Rock-It Surf initially entered the European market via Amazon Europe in 2018. We partnered with a logistics provider in the UK where our goods were received and distributed to Amazon warehouses throughout Europe. It was interesting tracking sales throughout Europe, with the UK being the strongest market, and then Germany, Italy and Spain following. Interestingly, the French didn't seem too keen on buying surfboards on Amazon, despite having a large surfing population!
When Brexit took place, we chose to back away from the market since the logistics provider we had worked with didn't operate on the European continent, and we'd have to undergo multiple VAT filings and work with multiple warehouses, all of which eroded the business case at the time.
This summer we took an extended trip exploring the surf market throughout Europe, which ultimately culminated in exhibiting at the UK Surf & Skate Expo in Newquay, Cornwall in September.
The route was complicated! We visited the following locations:
- Prague, Czech Republic (river surfing)
- Hossegor/Anglet, France
- Doniños, Spain
- Praia da Areia Branca, Portugal
- El Palmar de Vejer, Spain
- Newquay/Cornwall, UK
The logistics were pretty complicated as well. We shipped board samples to both Prague and Nantes (France) via Delta Air Cargo, figuring we could pick them up along our route. Not so easy! In both cases we had to hire customs brokers, get customs declarations, go through a formal customs entry process at non-public parts of the airport, pay exorbitant fees exceeding the value of the goods themselves, and in general deal with pretty major bureaucratic hassle just to get them through.
In Prague, once we retrieved our sample of Da Wizard which we had shipped via Delta Air Cargo, we headed to Vlny Štvanice, the river surfing wave, to give it a go with an instructor there. Both Nick Jr & Nick Sr gave it a shot (Jr taking to this new-to-us sport more than a bit better). It was quite a fun experience, and a view into this brave new world of urban river surfing that is spreading all over the globe. The physics are different from surfing in the ocean; there is so much speed on the river wave, which lends to weight-backwards vs. weight forwards orientation and shorter boards. The 4'10" Da Wizard suits these waves well as it was developed largely at Waikai, the Citywave pool in Hawaii. We gifted Da Wizard to the instructor after our session & enjoyed the lovely city of Prague.
Next we took a flight to France and spent some time in Northern France soaking in history, food, and beautiful places. We picked up three surfboards at Nantes airport where we played our second round of bureaucratic disco and strapped a 9' Rock-It Moby and two shortboards to the roof of our Skoda station wagon and drove to the south.
La Graviere in Hossegor provided us with the first Atlantic European surf stop, and some choppy chest-head high waves in blue waters. We spent the next three days in Anglet staying with an old friend and surfing there. The summer conditions were small and glassy; the air temps hot...and the 9' Moby was the standout board to have for sure.
We crossed into Spain, swapped our station wagon for a minivan rental, spent a few days in the mountains, and then headed out towards the far northwest of Galicia and a gorgeous beach called Doniños. A few days here, again with small glassy waves and crystal clear cool waters. The 9' Moby was again the board that made the most of the conditions.
We drove south into Portugal, a quick overnight in Porto, and then to Nazare, where we checked out the surf museum on the cliff. Very cool to see a WRV board there shaped by Jesse Fernandez for Will Skudin; a contribution from our hometown of Virginia Beach to the location where the largest waves in the world are ridden!
We headed south towards the Supertubos area, but Supertubos was flat...the swell was more northerly and the town of Peniche was blocking the swell there. Further south by only 15 miles or so is Praia da Areia Branca, which was getting swell. We went for a good surf there in chest-high waves. Surf Schools everywhere!
We then continued onwards to the Algarve and Albufeira, where the waves were completely flat, but the ocean beautiful, and a local connection we have there who can be our continental European distributor/warehousing location.
Our final Atlantic coastal stop was El Palmar de Vejer, which is a small beach town south of Cadiz in Spain. We lucked out here and caught Hurricane Erin swell coming in...6-8 foot and clean, it was magnificent. We sold the boards we brought so we wouldn't have troubles with luggage trying to get everything home, then headed inland for a few days in Spain before returning home.
In the end, observing the market throughout the Atlantic European coast, it seems for softboards in particular that there are some major differences vs. the US market. For one, surf schools are hugely popular. Of course this is true in the US also, but in Europe in a small beach town there will be 20+ surf schools, which is a concentration much higher than what we have in the US. It seems a lot of the clientele of these schools are adults themselves, whereas in the US it's mostly kids. Therefore the large surf school models like our 7-9' surfschool range seem to be most optimal for the European surf school market, given the adults benefit from the additional width and volume providing stability.
Another observation was that the predominant softboard brand owned by individuals was Olaian, the brand sold at Decathlon sporting goods. This is similar to the Wavestorm brand in the US market and it's relationship with Costco (meaning big box store surfboard brands). Although the occasional Softech board was seen, we did not see many Catch Surf products.
We returned to the states and attended the US Surf Expo in Orlando before crossing the pond again back to the UK for Part 2 of our Euro Tour 2025