By the turn of the last century Long Beach's booming oil and shipyard industries had made the town notorious for sailor bars, tattoo parlors, and other establishments of ill repute. Its reputation has improved since those days, but the Southern California port city still retains elements of its original working class charm. Its latest champions are a group of like-minded buddies with a clear vision for their new post-skate concept shop and private label brand, PORT. Aptly named for the city that inspired it, PORT was opened by 90's pro skateboarding icon and DVS Shoe Company co-founder Tim Gavin alongside friends and fellow DVS employees Jim Leatherman and Juston Tucker in the Spring of 2011. With more than three decades of combined experience in the footwear and action sports apparel industry, PORT is the collective expression of the thirty-something trio's slightly more mature, yet still fun-loving taste for fashion, friendship, and hi jinx. Located on the city's bustling Broadway Avenue strip, PORT houses a range of established and emerging lifestyle brands including Freshjive, Publish, Warriors of Radness, Insight, The Quiet Life, Chambers, Brixton, Herschel, and Matix. Along side footwear brands such as Pointer, Thorocraft, Clae, Diamond, and DVS. It also caters to female shoppers and stocks a range of vintage women's items. PORT also offers its own private label collection consisting of tees, tanks, and other limited pieces including sunglasses, hats, and whiskey flasks.
