I had coffee in San Clemente with Bob Mignogna, a consultant and behind-the-scenes deal maker who put together the sale of Xcel Wetsuits to Billabong earlier this year.

Before that, he was the publisher of Surfing Magazine where he worked for 30 years, starting as a sales rep.

I asked Bob to weigh in on the PacSun distribution issue. Here’s what he had to say:

What happens if PacSun converts to private label in men’s?

“There’s value in asking the question, although it will never happen because of Hollister.  If PacSun went 100 percent private label in men’s, it wouldn’t be different as it is now. The surf and skate brands in PacSun are aggressively and smartly marketed by the brands.  It’s too late for PacSun to get into the youth brand marketing game with a high degree of  authenticity.”

 

“A better question is how will the surf and skate brands replace the juniors business at Pac Sun?  Many of the surf and skate brands are public companies and they can’t simply hide the reduction in sales in their financial information. They need to replace it with a long-term approach.  If PacSun continues moving further away from surf and skate brands in juniors, the brands will put their foot on the gas pedal by expanding distribution to more stores that compete with PacSun, including accelerating the growth of company-owned stores.”