About
When Quiksilver decided to start a women's line in
1990, it was a gutsy move. The surf market has
always been a fickle one. And female surfers,
despite their achievements in and out of the
water, hadn't drummed up nearly the notoriety nor
the community that guys had long enjoyed.
But great ideas always take some guts. And the
company saw the untapped women's surf market as a
huge opportunity. Turns out they were right.
Like all things Quiksilver, Roxy was born in the
water; initially a swimwear line, it debuted in
late summer 1990 to immediate success. By the next
year, a Roxy sportswear line was introduced, and
that too prospered, with sales of over $1 million.
1992 saw continued expansion of the brand with a
new denim line and key snowwear pieces. The fact
that Roxy was a women's line offered by an
authentic surf brand made it intriguing for both
retailers and girls alike. It was the first of its
kind on the market, and soon after, the other surf
brands followed.
By 1993, Roxy was on a serious roll. The ever-
popular Roxy logo was born, a heart-shaped crest
adapted from the recognizable Quiksilver logo. The
brand's popularity was growing, as was its staff.
And then one afternoon in Hawaii, as legend has
it, the Roxy crew was sitting on a beach watching
the surf when they came up with the idea of the
women's board short. Offering fit and flexibility
while still managing to be feminine, the women's
boardshort was an innovation that forever changed
the women's surf market. It was also the perfect
example of what the Roxy brand had originally set
out to be, in the words of Quiksilver's 1990
Annual Report: "Fun, Bold, Athletic, Daring and
Classy". The boardshort became a huge trend. Roxy,
and women's surfing along with it, was suddenly
the next big thing.
1994 marks another major milestone for Roxy: Lisa
Andersen, then the reigning ASP Female World
Champion, became the first member of the Roxy
team. Lisa went on to win three more world titles,
and along with them, crossover mass-market fame.
She is considered by many to be the most
influential surfer in the history of women's
surfing, and her contributions to the Roxy brand
and the team continue to play a key role in Roxy's
success. Under her guidance, the Boardrider's Team
has grown into the most respected and accomplished
pro team in women's surfing. Current team members
include: Megan Abubo, Chelsea Georgeson, Veronica
Kay, Kassia Meador, Kula Barbieto, 'tween surfing
phenom Carissa Moore, and reigning world champ
Sofia Mulanovich.
A Roxy-branded professional event was a natural
progression from team sponsorship, and thus the
first annual Quiksilver/Roxy Women's Pro Surfing
event was born. It took place in winter 1995 on
Sunset Beach, Oahu's North Shore. Ten years later,
the Roxy Pro Hawaii remains one of the most
prestigious and exciting ASP World Championship
surf events of the year.
The success of this event led to other Roxy
competitions, including: the Roxy Pro Fiji, the
Roxy Pro Gold Coast (Australia), and the Roxy Jam
UK, all ASP World Championship Tour events; the
Roxy Pro Women's Surf Festival (Australia), one of
the biggest World Qualifying Series events on the
tour; and a series of amateur surf contests for
young surfers the world over. With such
substantial event sponsorship and an ever-
expanding team, Roxy is proud to be the largest
corporate sponsor of women's surfing worldwide.
As Roxy's popularity has grown so has its product
line and its audience. Accessories and eyewear
joined the mix in 1995; footwear, watches, and
Roxy Girl, a line for girls aged 7-16, emerged the
following year. Roxy enjoyed its New York Fashion
week debut at The Girl's Rule Show in 1996, the
same year the brand was nominated for The
"California Rising Star Award" for design
innovation and excellence. A snow line including
outerwear and accessories was added in 1997, along
with Teenie Wahine, Roxy's children's line. 1999
was big, with jewelry, bags, backpacks, travel
accessories, skate gear, and Roxy Room, a line of
bedding, lamps, and posters. By the end of the
'90's, Roxy had become the brand for girls
everywhere, enjoying mass-market appeal without
losing its core audience.
The new millennium has brought an exciting and
eclectic evolution of Roxy, with a full line of
snowboards introduced in 2003, produced in
partnership with industry innovator Mervin
Manufacturing; Luna Bay, a Roxy Girl Series, seven
young adult fiction novels also released in 2003;
a new toddlers' line in stores Spring of 2005; a
soon-to-be-debuted fragrance line; and the
imminent arrival of Roxy Ski, a line of skis and
boots produced in partnership with Rossignol's
Dynastar brand.
As Roxy's snow product line has expanded, so have
its sponsorship efforts. The Roxy Chicken Jams, a
series of all-girls pro snowboarding events,
debuted in 2004 in Innsbruck, Austria and Park
City, Utah. Roxy's pro snow team is bigger and
bigger too, with recent world-class additions
Torah Bright, Alexis Waite and Amber Stackhouse.
And with some Olympic hopefuls in the mix, 2006
could be the year that Roxy brings home its first
medal.
Roxy has long been in the media spotlight. After
garnering editorial merit from major publications
like Lucky, Teen Vogue and In Style in addition to
most of the U.S. and international surf and snow
publications, it was only a matter of time before
Roxy hit prime time. "Surf Girls", a collaboration
of Roxy and MTV Networks, debuted on MTV in 2003
featuring Roxy's team manager Danielle Beck as
host and Roxy team rider Heidi Drazich as a cast
member. The series was a hit, and helped to
further popularize women's surfing and Roxy's part
in the sport. The series also gave Roxy two new
team riders: Kula Barbieto and Aimee Vogelgesang.
Strong retail presence is key to a strong brand,
and Roxy retail stores were the perfect
opportunity to showcase the Roxy lifestyle. The
first freestanding Roxy store was opened in Hawaii
in 1997, and another store followed in 2000 in
Southern California's South Coast Plaza. The Roxy
retail chain now features stores all over the
world, offering a taste of the Roxy surf lifestyle
to girls everywhere.
Roxy is now a $400 million lifestyle brand,
offering products for every aspect of the active
girl's life. From handbag to Henley, wetsuit to
tide watch, the key ingredient of our products is
that inimitable Roxy spirit. "Daring, confident,
naturally beautiful, fun, alive: Roxy".