at Orange shopping center. The park has become such a youth magnet that Vans recently announced it will open other skate centers.

But Vans has been unable to generate much enthusiasm for its apparel, which it launched about 18 months ago. Analysts say the new venture could change that.

Pacific Sunwear, which has half a dozen private labels, has a sophisticated national and international manufacturing network. In the last four years, the retailer has nearly tripled the number of stores it operates nationwide. By the end of this year, it expects to have 450.

Both stocks closed up 50 cents in Nasdaq trading--Pacific Sunwear at $32 and Vans at $6.75.