The Jams World story

David Y. Rochlen is the Founder and Chairman of Jams World / Surf Line Hawaii, Ltd. The son of a Russian-born journalist, he has his roots in the ocean and was a lifeguard living in Santa Monica in the 1950's. He came to the market with credentials: ocean roots and a love for the sun and sea.

                      
        Original Jams World logo tag                                          Current Jams World logo tag

Trying to find comfortable surfing attire, Dave was inspired by a Life magazine article depicting their Russian people at the Black Sea resorts wearing their bathrobes and PJ's down to the beach. He bought some brightly printed fabric and asked his wife to make him a short pajama. With a few suggestions to modify them (no top, sewn up fly, and legs cut off at the knee), Jams® was born.

Soon all his surfing buddies wanted a pair of his Jams. He quit his job as a systems analyst and began Surf Line Hawaii, Ltd., with his first pair of commercial Jams® hitting the Makaha Beach in Hawaii in December 1964. Their appeal as a surfing lifestyle item landed Dave and a group of his surfing buddies a two-page spread in Life magazine in June 1965, the magazine that inspired this whole phenomena.

With roots starting in the ocean, Jams World®'s origin began as a surfboard shop called "Surf Line Hawaii", a small shop in Honolulu, Hawaii, located across the street from the famous "Ala Moana" Shopping Center.

They carried mostly surfboards from legends like Yater, Hobie, Bing, Lopez, and Aipa, to name a few. We could not find any clothing that we thought was fun, colorful, and unique so we began to create our own - the first being Jams®, long, colorful, and fun. Mike Doyle, then World Champion, wore the first pair at Makaha in the 60's, and then so did Butch Van Artsdalen, a talented surfer, lifeguard, and waterman. And the rest is history. Today Jams World® has grown up. We have come out of the surf, up the beach, across the boardwalk, and halfway to town. We now sell to accounts throughout the world. The reason for Jams World®'s success is passion. We are passionate about our product. Jams World® has truly become one of the beach & resort apparel industry's True Leaders.

Bright in color and full of vivid design, Hawaiian shirts are an immensely popular way to introduce yourself - and your clothing - at parties, the pool or the beach. They have become an international symbol of Hawaii. Although they continue to increase in popularity, Hawaiian tropical shirts are not a new trend or fad. In fact, the design of these shirts has been around for decades.

Hawaiian shirts got their start in the 1930s, when clothing manufacturers on the tropical Hawaiian islands decided to produce a cloth that had a design unique to Hawaii. Watumull's East India Store led the pack by hiring artist Elsie Das to create 15 hand-painted floral designs that were then printed onto silk. Unfortunately for the store, the designs were not supposed to be printed on heavy silk. Although the manufacturer did not print the shirts as had been requested, it turned out for the best - the heavy silk shirts became extremely popular in Hollywood. Movie stars, singers, and politicians all donned the prints. Harry Truman wore them frequently in the White House. In the movie ""From Here to Eternity,"" Montgomery Cliff, Burt Lancaster, Ernest Borgnine, and Frank Sinatra all wore Hawaiian shirts. The craze has continued on for years. Tom Selleck was always wearing Hawaiian shirts in ""Magnum PI.""

Hawaiian officials have certainly encouraged the Aloha shirt craze. In 1947, the Honolulu Board of Supervisors passed a resolution, encouraging city and county employees to wear Hawaiian shirts from June 1 to October 31 each year. Further, every Friday in Hawaii is considered Aloha Friday, when locals and tourists alike wear their favorite Hawaiian shirt or dress with pride. The islands even have an official Aloha Week, where thousands of people dress in Hawaiian pride.

Today, Hawaiian shirts continue to be a symbol of relaxation in tropical paradise. A simple lifestyle statement that by their very nature symbolize fun and a sense of carefree attitude.