wholesale business, and the first decade of the 21st century was a particularly active period of expansion for Billabong. Von Zipper, an eyewear brand, was acquired in early 2001 and the acquisition of skateboarding apparel and hard-good brand Element was announced in July 2001. The acquisition of the Kustom surf shoe brand, as part of Billabong's purchase of the Australian Gold Coast-based Palmers Surf company, was disclosed in September 2004. The following year in December, an official press release was published to announce the acquisition of Nixon Inc., a watch and accessories brand in the board-sports market. The acquisition of wetsuit and technical watersport accessories brand Xcel became effective on 1 September 2007, and Jodhi Meares's former Tigerlily brand was acquired in December of the same year. The Tigerlily decision represented the first time that Billabong had acquired a brand focused exclusively on the 'girls' market, and the management intended to position the new addition so that it complimented the company's own 'Billabongs Girls' line. In 2008, Billabong continued with the consistent acquisition activity that occurred in 2007 and announced four acquisitions over four successive months. Following the acquisition of the Gold Coast store Kirra Surf in May, the company announced its acquisition of the retail operations of Quiet Flight, a retail company on the East Coast of the United States that had already been operating licensed Billabong and Element retail outlets in Times Square, New York City. The Quiet Flight deal resulted in the addition of 14 Quiet Flight and Surf Warehouse retail stores, most of which were located in Florida, USA. Then in June 2008, the founders of the Sector 9 skateboard company accepted an offer from Billabong that also included the purchase of the Gullwing skateboard truck brand. Finally, in August, Billabong confirmed the acquisition of board-sport accessories brand DaKine, which specialises in backpacks, bags, gloves, and accessories, in a press release that projected that "DaKine is expected to contribute approximately 4% of Billabong International Limited’s Group sales in the 2008-09 financial year". Billabong's retail expansion continued into late 2008 with the November purchase of the United Kingdom (UK)-based 13-store retail chain Two Seasons for an undisclosed sum. Billabong only announced a single acquisition in 2009 with the purchase of Swell, a US-based online retailer of board-sports brands, for an undisclosed sum. Billabong began 2010 with the signing of a 10-year licensing deal with popular skateboard company