Three decades in...still loud, proud, and playfully subversive.
Amidst the low-rise jeans, trucker hats, and velour tracksuits Gen Z has brought back into the zeitgeist, another noughties style star is reemerging: Paul Frank. The playful label, fronted by a menagerie of enchanting, quirky characters like Julius the Monkey, turns 30 this year. To mark this milestone anniversary, Paul Frank is throwing a vibrant celebration—unleashing a bold lineup of events, playful attire, and animated accessories that channel three decades of making style unmistakably fun.
When eponymous founder and artist Paul Frank Sunich started the brand in a Huntington Beach garage in 1995, he couldn’t imagine his humble drawings would go global. Y2K happened to be just the right moment for his whimsical wonderland to come to life. As the dawn of the millennium brought a wave of global turmoil and rapid technological change, an uncertain world readily embraced the lighthearted nature of Frank’s designs.
Soon, you couldn’t look at a screen or magazine without seeing Julius the Monkey’s signature grin or a quippy Paul Frank statement tee. On The OC, Adam Brody’s trendsetting character Seth Cohen paired his PF tops with corduroy skinnies and worn-in Converse Chuck Taylors—essentially the ‘00s uniform. Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams and The Dutchess-era Fergie, two It-girls of the noughties music scene, donned the label’s colorful shirts and hoodies to press junkets and parties. The pap shots of their looks are now cherished mementos from a time when celebrity style was as accessible as it was aspirational.
New Paul Frank releases don’t mess with perfection, but they do expand the vibrant universe of the global lifestyle brand. Not only are there creative offerings—like a pleated plaid skirt emblazoned with Julius logos, or jeans bearing the brand name in bright colors along the back—but also classics that feel pulled right out of the ‘00s. Skip sorting through the overused “Y2K” tag on Depop; you can nab a ringer tee Jaime Pressly would’ve worn the hell out of in 2006, or a beanie like the one Jesse Metcalfe sported when Desperate Housewives was must-watch TV.
The optimistic zeal of Paul Frank can’t be contained to the wardrobe. Beyond new apparel, the brand also satiates OG fans’ nostalgia—and Gen Z’s affinity for having your favorite characters on everything you own—with a lineup of bags, tech, home goods, and stationery. While the animal adornments are recognizable, it's the infectious, upbeat energy that truly makes Paul Frank creations memorable.
In many ways, the 2020s feel like a Y2K redux. Gripped by the same anxieties that plagued their Millennial predecessors in the early 2000s, today’s youth are finding the same escapist joy in carefree styles, charming logos, and slogan tees that wink at their viewers. Paul Frank is an enduring tie to youth and all its irreverence, giving us permission to make our younger selves proud since 1995. If we ever lost sight of the label’s tagline, 30 years on, it’s become the ethos for a new generation: “Don’t forget to never grow up!”
Discover the full collection here.
