Watch maker keeps time with rockers

With heavy metal music blaring in the background and dozens of autographed records on the wall, the Vestal headquarters on 17th Street look more like an indie record label than a watch manufacturer.

On any given day, members of punk bands like Valient Thorr and Lacuna Coil can be seen arriving at the small warehouse to pose for photos, pick up merchandise or just hang out.

Although most apparel companies in Orange County are linking their clothing lines to professional athletes, Vestal is turning to punk and rock bands to promote its timepieces and clothing line.

“Music is the heart and soul of Vestal,” said marketing manager Peyton Kelly. “Our first ads were with bands, and we’ve been trying to promote with music ever since.”

Unlike professional surfers, who require costly contracts for advertising endorsements, Kelly and company have found that most rock bands are eager to appear in music magazines sporting Vestal watches. For bands, it’s a chance to promote their music on Vestal’s dime: The firm spends hundreds of thousands of dollars each year advertising in music publications such as Revolver, AP, Fader and Rolling Stone.

Company president Johnny Geris said Vestal doesn’t pay the bands to appear in the ads, although it does load them up with free watches and Vestal gear.

In recent years, Vestal has picked up some well known acts ? Pennywise and Eagles of Death Metal. Top-selling group Velvet Revolver ? which features members of Guns N’ Roses and the Stone Temple Pilots’ Scott Weiland ? has been photographed wearing the watches in photo shoots for Rolling Stone.

“We have everyone in the band wearing one, except for Slash,” Kelly said. “I heard he wears a Rolex.”

In recent years, Vestal has secured deals with several music-oriented fashion lines to create their watch lines. Kelly said his company licenses watches for rapper Jay-Z’s Rocawear clothing line and Orange County punker Gwen Stefani’s L.A.M.B. series.

“They’re giving a $300 watch Rolex status, just because Jay-Z wears it,” said Tyler “The Coach” Craig, manager of reggae-dub group Pepper, whose members sport Vestal timepieces.

Craig said it’s common for fans to approach members of Pepper after shows and ask about their watches.

“You tell them that Pepper wears the watch and they’re going to want it,” Craig said. “They don’t care how much it costs.”

The move toward music came a little over two years ago, Geris said, as the growing company attempted to craft its own image in the action sports community. Vestal has contracts with surfers C.J. Hobgood and Timmy Curran ? who also plays music when he’s not surfing ? but wanted to do something to stand out from others.

“All companies morph over time, and we realize that music and art are all infused into this business,” Geris said. “So when our team sat down and looked at what we are passionate about, it was a no-brainer.”

Kelly said he and a few others on the Vestal staff attend several concerts a week and communicate with record company insiders to find young bands on the rise.

“We’re trying to get them when they’re coming up; that’s when they’re more willing to work with you,” Kelly said. “If you don’t have that relationship before they go big, they become untouchable.”

Vestal typically scouts darker metal and punk rock groups, who are then photographed for ads in black and white with a dark, shadowy background.

“We definitely have a little bit of an edge to us,” art director Jay Merriott said.

Billy Stade, owner of the Orange County retailer the Closet, said he’s seen sales of Vestal products explode in the last two years, estimating that he sells hundreds of the watches each month.

“In the course of the last year, it’s really taken off,” he said.dpt.15-bizcov-C.1PhotoInfoIP1QUVH420060515iza61zncDON LEACH / DAILY PILOT(LA)Peyton Kelly wears one of Vestal’s sturdy and stylish watches. “Music is the heart and soul of Vestal,” he says.