Members of the surf industry descended once again on Huntington Beach to mix with consumers for the annual Surfscape.

The two-day event, which ended this weekend, drew more than 6,000 people to a beachside parking lot in Huntington Beach to peruse wetsuits, surfboards and other product including surf apparel, hardgoods, food and automotive companies. The public-facing event organized by the Surf Industry Members Association brought together a mix of emerging and heritage surf brands to offer the public a good snapshot of today’s core industry. That mix included brands such as AVVA, AIPA, Jetty, Vissla, Sisstr, Dakine, Hobie, Firewire, O’Neill, Rip Curl, FCS, Instinct and Stewart.

SIMA Executive Director Vipe Desai pointed to two trends he saw emerge during the weekend event that could be viewed as good indicators for the industry.

“A couple things that stood out this year was the multi-generational make up of attendees. From parents who are lifelong surfers going from one brand to another with their kids who are growing up surfing, and how surfing is connecting them as a family,” Desai noted. “The other thing that was apparent was the strong representation of young girls and women that were stoked to see products reflecting them.”

The interest is indicative of the industry’s opportunities in the market, Desai went on to say.

Surfscape Buzz

This year’s event iterated upon 2023’s inaugural Surfscape, with a broader base of brands from across industries and also overlapping with the general outdoor space.

While wetsuit and board demos are at the core of Surfscape, there were also live talks, vehicles targeting the outdoor lifestyle, a wetsuit recycling program, workshops and a Saturday film screening.

Also new this year was the change of the layout, with the beer garden moved out of the center of the event and closer to the beach.

“The footprint being closer to the beach, we’re on the beach and we are the surf industry,” pointed out PT Townend, who said the location makes perfect sense for Surfscape.

This year’s event drew a more robust crowd than last year’s due to more favorable weather, said Bobby Lockhart of Sanuk and Vissla.

“The sun’s out this time around,” he said.

A few steps away, Ashley Stewart Leines of Stewart Surfboards, a newcomer brand to Surfscape, said the San Clemente surfboard maker and surf shop was seeing traffic and interest with demos of its recently launched soft-top board line and chatting with consumers.

Leines’ husband Erik Leines said the two saw participating in the event as a way of “getting in on it early,” while Surfscape is still in its infancy.

Next Year and Beyond for Surfscape

Desai said Surfscape’s aim is to serve as a launchpad for emerging brand and product releases, while also recognizing surf’s convergence with what he said are adjacent sectors such as outdoor.

“Surf culture is very special, everyone who surfs knows that and those outside the industry are drawn to it as well,” Desai said. “So, as an industry, we should own it and commit ourselves to safeguarding and promoting our culture to keep our consumer base stoked. Surfscape showed us that consumers are stoked and we need to make sure we keep them stoked if we want to have a strong and resilient industry.”

Desai said the Surfscape team and SIMA board will meet in the coming weeks to discuss this year’s event and begin plans for 2025.

Scroll through photos from this weekend’s Surfscape here:

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