Advertisers Find a Hot New Medium--the Beach

Don’t look now, but some Southern California beaches are now being brought to you by the makers of Vans athletic shoes and PCH Sportswear.

Not to mention Nissan cars, radio station KTWV-FM 94.7 (the Wave) and very shortly, Body Glove swimwear.

On July 1, Vans and PCH began to place advertising on the sides of more than 150 new, beachside phone kiosks that stretch all the way from Redondo to Zuma Beach. Already, KTWV advertises on 6,000 trash cans it supplies to beaches, and Nissan has given the county 41 vehicles that have emblems saying they are the “official” cars of the Los Angeles county beaches. Later this summer, those familiar signs that tell beach goers the size of the surf will also have small ads for Body Glove.

Another recent addition are the phone kiosk ads--GTE has placed more than 100 new phone booths at Los Angeles beaches. And officials from the Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors have agreed to split advertising income with the phone company.

Beaches Ran a $7-Million Deficit

Of course, not everyone likes advertising-by-the-sea. It has been a thorny issue that the Board of Supervisors has wrestled with several times over the past decade. Although various forms of advertising are allowed on Los Angeles beaches, until now the county hasn’t tried very hard to capitalize on that. After all, most people come to beach to see surf, not ads.

But the county beaches ran a $7-million deficit last year, and they are looking for new revenue sources through marketing. Advertisers say they are only taking advantage of the unusual opportunity.

“If it wasn’t us, it would be someone else,” said Craig Fronk, director of marketing at PCH Sportswear, a Los Alamitos manufacturer of beachwear. “At least our ads are in good taste.”

The PCH Sportswear ads show a volleyball player spiking a ball over a net. Until now, the posters had mostly been placed on shopping mall kiosks. The ads are already garnering so much attention that Fronk said he would eventually like to place them on Orange County and San Diego beaches.

Meanwhile, the Vans phone booth ads show the company logo on a flashy neon background. The posters will soon be replaced with new ads that feature Vans shoes and the slogan “From mild to wild.”

Received Some Complaints

“There aren’t too many places at the beach to advertise,” said Steve Van Doren, director of marketing and promotions at Orange-based Van Doren Rubber Co., which makes Vans shoes. His company is paying $11,000 per month for 90 phone booth ads at the beach.

“Beach goers, skateboarders and surfers are really a big market for our canvas shoes,” said Van Doren. “So where better to reach them than at the beach?”

Well, some people say just about anywhere else would be better. “Sure, we’ve received some complaints,” said Ted Reed, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors. “But there’s a trade-off, because the cost of operating the beaches comes out of public tax dollars. And this revenue helps us hire additional lifeguards and keep the beaches clean.”

Still, billboards are not permitted on Los Angeles beaches, and the county will not permit ads for cigarettes or alcohol. But the department is considering one unusual avenue for future advertising income. It is negotiating with a clothing company that wants to put a simulation of the department’s logo on its clothing.

“As far as advertising goes,” said Reed, “that should just about tap us out.”