Rip Curl

Rip Curl began in March/April 1969 with very humble beginnings. Started by two friends in Torquay, Australia, Doug “Claw” Warbrick and Brian “Sing Ding” Singer, quit their jobs and decided to join forces and start shaping surfboards in Brian’s garage. After building a solid supply of support over the next few months, Rip Curl quickly outgrew Brian’s garage and moved into the ‘Old Torquay Bakery’, where they could then set up a legitimate shaping bay, glassing and sanding rooms, thereby tripling board production. By December 1969, Alan Green joined the ranks and began to make high-quality wetsuits alongside the board production. From there on out, Rip Curl grew and grew, gradually becoming one of the leading forces in wetsuit production, placing itself at the forefront of modern wetsuit technology, with features such as their ultimate stretch neoprene and zip-free entry constructions. Not only that, their clothing range combines high-quality construction with competitive pricing, similar to everything else they produce.

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The Rip Curl story, from shaping boards to a global surf brand

Although they no longer shape boards, Rip Curl originally began their company making surfboards. During the late 1960s, a growing movement away from the traditional longboards that were surfed around the globe, and the beginnings of the shortboard were becoming popular. One of the few shortboards being made at the time was the Bob McTavish-shaped “Fantastic Plastic Machine,” a highly sought-after yet hard-to-acquire shape. Doug “Claw” Warbrick was one of the lucky people to have one of these boards and was obviously aware that the demand for these was high; he decided to make his own version, alongside his friend, Brian “Sing Ding” Singer. When coming up with a name for their new board brand, Claw recounted the words written on his personal board, written by his friend Simon Buttonshaw, stating: “Rip Curl Hot Dog”, a string of words that Claw was a massive fan of. After much discussion, in April 1969, the name Rip Curl was settled on.

By December 1969, Alan Green briefly joined the ranks and began their journey into making high-quality, surf-focused wetsuits, using his experience of wetsuit manufacturing whilst working for “Australian Divers”. After five months of refining Rip Curl’s wetsuit manufacturing process, Alan parted ways from Rip Curl to start his own brand, Quiksilver. This then left ‘Claw’ and ‘Sing Ding’ as equal partners once again, and off the back of their success from both their boards and early wetsuit designs, they moved all wetsuit production into an adjoining building from The Old Bakery, their board shaping facility. With these early foundations made, Rip Curl became, and still is, one of the most loved and sought-after surf brands in the world.

When a brand like Rip Curl becomes as synonymous with a lifestyle as surfing, apparel quickly becomes another important string to the brand's bow. Of course, there are nicely branded T-shirts, hoodies, caps, and accessories, all of which are of a great quality and design. But Rip Curl’s commitment to surfing and the culture around it is most obviously seen (apparel-wise) in their outerwear, all designed to benefit surfers around the world. With genuinely useful features such as easy-to-carry packable designs, weather-resistance, comfy materials, and, of course, warm and relaxed fleece designs, perfect for before or after a rip at your local break.

Rip Curl

Rip Curl Classic Surf PU Wallet – Tan

Rip Curl Mirage Archive 20″ Boardshorts – Royal Yellow

Rip Curl Pacific Rinse Rico Valley Short – Moss Grey

Rip Curl Pacific Rinse RFID Leather Wallet – Black

Rip Curl Anti-Series Alpine Beanie Hat – Deep Cactus

Rip Curl Anti-Series Alpine Beanie Hat – Black

Rip Curl Classic Surf Reg Beanie Hat – Grey Heather

Rip Curl Classic Surf Reg Beanie Hat – Green

Rip Curl Rando Webbing Belt – Black

Rip Curl Premium Surf Slim RFID Leather Wallet – Black

Rip Curl Premium Surf Slim RFID Leather Wallet – Brown

Rip Curl Pacific Rinse Flex Fit Cap – Black