Quiksilver Courts Women
Huntington Beach, Calif.–based Quiksilver will debut a brand for Fall 2008 aimed at an unlikely target: 20-something women. “We are positioning the line at the better-best end of the juniors spectrum,” said Bob McKnight, Quiksilver’s chief executive. Quiksilver, which already targets the juniors market with Roxy, will add the new fashion-focused line to its Quiksilverbranded offerings, which until now have catered to men under the Quiksilver and Quiksilver Edition labels.
Set to debut in January, the new line will feature contemporary styling at a higher price point for women who’ve outgrown Roxy. “The collection is designed for the edgy, independent young woman whose creative approach to fashion appears effortless,” said Bernard Mariette, Quiksilver’s president, in a statement. That means sexier, more-sophisticated silhouettes, upscale fabrications and cleaner design than are normally found in surf-lifestyle apparel. Key items from the line will include skinny jeans and flowy blouses.
Distribution will also reach beyond what Roxy and Quiksilver have targeted in the past. Aimed at specialty shops and better department stores, the new Quiksilver line will also retail at the brand’s own stores. “We are confident that this will open new points of distribution and bring incremental business to the company while augmenting, rather than competing with, existing business,” McKnight said.
This isn’t Quiksilver’s first foray into the better juniors/young contemporary market. Alex Goes was a short-lived contemporary brand launched by the company for Spring 2001. Targeted at women ages 25 to 40 and specialty retailers, the line failed to catch on and was shelved after two seasons. In 2004, the company launched Roxy Life, a contemporary brand, in Australia to target girls who had outgrown Roxy’s teen styles.
