Life's A Beach: How to cash in on a subculture

Stu Nettle picture
Stu Nettle (stunet)
The Rearview Mirror

From left field quirk, to skater cool, onwards to surfer thug, before ending in the octagon, Life's A Beach clothing have run the full gamut of fashion. Whatever trend was being wheeled around L.A.B jumped on board, riding it into the ground before ditching it and reinventing themselves again.

Surfers would know the company best as 'Bad Boy', those tragically nineties duds worn by Johnny Boy Gomes with the grimacing cartoon face, but that was just one chapter in their lookbook.

Life's A Beach began in the early-80s in Chicago, miles from any beach, by three guys who didn't surf. Jeff Theodosakis, Mark Sino and Brian Simo were motorcross riders who stitched up a few baggy boardshorts that sold well enough for the trio to transplant to California. There they fell into the booming surf and skate industries meshing them into an elemental street style.

Mark Gonzales rode for them, Mike Vallely too, while on the surf team they secured the signature of Brad Gerlach. Their team was a veritable carousel of cool...and then the image went downmarket.

Life's A Beach introduced a character into their marketing promo. Created by Mark 'Boogaloo' Baagoe  the logo featured a flexing git with a crew cut, a cartoon iconoclast who carried the bad boy tag and became a brand within a brand. Before long the roles were inverted; 'Bad Boy' clothing took centrestage while 'Life's A Beach' dropped to the side. Quirk was out, bristling chest-beating machismo was in.

Which made team riders a simple pick. Johnny Boy Gomes had a terrific history of violence. He once held a screwdriver to a hapless surf journo's throat. He punched Jodie Cooper in the face. JBG lived up to the new company image just by being himself and the company directors, no doubt, were thrilled.

An article in a 1987 issue of the LA Times said of Life's A Beach: "The company is headed for at least $6 million in sales this year, and it's doubtful anyone over the age of 21 has ever purchased one of its products."

Realising they'd struck a rich vein, Mark and Brian Simo then created No Fear clothing, their ads often featuring uplifting existential slogans such as "Second place is the first loser." No Fear trademarked more than 50 similar slogans. Meanwhile Bad Girl clothing made stylish garments for the fairer sex and wonderful windscreen stickers too.

By the turn of the millenium Life's A Beach, Bad Boy, and No Fear had jumped onto the extreme sport bandwagon with gusto: motorcross, snowboarding, wakeboarding, and sadly, surfing. When UFC cage fighting became popular Bad Boy found its natural home and they've stayed there since.

These days the companies have split into different entities: Bad Boy services wannabe MMA fighters; Bad Boy Club makes Kmart-level streetwear; Life's A Beach play to their 80s skate heritage; while No Fear survived a 2012 bankruptcy and recently released a new wakeboarding range. None of them make surfwear anymore.

 

Comments

Wharfjunkie's picture
Wharfjunkie's picture
Wharfjunkie Monday, 18 Jul 2016 at 12:42pm

P.O Box 500, Abbotsford, Victoria for that thug in the lives a beach poster. Was Johnny Boy genuinely a tough guy or was he just a bully boy over journos and skinny little surfers?

memlasurf's picture
memlasurf's picture
memlasurf Monday, 18 Jul 2016 at 1:05pm

Wharf Jodie was female from memory so Johnny was a real hero. Geez they picked their thug surfers well: JBG and Sunny just need that kick boxer guy with the roid habit and they would have the triumvirate.

saltman's picture
saltman's picture
saltman Monday, 18 Jul 2016 at 2:33pm

How can we forget those windscreen stickers - no fear ! bad boy!
the ultimate surf goes bogan accessory

Surprised they haven't reemerged as the tweakers take to the road

Wharfjunkie's picture
Wharfjunkie's picture
Wharfjunkie Monday, 18 Jul 2016 at 3:31pm

Did Bad Boy clothing and Johnny Boy have any affiliation with Bad Boy records Puff Daddy and Biggie Smalls? Would have been a match made in heaven.

chickenlips's picture
chickenlips's picture
chickenlips Monday, 18 Jul 2016 at 8:36pm

The Jack of Clubs is my Nanna! Could you please take it off!!!! It's raining in Bali! But who cares!

Damothediver's picture
Damothediver's picture
Damothediver Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 6:55am

How many people will scroll back up to check out the Jack of Clubs?!?!?!

lostdoggy's picture
lostdoggy's picture
lostdoggy Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 8:42am

Yeh, well the ace of hearts is Katy Perry's Aunty.

h_b_bear's picture
h_b_bear's picture
h_b_bear Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 10:36am

"These days the companies have split into different entities: Bad Boy services wannabe MMA fighters; ..."

I don't even want to know what this actually means. Sounds like something a Rene Rivkin subsidiary company might have done back in the 80s.

zenagain's picture
zenagain's picture
zenagain Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 11:33am

I think the Queen of hearts is perfect.

seaman-staines's picture
seaman-staines's picture
seaman-staines Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 11:51am

Is the fact that everyone is focusing on the playing card ad an example of water seeking it's own level?

zenagain's picture
zenagain's picture
zenagain Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 12:03pm

That and the inalienable fact that most men simply love boobies.

Lanky Dean's picture
Lanky Dean's picture
Lanky Dean Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 2:34pm

Chicago, who would thunk it?
JB is still a wildman in the line up and charging.
next up Gotcha @stunet !

stunet's picture
stunet's picture
stunet Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 3:23pm

Few chapters in that there story, LD. Might have to turn to Phil Jarratt for help.

evosurfer's picture
evosurfer's picture
evosurfer Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 6:03pm

Johnny Boy was a imposing figure and a scary dude. I had a few surfs with him
and felt very very uncomfortable. He certainly did clear the water at least
50% of the crowd would leave the water as soon as he paddled out. Punched
out a few people I know for no reason I think he was a major clicker. On the plus
side he never threaten me and made me take off on the 2 biggest pipe waves ive
ever attempted. I have heard that he has been punched out a few times thou.

lostdoggy's picture
lostdoggy's picture
lostdoggy Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 6:11pm

"made me take off on the 2 biggest pipe waves ive
ever attempted"
Were they close outs?

syril500's picture
syril500's picture
syril500 Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 7:34pm

JBG tried his intimidation game out at Nias in the 90's and got flogged by an aussie bloke.

AndyM's picture
AndyM's picture
AndyM Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 7:41pm

Jeez I wish people would expand on these stories!

chickenlips's picture
chickenlips's picture
chickenlips Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 8:25pm

I fink we have a spirit level on board? Water fucks everything eventually? And as for Johny boy and every other hard core surfer under 5'8" stick to surfing that's what your good at! Angry little dudes! The Magazine days are Over?

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 at 8:28pm

I wish they would to, the guy that did tell all was Perry Dane, give us some more syril ?

PCS PeterPan's picture
PCS PeterPan's picture
PCS PeterPan Friday, 22 Jul 2016 at 1:46pm

Just caught up with this story. Im a lover not a fighter but one of our local "regulators" none other than Koby Abb aparrently challenged Mr Johny Boy in a Chopes comp years ago . JGB was busy sledging Koby , basically trying to put him off and Kobes gave it to him in the heat and then kicked his arse back on land.

Im not sure of how accurate this story is , so if anyone else can remember , or can elaborate , that would be awesome .
One thing I know about Koby is he's not backward at coming forward.