Vendor Stories
We want to connect our vibrant community of ocean-lovers to some of the amazing entrepreneurs we have met along the way. These entrepreneurs are taking risks, supporting one another, and pushing boundaries. Their products are made for all women, all sizes, and are produced in a way to protect what we love: mama sea.
So stoked to share their stories with you … want to shop their products? Shop Here.
Maxine Chapman & Nikki Remmel
“Running a company is very challenging and sometimes pretty isolating too. The ocean always connects us back to what we’re doing it for. Even when the challenges seem huge, if we’ve opened a couple people’s eyes to how their daily choices can protect our oceans, then it’s all pretty much a win from there! It’s really helpful to have your why.”
Corinna Dickenbrok
“Our big vision is that sustainable, ocean-friendly and fair-trade, fashion takes over the fast-fashion market share. Local and small brands arise and thrive while they are supporting those values. For our oceans specifically, I hope that we save the oceans to ensure safety for all of the species that live within it.”
Laura Day
“When I started surfing I immediately noticed the disconnect between the images that were advertised to us by surf companies and the women that I met in the water. The women I met were accomplished women; they were doctors lawyers, teachers, entrepreneurs, mothers…you name it! They had so much more depth to them than the ‘life’s a beach’ images that surf ads conveyed. These women and this community inspired me! I knew that I wanted to create a new kind of surf brand. One that would highlight the uniqueness and beauty of every woman, not just an industry standard. So I combined my passions of design, sewing, surfing & entrepreneurship and created @iaerasurf.”
Kristina Young
“Surfing changed my life and my path. I never started painting until I started surfing. The ocean inspired me in ways I never thought possible. It lead me down my path as an artist and as an entrepreneur. I am forever grateful for all the ocean has given me. The ocean is where everything began.”
Stacy Johnson
“After getting my BFA degree in Fashion Design from Parson’s School of Design in NYC, my plan was to work on Seventh Avenue for a few years, than start my own line. After working for Calvin Klein, J. Crew, and Cynthia Rowley and gaining valuable experience, I launched my own brand, Stacia, in 1998 from my Brooklyn apartment. Rather than going the traditional route of wholesaling a collection to department stores, I opted for a more homespun approach and opened a small boutique in an up and coming neighborhood in Brooklyn.”
Cathy Tran + David Phan
“We’re both big nature and ocean people. We love to surf, scuba dive, swim, and be outside. For us, it only makes sense to do and support a consumption that is sustainable and saves the environment. We started Huppy because we wanted to make it easy for people to switch over from everyday plastic. Plastic, especially toothpaste tubes that cannot be recycled, lasts forever, end up in our ocean and our food chain as micro-plastics! We started with oral-care because it is one of the simple switches you can make that has such impactful outcomes. We brush our teeth twice a day, everyday (some more, some less!). Imagine the impact of that!”
Courtney Michael
“I’ve always struggled with sensitive skin and had a hard time finding skincare products that worked with my mild eczema, rosacea, acne, and acne scars. When I was 19, I was diagnosed with melanoma and knew I had to step up my sun protection but I didn’t love the options available for me. I wanted a product that worked for my skin but that also had the ethical and environmental qualities I was looking for. When I couldn’t find anything that fit all my needs, I decided to start my own skincare company!”
Ashley Norris & Jess Lowcher
“Ashley’s oldest daughter had started to show an interest in surfing but was nervous about getting hurt. Since Ashley is a professor in Early Childhood Education, she naturally started to search for books with main characters and storylines that her daughter would find relatable. Unfortunately, the were not many options available that addressed real life concerns for kids starting action sport or the had girls as the main character in action sports. That needed to change. “
Janēt Campbell
“Given that I had no prior education, experience, or even a desire to start a business it has been very challenging for me to figure things out (i.e. logistics and requirements for starting a business). I definitely did things backwards when I started and I’m still learning as I go. I’m also challenged with being a one-woman-show. I do everything myself from beginning to end, all while working full-time and carrying for my elderly mother.”
Jessica Boynton
“I love fashion and wanted to start my own business for as long as I can remember, but it wasn’t until I saw a need in one of my other passions, surfing, that Hakuna Wear started. The ocean and surfing inspire everything about Hakuna Wear, especially the sense of freedom and belonging the ocean provides, our swimwear is designed to help you experience that fully.”
Vicky Durand
“When reflecting on my life, I realized my greatest influence was my dynamic mother, a women who navigated her life with joyful passion and believed anything exciting was worth trying at least once.”
Danielle Lapointe
“Our mission is to empower others to practice conscious consumerism and ultimately give back to our main girl Mama Earth, the provider of all resources and the root of our happiness, by using products that have been designed with the health of our mind, our bodies, and the environment in mind.”
Kristen Deuel
“Growing up in the age of media and perfect beauty images, the message received is that to look a certain way, to be beautiful, we need a lot of products. Toner, cleanser, masks, scrubs, moisturizer, lightener, tanner, blah…it’s so far from the truth. Beauty is conjured from within; our skin and hair are visual reflections of our health, and health is the result of a finely tuned balance of all 7 dimensions of wellness (social, emotional, spiritual, environmental, occupational, intellectual, and physical wellbeing). Beauty needs happy, it needs us to wear sunscreen and hats and drink lots of water and eat our veggies, stretch, laugh with our friends and play. Products should support our health and wellness, not be sold to us as the solution for all our skin and hair woes.”
Jenny Woudenberg
“As a new mother, I searched the internet for books about moms and their children surfing and exploring nature together. I found a wide variety of books, baby clothes, and blankets about surfing and going on adventures with dads. However, the internet is deprived of representing stories about exploring mother nature and surfing with mothers. This absence became the north star for my latest children’s book, Waves of Love: Surfing with Mommy. The book, written in the voice of my baby boy, teaches kids about pregnancy, surfing, and how to be an advocate of mother ocean!”