Powell Peralta is one of the most influential skateboarding brands of all time. The company was founded in 1978 by George Powell and Stacy Peralta. Powell was an engineer who started building skateboards at home, while Peralta was a professional skater who was part of the legendary Zephyr Boys. Powell Peralta made a name for itself in the 1980s by bringing together the best skaters of the day into the Bones Brigade, the brand's skateboarding team. The brand also distinguished itself with the horror-inspired graphics by Vernon Courtlandt Johnson, George's brother-in-law. Iconic designs by "Court" include the Iron Cross for Tony Hawk, the Caballero Dragon, Lance Mountain's Future Primitive graphics, and the Skull and Bones for Ray "Bones" Rodriguez. In 1991, Peralta left the company, after which the brand continued under the name Powell Skateboards. Powell remained a driving force in skateboarding throughout the 1990s with a strong team, groundbreaking videos, and innovative products. In the spring of 1996, Powell shook up the industry with the first "blank" products in skateboarding. Powell sold these "blank" decks, which were the same quality as their other skateboards, at an unprecedented price. In the summer of 1996, the blank decks were renamed Mini Logo decks; in the fall of that year, the name changed to Powell Mini Logo, so everyone could see where this "new" price point product came from. The Mini Logo boards, made in the same factory and with a lifetime warranty against delamination, became a huge success. The sales success of Mini Logo decks led to heated discussions about the influence of the cheaper products on pro models. Many people feared that the more expensive pro models no longer had a future. In retrospect, we can say that the two have proven to coexist perfectly well. One person wants a cool graphic, the other looks purely at price and quality. By the way, did you know that Powell also had Mini Logo Pro decks back then (1998)? These were lower-priced versions of Powell's pro models, complete with a miniaturized version of the original graphic. So, back then, you had Powell Street and Bones Brigade Pro decks, Powell Mini Logo decks, and Powell Mini Logo Pro decks. It was all quite complicated. In the spring of 2000, Powell Skateboards merged with Skate One Corporation. Powell's sub-brands,Bones, Powell, Bones Brigade, and Mini Logo, continued as more or less independent brands under the Skate One umbrella. At the end of the 2000s, George Powell and Stacy Peralta joined forces again to reissue the iconic skateboards from the '80s under the name Powell Classic. Powell Classic reissued legendary pro models by Steve Caballero, Ray "Bones" Rodriguez, Mike McGill, Steve Steadham, and Mike Vallely. In 2010, the circle came full circle, and Powell Skateboards and Powell Classic, as part of Skate One, continued as Powell Peralta. In 2011, artist Vernon Courtlandt Johnson also rejoined Powell Peralta. The brand releases both classic-inspired skateboards and modern street decks. Powell Peralta's current team members include legendary names like Steve Caballero and Kevin Harris, as well as contemporary rippers like Shane Borland and Brendon Villanueva.
