Catalina, the coveted swimsuit line of the vintage community (for women and men). The line is classy, beautiful and as you will see in this post, truly one of a kind.

Catalina swimsuit vintage clothing label

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Note: If you click on an item and it is no longer available, don’t fret! The websites I have provided are updated daily with 1000’s of new & vintage items. Just do a quick search and see what you find.


Vintage Catalina Swimsuit History & Advertising

History of Catalina Sportswear:

Their history began in 1907, as Bentz Knitting Mills, a small manufacturer of underwear and sweaters. The name was changed to Pacific Knitting Mills in 1912, accompanied by the introduction of swimwear to their existing knit lines. The third and final name change came in 1928, to Catalina.

During the 1920s, Catalina broke out of the norm of producing wool knit suits that were patterned after a simple one-piece style and created baring and fashionable swimwear for both men and women. Styles like, the boldly striped Chicken Suit, men’s Speed Suit and Ribstitch “S” suits.

The 1930’s glitz and glamour of the sliver screen had Catalina adopting the slogan “Styled for the Stars of Hollywood“. They added to the prestige by using Hollywood starlets, including Bette Davis, Joan Blondell, and Olivia de Havilland in their marketing campaigns. At the time, the average Catalina swimsuit retailed between five and ten dollars, equivalent to $87–$175 today (assuming 1935 dollars) (Source).

1930s vintage ad for Catalina swimsuits by orry kelly vintage ad
Source: Glamoursplash

The Miss America Beauty Pageant:

Catalina was a sponsor of the beauty pageant starting in the 1940’s, with the contestants wearing their off-the-rack swimsuits (featuring 2 flying fish logo’s, instead of the standard 1 on the hip as seen below).

1950s Vintage Photo of the miss America pageant featuring 3 contestants wearing Catalina swimsuits (1950s Swimwear)

In 1951 there was a bit of drama when Catalina dropped sponsorship of the pageant after the winner Yolande Betbeze, refused to pose for publicity pictures while wearing a swimsuit.

Side Note: Yolanda is pictured above (Miss Alabama), wearing a Catalina swimsuit before she was a winner so I’m so sure what the issue was (if you know please share in the comments below).

Seeing pageants as a good publicity tool, Catalina would go onto to found the Miss USA, Miss Teen USA, and Miss Universe pageants, co-sponsoring them for decades to follow. With this came a new slogan to emphasize their growing global awareness: “Around the world… it’s Catalina” (source).

1951 vintage catalina swimsuit ad

1960’s Catalina becomes a sister company to Cole of California, a swimwear manufacturer established in 1925.

cole of california 1950s vintage swimsuit ad hawaii
  • 1993 the duo joins Authentic Fitness Corporation, a subsidiary of Warnaco Inc.
  • 1994 Catalina and it’s newly extended swim, active & fitness brand (thanks to its merger with Wanaco) is offered to Wal-Mart stores across America
  • 2007 Warnaco sells the Catalina business to In Mocean Group
  • As of 2014 you can only buy Catalina swimsuits in Wal-Mart
  • Catalina is one of the oldest clothing manufacturers in California (Source).

History lesson complete, now lets check out some of the awesome advertisements!

Catalina Swimsuit Vintage Advertising 1930’s-1960’s

1940s Catalina Vintage Swimsuit Ad
Source: Flickr

1935’s vintage ad – “Everybody is crying for baby pants”

1930s vintage Catalina Swimsuit Ad featuring a 1930s swimsuit.
Source: Pinterest

1940s Vintage Catalina Ad. A giraffe on a swimsuit?! How fantastic!

vintage 1940s Catalina Swimsuit ad featuring a giraffe on the swimsuit.

If your looking for unique then look no further then this 1949 Catalina men’s swimwear ad…. “Beach-Comb Swimwear (with the built-in pocket comb)”.

1940s vintage ad and 1940s vintage mens fashions: 1949 Catalina men's swimwear ad.... "Beach-Comb Swimwear (with the built-in pocket comb)"
1940s vintage ad and 1940s vintage mens fashions: 1949 Catalina men's swimwear ad.... "Beach-Comb Swimwear (with the built-in pocket comb)"

Source: Etsy

1949-Convertibles Catalina swimsuits.

1949 Catalina Vintage Swimsuit Ad featuring 1940s swimsuits and two piece bathing suits.

The most popular swim trunks in America! 1950s vintage Catalina’s men’s swimsuit ad.

1950s vintage ad: 1955 Catalina Swimwear Ad for men
Source: Flickr

Families who match their swimsuits together, stay together. -1950s vintage ad-

1950s vintage family swimwear Catalina Ad

“Any girl who wears a Catalina swimsuit is apt to be singled out for special attention from Mr. Cupid.” -1950s vintage ad.

1950s vintage Catalina swimsuit ad featuring a 1950s swimsuit.
Source: VintagePrecious

“The sea-fearing man is a Catalina man” -1960’s Men’s Swimwear ad.

1960s mens Catalina swimsuit vintage ad

Schiaparelli’s design for Catalina -1950s swimsuit ad.

Catalina vintage bathing suit / swimsuit ad, 1949 advert

“Lovelier by Design.” -1950s vintage Catalina ad featuring a fish pattern swimsuit.

1950s Catalina Vintage Swimsuit Ad

1952 Miss Universe Catalina Ad.

1952 Miss Universe Catalina Swimsuit Ad
Source: Glamoursurf

1953-New Swim and Sun Fashions.

1953 Catalina vintage swimsuit ad -Fun Beach Outfit inspiration
Source: Etsy

1948 & 1949 Ads. Fish and Ducks for men and women on these fun 1940s bathing suits.

Vintage Catalina Swimsuit men and womens ad
Source: Glamoursurf

1955 ad for “Summertime Cottons by Catalina”. More beautiful examples of 1950s Swimsuits.

1950s Vintage Ad for Catalina Swimsuits -Summertime Cottons by Catalina 1955 ad seen in Life Magazine. Stunning 1950s swimsuits.

Source: Etsy – SwellVintageAds

Vintage Swimwear Examples:


Vintage Shopping: I have created an Etsy collection of Vintage Catalina Swimsuits that you can buy right now. The collection is updated Monthly.


1950s Catalina Umbrella print cotton swimsuit (avail as of March 2023). So Fantastic!!

1950s Fashion: 1950s Vintage swimsuit from Catalina Swimwear featuring umbrella's on the fabric.

Source: Etsy – vintage109online

Vintage 1940s Catalina swimsuit with black palm leaves, similar to the illustration on the right (Available HERE).

Vintage 1940s CATALINA swimsuit-1940s bathing suit.

Source: Etsy

Cute 1960s Catalina Playsuit/ Romper perfect summer beach outfit for that retro look.

1960s Fashion: Cute 1960s Catalina Playsuit/ Romper perfect summer Beach Outfit for that retro look!

Source: Etsy

Vintage 1950’s Catalina Black Swimsuit (avail as of March 2023 HERE).

Vintage 1950's Catalina Swimsuit - Black Vintage Swimsuit.

Source: Etsy

1950’s Women’s Turquoise and White Catalina Swimsuit.

1950's Women's Turquoise and White Catalina Swimsuit

Source: Etsy

Gorgeous, high quality 1950s swimsuit by Catalina.

Gorgeous, high quality 1950s swimsuit by Catalina

Source: Etsy

1950’s Catalina of California Junior Novelty Print, Red Owl Swimsuit.

1950’s Catalina of California Novelty Print Red Owl Swimsuit

Source: Etsy

I also own a Catalina that I wore at VIVA Rockabilly Weekend in 2016, it’s not as glamorous as the ones in the ads we just saw but it’s still cute!

The Vintage Inn Blog at viva rockabilly weekend tiki pool party 2016

Lastly, If you are interested in what the Catalina Labels looked like, the Vintage Fashion Guild has a super collection of them that can be found HERE.

QUESTION TIME: Do you own a Catalina? If so please share what it looks like. If you don’t do you like the brand? Want to own one yourself one day? Do tell in the comments below.

Further Reading:

Liz

34 Comments on Summer is here! Vintage Catalina Swimsuit Ads

  1. Great post i dont own a catalina yet, but one day. The adds are amazing and your suit is lovely. Vintage suits are so much better then modern ones. I own a key print 50s bathing suit and a solft gold repro vintage suit both new to me this summer

  2. Gorgeous swimming costumes! I particularly love the Baby Pants one and the one with the fish on the skirt part. Oh, and don’t you look stunning in yours! You look so perfectly dressed for VIVA Rockabilly. xx

  3. Hey Liz! Great post you did with this article!
    So you know (or anyone else) where I can find knitting patterns from Catalina swimwear? I am trying to reknit old patterns and I am horribly in love with these swimwear and would love to reproduce then or design some inspired by them from Catalina.
    Pls answer on email or facebook
    Jhil1@gmx.de or
    Fb JauntyJo Hill

  4. I have a 1970’s navy knit suit that I would like to sell. Anyone know what the value is for these suites? Excellent condition.
    Size 12
    Navy onepiece with button straps in back.
    Two daisies on it. One is the top right Best area, the other in the bottom left.

    • Hi there! I’m not great at putting a value on vintage clothes personally, but I would recommend seeing if you can find something similar on vintage clothing sites like Etsy and see what others are selling them for. This is what I do when I’m wondering about a price for my own personal knowledge. You could also reach out to a local vintage shop and see if they could help. Good luck and sorry I could not b more help.

      Liz

  5. Where do these old adverts sell online, more so the Catalina ads?
    I’d like to frame a few for interior design. Great! site.

    Cheers,

    – MG Masterson
    Vancouver, Canada

  6. The swimsuit with the Giraffes I have and it’s in decent condition! I want to try to leave a photo of it. It’s amazing

  7. Just ran across my Mom’s Catalina beach towel in the basement.
    Probably from the 1950’s, It is still intact but very thin.

  8. The Picture of the three gals posing in front of the swimming pool was actually the pool at the Catalina Sportswear offices in Commerce, California. That pool was kept clean and nobody was allowed to swim in it. I used to look on at it as a child when I visited my dad at work and when I worked there.

  9. Hi there last night I found a kind of metal button while metal detecting .I researched it on the net and found it is very similar to the catalina swimwear logo with its flying fish .I would post you a photo but can not .I was wondering if you might recognise it .Derek

  10. I have a men’s blue Catalina swimsuit from 1942, with 12th Air Force insignia on it. My dad was Army Air Corps. It has a perfect Catalina, Styled for the Stars of Hollywood tag on it. I’d love to send you photos to see if you have information on it.

    • Hi Tommy,

      I would love to see the photos, and can share it with my vintage community friends if are okay with that. I’m not an expert on Catalina swimsuits just the research I was able to find for this post but some of my friends own vintage shops and may know.

      You can email me at: thevintageinnblog@gmail.com

      thanks!

      Liz

  11. Hi Liz, I have a mens shirt and the label is Catalina A California Creator Styled for the Stars of Hollywood Made in Canada by Silknit. I have been researching lately the history of Silknit and Catalina connection…at first some thought that it was a reproduction…but I feel that Canada did not get much recognition for their involvement in fashion. Have you any info regarding these two. I will send pics if am allowed. Thank you. Geri

    • Hi Geri,

      Sounds like you have a cool piece of fashion history in your hands. I would love to see a picture if you could email me: vintageinnblog@gmail.com.

      I however have no knowledge of the connection between the two, but I would not be surprised like you said that Canada did not have help with production in some form. Wish I knew more! If I ever do stumble upon any info on this I will 100% reach out though.

      So sorry I could not help.

      Liz

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