From the dawn of retail, no matter how challenging times may seem, the entrepreneurial spirit has always found a way to prevail.

In 1968 a teenager saved $150 from his job at a gas station and with a friend bought 24 pairs of bell-bottom jeans on the streets of New York City, then drove three hours north to bring city style to sleepy Elmira, N.Y., selling the jeans from the back of their car for a tidy profit.

The teen? Future clothing mogul Tommy Hilfiger.

Back then, selling out of the back of a car, truck, van or Volkswagen bus was viewed as a start or steppingstone to eventual brick-and-mortar success. Today the truck has more staying power.

On the heels of the food truck phenomenon comes mobile retail, a trend that may continue to grow as the jobless economy forces individuals to create their own opportunities.

The West Coast Mobile Retail Association formed in 2011 to allow mobile clothing operators to band together for marketing and support purposes. As interest and demand for services picked up nationwide, the group became the American Mobile Retail Association, offering webinars and consulting to help more individuals go mobile. The group has 80 members and annual membership is $70.

Whether individual trucks have staying power remains to be seen. Unlike a food truck where patronage is local, local, local, the clothing trucks often have an online component that allows them to sell anywhere in the world, and with popularity comes the desire to let online sales drive the experience.

Here are the stories of two Oahu mobile clothing stores:

Roam Hawai’i

Brooke Dombroski, Cassandra Rull, Marissa Eveland and Melissa Jasniy were design and fashion majors who came together after getting their degrees to surf and hang out. In 2010 they decided to take their creativity on the road.

"It started with all of us hand-making everything," said Rull, a University of Hawaii at Manoa apparel product design and merchandising major who had sold some of her initial creations out of Fashionista’s Market in downtown Honolulu. "We thought we’d get the truck mainly to do events and craft fairs on the North Shore, take it to Art + Flea and do whatever we could think of, whatever we felt like selling, whatever inspired us.

"The truck was kind of our mascot, our surf mobile. We thought it would be fun to load up our boards, go down the street and have an adventure with the truck. It was a lot easier than a traditional pop-up situation where you have to lug things around and set up, then do all the work of packing it up and breaking down later.

"I feel so lucky I always collaborated with my friends, and I feel that’s what helped me. I think that helped create a following, with people wondering, ‘What are those girls doing?’"

Roam Hawai’i has picked up a global following over the past four years, so much of its business is conducted online. The truck, now sidelined, thus has grown even more powerful — symbolizing freedom, creativity, living healthy and keeping mind, body and spirit in balance.

"What we’re interested in is being a positive influence. We want to share the message that you can have fun and enjoy whatever it is you want to do," Rull said.

Staying positive has certainly worked for Rull, who last year had just finished what she imagined would be her blockbuster Single Fin line, comprising vintage fabric, "weird" fringe, neon and hand-stitched applique dresses, hats and shorts.

"I put a lot of work into it, and it kind of just flopped," she said.

But Rull said it was hard to cry about it because she was just being herself.

"I’ve always stuck to what I know and like. I never followed what I was told I should do. I like weird. I like things that are not ordinary, but on the other hand, I like things that are wearable and practical. I always try to find a balance."

Then, out of the blue, she received a message from Urban Outfitters a few months ago. The company was launching a new outdoor and activewear brand, Without Walls, and based on one of Roam Hawai’i’s Instagram photos was interested in picking up the Single Fin line.

"It was so random," said Rull, who will spend the next few weeks finishing up the order for the hand-produced line, which will be available at withoutwalls.com beginning in July. Eveland and Jasniy’s Issa de’ Mar swimwear line is available there now.

It’s round two for a collection Rull never imagined she’d be returning to one year later.

"When I design clothes I have an idea, I put it out and then I’m done with it,"she said. "Because it’s so hands-on, I can’t make it again because I have so many other ideas."

Find Roam Hawai’i at roamhawaii.tumblr.com or on Facebook (search Roam Hawai’i).

Sealove Hawaii

Cortney Thomas attended business school with the idea of one day starting her own company. Instead of setting down retail roots, her plan has taken her on the road.

She opened the doors to her "van-tique" boutique on wheels, Sealove Hawaii, nearly two months ago to provide walk-in shopping at people’s convenience.

"The ‘van-tique’ idea came to me when I was at home in California and saw one," said the former wedding planner. "My first thought was, What about starting a bikini truck and going from beach to beach in it? And I thought, I’m just gonna go for it."

With about six months of planning and a state peddler’s license in hand, she found a G30 Chevy — a former military truck — and converted it into a movable store complete with racks for sunglasses, purses, jewelry, suntan lotion, clothing scarves and gift items ranging from journals to picture frames.

A dressing room allows shoppers to try on shorts, bikinis and dresses in the $30 to $40 range, as well as pricier apparel from Los Angeles’ Line & Dot and Australia’s Three of Something.

"There’s a little something for everyone," Thomas said. "A lot of people have never seen a van-tique before, so I get a lot of excited shoppers."

So far, Thomas has been driving around the island trying to find ideal locations. Interested shoppers can trace her whereabouts on Facebook (search Sealove Hawaii), but folks don’t have to be beach bunnies to gain van-tique access.

Thomas said she’s open to house calls and private shopping parties, offering gifts for hosts and discounts.

Like Roam Hawai’i, she aims to continue growing her business online but has no doubt there will be more mobile retail to come.

"I read an article that said there were 1,000 clothing trucks in the nation, and the number is expected to triple in a year," she said.

Find Sealove Hawaii at www.sealovehawaii.com or email sealovehawaii@yahoo.com.