Gotcha Co-Founder to Run Lost Enterprises

Joel Cooper, who in 1978 co-founded Gotcha Sportswear in a garage, said Thursday that he has signed on as chief executive of Lost Enterprises Inc., a small San Clemente surfboard and clothing maker.

Cooper, who left Gotcha in 1997, said he was drawn to the “underground” company because it is small, holds promise and understands the youth market. “Lost is perceived as being this up-and-coming label,” he said. “The marketing is way ahead of their volume.”

The company’s sales were between $3 million and $5 million in 1998, Cooper said.

Cooper co-founded Gotcha with Michael Thomson when the pair began making surf-themed T-shirts and shorts. The company’s annual sales grew to $125 million by the early 1990s, before the recession hit.

Marvin Winkler has headed the Irvine-based Gotcha, now called Gotcha International, since 1997, when he bought controlling interest in the company from Cooper and Thomson.