Pacsun's CEO Brieane Olson on AI, betting on physical stores again and global expansion

Pacsun is riding the wave of its own reinvention. What started in 1980 as a small surf shop in Newport Beach, California, has grown into one of the main youth apparel retailers in the United States, with sales growing by about 10 percent in each of the past two years, reaching 970 million dollars in 2025, the company reported. Steering that momentum is CEO Brieane Olson.

Olson's path to the top wasn't a straight line. She started in retail at 15, working the floor at Banana Republic, and spent years in Italy working for Valentino and Gianfranco Ferré before joining Pacsun in 2007. She was still in the building when the company filed for bankruptcy in 2016, and she stayed to help rebuild it.

“Within weeks of joining in 2007, I was pulled onto Project Mavericks, an eighteen-month initiative meant to redefine the brand. We landed on the right principles. The customer should be central to everything, and youth culture should be created alongside young consumers, not dictated to them. The vision was there. What Mavericks lacked was execution,” Olson told FashionUnited. “We didn't have the leadership buy-in, a unified culture, or the discipline to actually act on what we heard instead of just collecting it.”

When the brand filed for bankruptcy, Olson saw it as the reset that would finally let them finish what they had started. “With Golden Gate Capital's backing and real leadership stability, we finally had the conditions Mavericks never had,” she said. Golden Gate Capital completed its acquisition of Pacsun after the retailer's Joint Plan of Reorganization was confirmed by the Delaware bankruptcy court in September 2016, converting more than 65 percent of its term loan debt into equity, injecting at least 20 million dollar in new capital, and securing a 100 million dollar revolving credit line from Wells Fargo to cut debt and occupancy costs and support future growth.

Pacsun’s comeback

In December 2025, Pacsun announced it would open 20 to 35 new US stores over three years, marking its first store-count increase in almost 20 years. The timing says something about where Olson thinks the business is headed. “What changed is that the role of the store changed. For us, physical retail is no longer just about having a place to transact. It's an important part of how we build community, bring the brand to life and create experiences that complement everything happening digitally,” Olson said.

Part of Pacsun’s secret to its recent success comes from its popularity on social media. The physical retail expansion plan aims to create spaces where online communities can “experience the energy of a brand in a real environment,” Olson explained. “Our decision to expand isn't about going back to the old retail playbook. It's about rethinking what a Pacsun store can be today and how physical and digital can work together.”

Global expansion

Pacsun also opened its first-ever international store in May at the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai, which can be seen as a case study for the brand. “That's giving us an opportunity to learn how Pacsun can connect with consumers outside the U.S. We're taking those learnings seriously as we think about where and how we grow next,” Olson said.

The CEO is eyeing Europe alongside Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and a likely Canadian expansion. All on the right time, she said. “We don't believe in entering a market simply to add stores or chase geographic expansion. We want to understand the consumer, the culture, and the right way for Pacsun to show up first.”

Olson said Pacsun is exploring a range of opportunities, from digital and strategic partnerships to physical retail. “But we're not going to force a model before we know what's right for the market. Our approach is to listen first, test, learn, and then scale. We want to make sure that wherever we go next, we're building the right foundation for Pacsun to have a meaningful and lasting presence,” she said.

"AI can help, but it can't replace human curiosity"

Pacsun established its AI Council in 2023, becoming one of the first retailers to create a team dedicated to study the evolution of artificial intelligence in the fashion industry.

“We established our AI Council because we wanted to approach AI thoughtfully, not because we felt we needed to use AI everywhere. The question for us has always been where can it genuinely make our teams better and create more value for our customers?” Olson said.

The company has seen opportunities across the business with AI, from helping teams work more efficiently and identify insights faster to supporting customer personalization, Olson told. “But I think it's important to remember that technology doesn't replace the human connection at the heart of our business. We spend a tremendous amount of time listening to young people and understanding what they're doing, what they're interested in, and how culture is shifting. AI can help us process information and move faster, but it can't replace that human curiosity or cultural context.”

Staying curious

“When I started working in retail at 15, I couldn't have imagined where that first job would eventually lead me,” she said.

Olson started her career at Banana Republic, then worked in Italy for Marzotto on Valentino and Gianfranco Ferré, and at J.Crew and Abercrombie & Fitch before joining Pacsun as senior design director of women's in 2007. “Every role I've had along the way taught me something, and some of the most important lessons came from simply being willing to learn from the people around me and from the customer,” she said, highlighting the impact curiosity had on her career.

“Careers rarely follow a straight line, and some of the experiences that seem unrelated at the time can become incredibly valuable later,” she said. “Retail is ultimately about people, and the closer you are to understanding how people live, what inspires them, and what they need, the better leader you'll become.” Part of the lessons she learned throughout her professional journey are featured in “Co-Created: The Cultural Strategy That Redefined Pacsun,” a book she released in May. “The best ideas don't happen in isolation. They're built by listening, learning and creating alongside the people you're trying to serve. That same curiosity is still something I try to bring to my role today,” she said.

In 2023, Olson became Pacsun's first female chief executive officer in the brand’s history, a title she holds with pride. “What matters most to me is making sure I'm not the last. I want the women coming behind me to see leadership as something that is possible for them, not something they have to wait for permission to pursue. Throughout my career, I've benefited from people who believed in me, challenged me, and gave me opportunities. I feel a responsibility to do the same for others” she said. “If my career can help someone else see a path for themselves and then feel empowered to create their own path, that would mean the most to me.”