Mambo Graphics (also, 100% Mambo; and marketed as Mambo) is an Australian company designer of

clothing Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural ...

. The company produces and commercialises

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

wetsuit A wetsuit is a garment worn to provide thermal protection while wet. It is usually made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by surfing, surfers, Underwater diving, divers, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports and other activit ...

s, and

casual wear Casual wear (or casual attire or clothing) is a Western dress code that is relaxed, occasional, spontaneous and suited for everyday use. Casual wear became popular in the Western world following the counterculture of the 1960s. When emphasisi ...

clothing. Mambo was launched in 1984 by musician Dare Jennings and business partner, Andrew Rich in the

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

suburb of

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

. On January 6, 2015, Mambo was acquired by American company

Saban Brands Saban Capital Group LLC is an American investment firm based in Los Angeles, California focused on media, entertainment, and communications investments. Formed in 2010 by Haim Saban, Saban Capital Group owns Saban Films, part of Univision Commun ...

. In July 2019 Mambo was brought back to Australian ownership when it was acquired by Caprice Australia. Mambo is sold across Australia and New Zealand and, in 2011, entered the United States and Canada and has opened Mambo stores in the UK. The first pair of board shorts was created by an English designer Paul Smith. Peter Pilotto and other designers inspired the female wetsuits.

History

Early days

In the early 1970s Dare Jennings owned a large and successful screen printing business, Phantom Textile Printers, producing t-shirt and fabric prints for a variety of commercial clients. He also owned an independent record label,

Phantom Records Phantom Records was an Australian record store and independent record label established in 1978 by Dare Jennings and Jules R.B. Normington. Phantom Records was one of Australia's first indie labels, and the store was known for its guerilla m ...

. Mambo began life as an "after-hours" project in the Phantom art room. The graphics were initially created by in-house artists such as musician

Jodi Phillis Jodi Christine Phillis (born 11 April 1965 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian singer-songwriter-guitarist. She spent her childhood in California, and moved back to Sydney, Australia to begin school. She quit school at 15, then spent eight ...

, and by freelance artist, Richard Allan whose first t-shirt graphics, 'Real Wrestlers, Real Wrestling' and 'Call Of The Wild (Farting Dog)' were the best-sellers. '100% Mambo' clothing was often available in surf / skate shops in the mid- to late 1980s in the UK. As skateboarders wore a lot of surfer-inspired clothing, Mambo board shorts in loud / Hawaiian patterns were worn by skaters. Other similar surf / skate brands around at the time were

Stüssy Stüssy ( ) is an American privately held fashion house founded in the early 1980s by Shawn Stussy. It benefited from the surfwear trend originating in Orange County, California, but was later adopted by the skateboard and hip hop scenes. Histo ...

, Life's A Beach and

Vision Street Wear Vision Street Wear is an American apparel company focused on BMX and skateboarding. Started in 1976 by Brad Dorfman, the company sponsored early skateboarding greats such as Mark 'Gator' Rogowski, and Mark Gonzales. Although the company is most ...

. As this was long before skate culture became mainstream (e.g. skate shops often only sold

Vans Vans is an American manufacturer of skateboarding shoes and related apparel, established in Anaheim, California, and owned by VF Corporation. The company also sponsors surf, snowboarding, BMX, and motocross teams. From 1996 to 2019, the comp ...

, Vision or

Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...

shoes), these were usually niche products. Allan's arrival at Mambo was followed by other Australian and overseas artists, including

Reg Mombassa Christopher O'Doherty, also known by the pseudonym Reg Mombassa, is a New Zealand-born Australian artist and musician. He is a founding member of the band Mental As Anything and member of Dog Trumpet (alongside his brother Peter O'Doherty). Ear ...

, Robert Williams (US) and Ben Frost.

Development

In 1994, the first Mambo 'Loud Shirt' was released. The design was influenced by the famous Hawaiian 'Aloha' shirt. It was called 'Blue Hawaii' by

Martin Plaza Martin Edward Murphy (born 1 January 1956), commonly known by the pseudonym Martin Plaza, is an Australian singer-songwriter, musician and visual artist who is a founding member and vocalist and guitarist of the new wave band Mental As Anything. ...

(a bandmate of

). This shirt became one of Mambo's best-sellers and started the Mambo 'Loud Shirt' style. Mambo opened its first store in 1995. Located in the

suburb of

Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddi ...

, it was called the 'Mambo Friendship Store'. Stores opened in other Australian cities and in the UK,

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. By 2001, Mambo had opened 25 independent retail stores. In 2000 Mambo received an invitation from the

Australian Wool Board The Australian Wool Board was an Australian Government statutory board that existed in its first phase between May 1936 and January 1945; in its second phase between June 1945 and June 1953; and in its third and final phase, between May 1963 and ...

to design the athlete's uniform for the

opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

of the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. After the Summer Olympic Games, Jennings was approached by

Gazal Corporation Gazal Corporation Limited (Gazal, ) was a leading Australian branded clothing company and was a listed public company of the Australian Stock Exchange. The company was based in Banksmeadow in the Australian state of New South Wales. Its main busin ...

to buy the brand. Jennings sold the company in March of that year and took over the role of creative director. Jennings left the company in 2002 and later went on to create the surf and moto-inspired brand ''Deus Ex Machina''. In 2006, Principle (an Australian research company) named Mambo "Australia's sixth-most-authentic brand" alongside Bonds,

Speedo Speedo International Limited is a distributor of swimwear and swim-related accessories based in Nottingham, England, known for its swim briefs. The company has roots in Australia but is no longer based there. Founded in Sydney in 1914 by Al ...

R. M. Williams Reginald Murray "R.M." Williams AO CMG (24 May 19084 November 2003) was an Australian bushman and entrepreneur who rose from a swagman to a millionaire. He was born at Belalie North near Jamestown in the Mid North of South Australia, north ...

and

Billabong Billabong ( ) is an Australian term for an oxbow lake, an isolated pond left behind after a river changes course. Billabongs are usually formed when the path of a creek or river changes, leaving the former branch with a dead end. As a result ...

. In 2008 Mambo was sold to The Nervous Investor Group, an Australian-based consortium headed by Angus Kingsmill and based in the Sydney beachside suburb of Manly. In 2015 Mambo was sold to US clothing group

. In 2012, Mambo entered into partnerships with key players in the US and Brazil with plans to introduce the brand on a large scale in each country. In July 2019, Mambo was acquired by 60-year-old family-run brand Caprice Australia, bringing ownership of the Mambo brand to Australia.MAMBO ANNOUNCES ‘LIFESTYLE’ PARTNERSHIP WITH URBNSURF
on Australian Surf Business Magazine, 4 Feb 2020

References

External links

* {{Sports equipment brands Australian brands Clothing companies of Australia Surfwear brands Cycle manufacturers of Australia Snowboarding companies Skateboarding companies Swimwear manufacturers Clothing retailers of Australia Companies based in Sydney Design companies established in 1984 Australian companies established in 1984 Kick scooters

History

Early days

Development

See also

References

External links