Wet Seal History

At the beginning, Wet Seal was established in 1962 in California, focused on being a beachwear retailer. During the mid-1990s, the company grew into a 300-unit retail chain due to a significant broadening of their beachwear merchandise mix. Within its two decades of existence, Wet Seal evolved into a 17-chain store chain and brought in $5 million in sales. Even with this achievement, Wet Seal was struggling. Not as a result of their small size compared to their larger competitors but its profitability. The company was dealing with an enormous amount of debt ("The Wet Seal, Inc. History", n.d).
The struggling and little-known company drastically changed in 1984, when being acquired by a Canadian retail store, Suzy Shier. This acquisition, lead Wet Seal in the path of robust growth and prominence within a highly competitive California retail market. The head of Suzy Shier’s operations, Ken Chilvers, was the main reason for the rise of Wet Seal’s success. Along with the help of Kathy Peckham, the former Jordan Marsh merchandising executive, who completely eliminated the existing strategy. Peckham designed a new merchandising mix that would attract a larger customer base. Instead of just beachwear, they added junior sportswear apparel and many new trendy styles. Not only attracting teenage girls but their mothers as well ("The Wet Seal, Inc.

Previously, Wet Seal was struggle to attract customers to their store, especially when having to compete with larger retail stores. Kathy Peckham analyzed and researched the company’s target market needs and determined the best strategy to bring people in by providing the desired products. The timing of the company’s changes was vital for their existence. With massive amounts of debt and no positive outlook, the change was effective for both the retailer and its