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  Marty Samuels

Former Quiksilver Americas President Marty Samuels is now consulting with the La Jolla Group, maker of O’Neill, Lost, Rusty and Metal Mulisha Clothing.

Samuels, who worked at Quiksilver for 12 years, left the company in January.

Another former Quiksilver executive, Maria Barnes, right, is also consulting with La Jolla. Maria launched Alex Goes for Quiksilver and was the Roxy swim and accessories sales manager for five years. She also previously worked in Hurley’s YC division.

Marty is working with the sales management teams of La Jolla’s various brands on growth, opportunity, and structure.

Maria is working with O’Neill Clothing’s in-house design team to develop the Swim 2010 collection.

Marty and Maria join longtime La Jolla consultant Michael Tomson, below, at the company. Michael, the co-founder of Gotcha and a recognized design visionary, helps with product, marketing and other business advice, according to La Jolla CEO Toby Bost.

“The opportunity to tap into the wealth of knowledge these three individuals have was something we jumped on,” Toby said. “La Jolla Group is a young company with an aggressive growth strategy, and given the retail climate, we wanted to be as prudent and efficient with our resources as possible.

“Adding them to our team in this capacity keeps our overhead where we need it, while leveraging their talents and years of experience. It’s a winning scenario for everyone, and one that will be extremely valuable in the short and long term.”