6/6E D I T O R ' S S H O R T S

At their best, locally run surf companies

form the bedrock of a thriving surf scene.

T H E W I L D A T L A N T I C S U R F B O A R D C O M P A N Y

W O R D S : W I L D AT L A N T I C S U R F B O A R D C O M PA N Y

P H O T O S : G E O R G E K A R B U S

Recently we came across a new venture with a dedication to positively

impacting their local surf community woven into their approach since

day one. They’re called The Wild Atlantic Surfboard Company and

they’re made up of a collaboration of surfers, craftsmen and ambitious

business folk, based in Ireland. More than just an online shop, they’re

dead set on supporting and promoting the local scene, treading as

lightly on the planet as possible and providing premium hardware,

designed specifically with Atlantic surfers in mind. We caught up with

them to find out more.

Where do you come from and what are your backgrounds?

We all come from Northern Ireland apart from one of us who has lived

in various parts of the world but spent the best part of ten years surfing

in Ireland, oddly enough. Collectively we have a mix of backgrounds,

from property, sales, marketing, manufacturing and water sports, but

we all share a common love of surfing, the ocean and the outdoor

lifestyle in Ireland and beyond.

Tell us about your decision to start the Wild Atlantic Surfboard Company?

For as long as we can remember we have all had a passion and

interest in surfing and water sports, be it as competitors, participants

or spectators. Being successful in business has allowed us to pursue

this passion and the opportunity that we realised existed for a brand

like ours in Ireland. The decision to start the company was based

on far more than just developing an e-commerce platform selling

surfboards and associated products. At its core it’s about promoting

surfers, surfing and the outdoor lifestyle in Ireland, while researching

technology and sustainable methods of production.

EDITOR'S SHORTS

What have been some of the challenges you've faced while getting

the business off the ground?

It wasn’t so much challenges as worries that we had before

launching the business. These included; would people buy into what

we are trying to do? What would their perception be? And how

would they react? We needn’t have worried as the response has

been fantastic from collaborators, shapers and the vast majority of

the Irish surfing community. We also engaged with folk as far afield

as Australia, with a company called Shapers Surf, to bring in surfing

fins and accessories that work really well in the conditions we have

in Ireland and the Atlantic.

How have you been inspired by Ireland’s unique surf scene when

working on the ideas that underpin the company?

Ireland is has got some of the biggest, barrelling slabs in the world and

local chargers such as Gearoid McDaid, Conor Maguire, Al Mennie and

Ollie O’Flaherty are constantly pushing the boundaries in Irish waters

as well as starting to make a name for themselves at other major

surf spots. Al Mennie from Portrush was in the water the day Garrett

McNamara broke the world record in Nazare in 2011 and has a surfboard

which was made in Ireland in the museum at the famous lighthouse.

In addition, some of the surf photography and video footage that is

being captured around Ireland is incredible and is evidence of how

close-knit the Irish surf community is. This is further evidenced by the

amazing work that Peter Conroy and the Irish Tow Surf Rescue Club do.

This self-funded group of individuals put themselves on the line

to ensure the safety of everyone in the water. These people are the

inspiration for the company and as well as wanting to promote and

support what they are doing, we also want to help the next generation

of young Irish surfers such as Joshua Karbus, who is our first team

rider. Ireland has a wealth of surfing talent and a huge community

supporting and pushing tomorrow’s surfers. We are only scratching

the surface with the names mentioned here, as there are so many

inspiring folk we could talk about. R I G H T

Conor Maguire ducks beneath the lip

of a glowing emerald drainer.

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EDITOR'S SHORTS

What sets you guys apart from other surfboard shaping outfits based

around the Atlantic?

Our mission is to make a positive impact on surfing across Ireland and

the Atlantic coastline; we want to be more than just an online shop, which

there are already a lot of. We are involved with all of our products and their

design right through to the manufacturing process. We don’t have our

own shaping factory but rather have chosen to collaborate with existing

shapers who have their own facilities. We have also purchased a CNC

machine which should be operational in the first quarter of 2020. Through

our relationship with ‘Shapers’ who have the licence to distribute Bennett

foam, we will be looking to operate this CNC machine to offer high-quality

pre-cut blanks throughout Ireland at a significantly better price. Ask any

shaper and they will tell you; the costs and margins all go in materials.

Our own products are also key to developing our brand. We have spent

over 12 months developing a high quality wet and dry changing robe as

featured in the Wavelength Winter 2019/ 2020 buyers guide. We are also

at the research and development stage with a revolutionary leash design

and are working on other technology and innovation around the use of

sustainable materials in surfboard construction which we are really excited

about. It is full steam ahead on all fronts.

Could you tell me more about the sustainability of your range?

Being a brand focused on the ocean and sustainability, from materials and

methods of production right through to our packaging, is very much a core

focus. We don’t use any plastic in our packaging which is all recyclable,

right down to the packing tape. Our clothing is printed in a renewable

energy powered factory on sustainable organic cotton and our hand

planes are made from sustainable Irish Cypress wood with keyrings made

from the offcuts. We can happily say that our shapers are great with “waste

and reuse” principles and we are looking to our suppliers to choose more

eco-friendly products which ultimately will influence our buying choices.

Our branded metal straws have free postage and packaging to promote

the move away from single-use plastic and we are looking at initiatives

to offset our own carbon footprint generated by sea and air freight.

We are also investigating sustainable methods of surfboard manufacture

which could see boards being made from recycled plastic or waste foam

which otherwise would go to landfill.

Tell me what specific things you plan to do which you believe

will have a positive impact on surfing in Ireland and across the

Atlantic as a whole?

We will make a positive impact on surfing across Ireland and the Atlantic

by promoting surfers and surfing and by investing in research and

development around technology and sustainable methods of production.

Because we are committed, those programmes will happen, and we hope

to see that become commonplace. We are keen to support surfing from

a young age, and have already sponsored our first team rider, 10-year-old

Joshua Karbus from Lahinch who earlier this year won the Ireland U12

Championship. There is so little funding for Irish surfing competitively so

whatever we can do to help, we will. We will support Irish surfing and other

talent competitions in Ireland where we can and ultimately want to run our

own event, which is in planning for next year. Once our CNC machine has

been installed in early 2020, we can start to explore what opportunities

that will create. We also intend to launch a revolutionary leash design in

2020 and will produce a surfboard made from recycled plastic or waste

materials which will be designed and made in Ireland.

Tell us about the shapers you’re working with currently and how you

selected them?

Like most elements on the project this happened organically. Both of the

shapers working on the project presented their best interpretations for

surfboards to perform well in Ireland but also equally on Atlantic, UK and

European breaks. We struck a bit of gold really. Matt Adams has shaped

for over 30 years and backed champions that are on the world stage today

and Luke Underwood is one of the best surfboard shapers in Ireland. We

were already friends with Matt and the guys literally referred each other,

so having Luke on board shortly after was just great. We really wanted to

create the ultimate quiver so collectively the surfboard range has a board

that anyone could ride at any time on their surfing journey. The input and

design we get from both of our shapers is fantastic, it’s a great relationship.

Is this a team you hope to expand in the future?

Absolutely. The idea promoting shapers in Ireland is in keeping with our

brand and we welcome collaborations from anyone that shares our values

and outlook.

Tell us about the range of boards you’ve developed and the thinking

behind them?

If you take the two shapers inputs on the surfboards you would see

slight variations on a theme. Irish waves have so much power so you

will see a lot of pin tail influence but low to medium rockers to get in

early but control the speed and keep up with the power of the wave

not get ahead. A lot of surfboard design is all about getting ahead of

the wave and I think we were focussed on designing high performance

boards that everyone could use. Though both our shapers produce

highly competitive models they are still real-world shapers. There has

been a fish resurgence recently and it is still one of the most dynamic

shapes and therefore you will also see a lot of fish influence, from retro

to wings and modern quads. We also added some longboards and mini

longboards as you can’t beat a good session on a longboard!

What are your plans for the company in the future?

To be honest we don’t have any major plans for world domination!

At this stage we want to grow our brand organically and be recognised

as prominent supporters of Irish surfing and talent. We want to

innovate with new technology and materials where possible and

ultimately be selling across international markets. Beyond that we’ll

see where the waves take us and are actually quite excited about that!

T O P L E F T

Local legend Fergal Smith stalls for

a crystal clear barrel on a magical

day at Rileys.

B O T T O M L E F T

A dolphin and a diver share a

moment between the kelp and

the sun dappled surface.

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