Hot 25: 2009 Honorees
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Toby Bost
CEO and Chairman of the Board, La Jolla Group and O’Neill Clothing
Age: 39
Fact: He was headed in the direction of becoming a third-generation orthopedic surgeon but went into the apparel industry instead.
How he chose his career path: “I knew in high school that I didn’t want to wear a monkey suit to work every day.”
Toby Bost was just 36 when he became CEO of action-sports licensing company La Jolla Group, overseeing four wildly popular apparel brands – O’Neill, Lost, Rusty and Metal Mulisha. A sign of their success, and his: In July, the company’s headquarters moved into bigger digs. Still based in Irvine, the brands are now under the same roof, and the headquarters features skateboard ramps in hallways, basketball courts, a workout room, a retail shop and conference rooms named after popular surf spots.
“Growing up wakeboarding, skating, surfing, fishing – anything and everything outdoors – I knew it wasn’t my style to do something I didn’t have a passion for,” says Bost, who also serves as chairman of the company’s board of directors.
Bost landed at La Jolla Group in 1999, and by 2006, he’d been promoted to CEO. But he’s no newcomer to the action-sports industry – he’s been in it 15 years.
“No two days are alike, which is what makes my job entertaining,” Bost says. “It’s exciting to wake up and not know how the day is going to unfold. The more unpredictable the day, the more interesting it is.”
– Ashley Eliot
OC METRO's 2009 Hot 25 honorees:
Toby Bost | Mike Gillespie | Anil Puri | Sean Collins
Kevin Boylan & T.K. Pillan | Dr. Jason Knight | Hugh Hewitt
Luke Allen | Tina Aldatz | Sukhee Kang | Glenn Gray
Amelia & Florent Marneau | Tim McFerran | Tallia Hart
Bill Sanderson | Henrik Fisker | Janet Hamada | Wayne Gross
Julie Miller-Phipps | Michael Ruane | Carl St.Clair
Pretend City | Phil Willms | Sheryl Bourgeois | Steve Nichols
<<< Back to 2009 honorees
Web extra:
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of OC METRO's Hot 25 awards, here are our original Hot 25 honorees, who were featured in 1990.
Doug Rankin | Erich Vollmer | Dennis Aigner | Greg Patton
Janice Mittermeier | Carol Stogsdill | Carl St.Clair
Anton Segerstrom | Christopher Cox | Christine (Reed) Iger
Dr. Robert Bade | Thomas Mays | Mike Goode
Richard Gadbois | Rudy Castruita | Debbie Miede
Ernest C. Brown | Mossimo Giannulli | Daniel L. Rasmussen
Cynthia Ellner | Kathryn Braun Lewis | David Wilhelm
<<< Back to Web extra main page:
first Hot 25 honorees
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Age: 39 Fact: He was headed in the direction of becoming a third-generation orthopedic surgeon but went into the apparel industry instead. How he chose his career path: “I knew in high school that I didn’t want to wear a monkey suit to work every day.” Toby Bost was just 36 when he became CEO of action-sports licensing company La Jolla Group, overseeing four wildly popular apparel brands – O’Neill, Lost, Rusty and Metal Mulisha. A sign of their success, and his: In July, the company’s headquarters moved into bigger digs. Still based in Irvine, the brands are now under the same roof, and the headquarters features skateboard ramps in hallways, basketball courts, a workout room, a retail shop and conference rooms named after popular surf spots. “Growing up wakeboarding, skating, surfing, fishing – anything and everything outdoors – I knew it wasn’t my style to do something I didn’t have a passion for,” says Bost, who also serves as chairman of the company’s board of directors. Bost landed at La Jolla Group in 1999, and by 2006, he’d been promoted to CEO. But he’s no newcomer to the action-sports industry – he’s been in it 15 years. “No two days are alike, which is what makes my job entertaining,” Bost says. “It’s exciting to wake up and not know how the day is going to unfold. The more unpredictable the day, the more interesting it is.” – Ashley Eliot OC METRO's 2009 Hot 25 honorees: Toby Bost | Mike Gillespie | Anil Puri | Sean Collins
Kevin Boylan & T.K. Pillan | Dr. Jason Knight | Hugh Hewitt Luke Allen | Tina Aldatz | Sukhee Kang | Glenn Gray Amelia & Florent Marneau | Tim McFerran | Tallia Hart Bill Sanderson | Henrik Fisker | Janet Hamada | Wayne Gross Julie Miller-Phipps | Michael Ruane | Carl St.Clair Pretend City | Phil Willms | Sheryl Bourgeois | Steve Nichols <<< Back to 2009 honorees Web extra: To celebrate the 20th anniversary of OC METRO's Hot 25 awards, here are our original Hot 25 honorees, who were featured in 1990. Doug Rankin | Erich Vollmer | Dennis Aigner | Greg Patton Janice Mittermeier | Carol Stogsdill | Carl St.Clair Anton Segerstrom | Christopher Cox | Christine (Reed) Iger Dr. Robert Bade | Thomas Mays | Mike Goode Richard Gadbois | Rudy Castruita | Debbie Miede Ernest C. Brown | Mossimo Giannulli | Daniel L. Rasmussen Cynthia Ellner | Kathryn Braun Lewis | David Wilhelm <<< Back to Web extra main page: first Hot 25 honorees |
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