Wave Of Success

Spend any time on the Surf Coast and you quickly understand why it’s the home of Australian surfing.

World-class beaches fringe the coastline, tempting beginners and carrying champion surfers to glory.

The area has also given birth to some of the world’s best-loved surfing brands, who found their first success in Torquay.

Rip Curl makes waves

Early in 1969, two Torquay locals decided to go into business. Friends Brian “Sing Ding” Singer and Doug “Claw” Warbrick wanted to make surfboards and keep the endless summer going for themselves and others. And so, Rip Curl was born.

The pair began working from Singer’s garage at 35 Great Ocean Road, and within a month or so they’d turned out their first surfboard. They built their business from there and soon moved operations to the Old Torquay Bakery.

When Rip Curl expanded to add wetsuits to their repertory, Alan Green, another Surf Coast local, joined the team. The founders’ dreams grew in tandem with the company, and they soon found themselves on a quest they called “The Search”, an ethos of seeking perfection that became the company’s guiding light as it moved beyond Australia’s shores.

The birth of the Rip Curl Pro

By the 1970s, Rip Curl was well on the way to establishing itself in the flourishing surf brand industry. At the same time, the local surfing competition was making waves, too.

Begun in 1961, the Bells Beach Easter Rally was a popular annual surfing event, though there was little money in it. Dedicated to all things surfing, Rip Curl decided to sponsor the rally, and the first Rip Curl Pro took place in 1973. Though the prize money was still small, Rip Curl’s sponsorship established the competition as Australia’s first professional surfing event.

Now a much-anticipated fixture on the pro surfing circuit, the Rip Curl Pro brings the world’s best surfers to the Surf Coast. The competition attracts thousands of visitors each year and injects millions of dollars into our local economy. And today’s winners take home thousands of dollars in prize money.

Quiksilver

After a brief stint with Rip Curl, Alan Green left to start his own venture, Quiksilver, with John Law. Initially, Rip Curl founders Singer and Warbrick partnered in the new venture, but soon bowed out to concentrate solely on Rip Curl.

Just like Rip Curl, Quiksilver began in a local garage, where Green and Law made their boardshorts and, soon after, wetsuits. The company built a swift and solid reputation, and in 1976 American surfer Jeff Hakman, winner of that year’s Rip Curl Pro, took the brand to the United States.

Quiksilver continued to expand across the world throughout the 1980s. Then in 1990, the company launched ROXY, a range of board shorts, swimwear, snow and active gear exclusively for women.

With an ever-expanding range and the acquisition of new companies, Quiksilver today is worth over $1 billion.

Other brands dive in

Other locals became inspired by the success of Rip Curl and Quiksilver.

The 1970s saw both Piping Hot and Strapper Surfboards begin their businesses in Torquay, while the family-owned and operated South Coast Surfboards has been going since 1995.

New kid on the block Babel Surfboards makes custom surfboards in their Torquay factory (and could well be the only place you’ll find a surfboard crafted by an astrophysicist). And with the industry expanding to include street and skate clothing, companies like Ghanda Clothing and Zeally Bay have set up here too. Torquay is even home to the Australian National Surfing Museum.

Looking for your piece of Surf Coast paradise? Call me today.