There was a time in the 1980s where practically every suburban teen and pre-teen male wanted to be a surfer. It didn’t matter if he lived in Kansas (thousands of miles from the nearest ocean), or in Ocean Beach, San Diego.

Being a surfer was cool. Wearing Vans on you feet was cool. Saying “dude” was cool. And unlike today, it was an immediate telltale sign that somebody wanted to be a surfer. You didn’t have to own a surfboard either – you just had to own the clothes.

It’s probably all Jeff Spicoli’s fault. But the cultural juggernaut that is California would have probably forced surfer culture onto the rest of the world even without Mr. Spicoli. It was bound to happen eventually.

Catch a Wave

And that brings us to PacSun. It’s a store that supplies us with everything Jeff Spicoli, sans the drugs and underage drinking.

PacSun has been losing money over the last few years, and it was forced to file for bankruptcy. Could this be a sign that in the more than three decades after Fast Times at Ridgemont High, the desire to be a surfer is finally dying?

Probably not.

A Bright Future

Things are actually starting to get better again for PacSun. They did lose money last year, but not nearly as much as they had the prior year. Additionally, an asset auction was canceled by the bankruptcy court recently because there was no longer a need to sell off assets to help pay it’s creditors.

These are both signs that things are headed in the right direction for PacSun.

So if you are planning to shop at one of their 593 stores because your last string of Puka Shells just broke – relax. PacSun isn’t closing it’s doors anytime soon.