Pacific Outlook to Design, Make Clothes for O’Neill

The company that put the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on T-shirts, Pacific Outlook Sportswear Inc., said Thursday that it has signed an agreement to design and manufacture apparel for O’Neill Sportswear Inc.

Under the agreement with O’Neill, Anaheim-based Pacific Outlook will make a full range of casual clothing from winter jackets to swimming trunks. But it won’t make wet suits--O’Neill’s best-known product.

O’Neill, a Santa Cruz company, will continue to manufacture wet suits at its San Francisco plant.

The companies did not disclose financial terms of the deal. But Pacific Outlook President Jonathan Edelstein said his company will receive an unspecified percentage of the profits from sales of O’Neill products.

A prior licensee of O’Neill’s sportswear products in the United States achieved sales of $25 million last year.

Edelstein called the deal “a wonderful addition and an important strategic move” for his company. He said the new O’Neill license will allow Pacific Outlook to develop a strong line of fall and winter clothing and to compete year-round.

Founded in 1980, Pacific Outlook is one of the nation’s largest screen printers of T-shirts. Besides the fighting Ninja turtles, Pacific Outlook makes T-shirts for Ocean Pacific, Newport Blue, Catchit and Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventures.

It has also moved into sportswear with its Lineshots label for volleyball and its Off Shore and Team Gear USA brands.

Pat O’Neill, president of O’Neill Sportswear, said Pacific Outlook was chosen from among several competitors because of its established name and the fact that its present brands will not compete with the O’Neill line.

“We feel very lucky to be able to put this together,” said O’Neill, whose father, Jack, founded the company more than 30 years ago.