O'Neill (brand)

O'Neill, Inc. is an American manufacturer of surf clothing and surf gear, sports and winter clothing with headquarters in Santa Cruz, California. The seat in Europe is in Warmond, Netherlands.

History

The company was founded by Jack O'Neill in 1952 in San Francisco. Starting from the " garage sale ", his company different from those of other fact that he started next to surfboards to create wetsuits and sell, whereby the boom of surfing began in earnest. Often, the company will, therefore, have also been attributed with the invention of the wetsuit.

Jack's son Pat is the inventor of nylon cord that is attached to the leg of the surfer, to avoid driving off the surfboard.

When testing one of the lines, there was a surfing accident in which Jack O'Neill lost his left eye, which is why he wears the distinctive eye patch.