Hurley spawns kids line

One of Costa Mesa’s surf-apparel giants has launched a new line for infants, toddlers and boys inspired by the company’s men’s line.

“This is the first time we’ve ever had an infant range in the line, and the whole line is really a takedown of the Hurley adult brand,” said Dan Levine, Hurley’s vice president of new business development. “At its core, it’s designed to express our brand’s point of view and our brand’s lifestyle and get it to the kid whose big brother is wearing it and they never had the opportunity to wear it.”

Hurley Kids — which has T-shirts, boardshorts, denim, fleece, outerwear, hats and beanies — debuted in stores last month. Although Levine couldn’t divulge exact sales figures, he said the line is exceeding the company’s sales expectations.

“It definitely sells,” said Akram Abdel, general manager of Jack’s Surfboards on the Newport Peninsula. “It definitely moves here.”

Levine attributes the line’s initial popularity to the success of its predecessor and, despite fierce competition, is confident the line will continue to drive sales.

“It’s an extremely competitive market. We’re up against people who do a great job, whether it’s Target or Old Navy,” he said. “The competition can be extremely price-driven, so we need to express our brand, build a great product … at a price that mom feels is fair.”

Jack’s Surfboards is one of many stores to carry the line, and at the Newport Peninsula location the clothes are proving a hot item.

“Kids don’t really gravitate toward kid-driven lines, but this stuff seems to be tailored after and just scaled down versions of the adult line,” Abdel said. “Kids really go for it — looking like their dad or older brothers.”

Hurley Kids was spawned through a partnership with New York-based Kid’s Headquarters, a manufacturer of children’s clothing and brands.

“It’s a really good synergy between our two companies,” Levine said. “We supply the brand and lifestyle and they supply the expertise of bringing a kids line to the floor.”

In its infancy, the line has been placed in Hurley’s key retailers like Jack’s and Huntington Surf & Sport, but is also on the racks at Nordstrom’s and Macy’s. Levine said the company just plans to continue to grow the line and prove itself in the core surf and skate shops.

“The early indicators on how well it’s selling are really foreshadowing a great future for this line for us,” he said. “We’re probably looking to make it more important in our core partners right now and enabling them to the grow the business.”

Hurley is working on a concept for a similar girls’ line, but is not committed to a production timetable.