Surfing Way Beyond the USA
With big brands and sponsorship encroaching on the surf, this classic brand strips it back to the basics
Article by Nicholas Payne-Baader
Surf Gear has had a fairly hard time for the last few years; too associated with trying to be ‘down with the kids’, dry docked by its cooler, younger skate brand cousins and just having been co-opted by marketing men, poor film makers and everything in between, one could say that surfing as a culture jumped its own shark.
However, there are a good many reasons that people flocked to the altar of surf and were dying to wear their vestments; the sun dappled surfers of yesteryear were undeniably cool. They spent their time sitting on beautiful beaches, listening to genre defying music and doing the most masculine and difficult of things in trying to tame nature, being propelled at outrageous speeds through waves as tall as a house. That coupled with the true cultural influence of surfing, bands like the Beach Boys, whose compositions mirrored a culture that dismissed uptight values but that people far and wide wanted to engage with. All this is a far cry from brands like Quicksilver and Rip Curl appearing in every shopping mall flogging an invented, family friendly version of surf.
In the middle of it all, and there from the very beginning was Lightning Bolt. The Brand co-founded by Gerry Lopez, the most famous and influential surfer of his era, a man who was famously laid back, the most casual surfing stance of any one around and who was also the Hawaiian champion at the tender age of 14.
Lightning Bolt became famous because of the light, quick surfboards they built and because everyone in and around the scene wanted to be on one of their boards or in one of their t shirts. The stylised bolt came to be synonymous with speed, energy and style.
Years later, the brand has been relaunched and reborn by Portuguese entrepreneur Manuel Goncalves, seeking to reintroduce many of the original ideas and culture that encapsulated an era.
Still producing many of the same garments it did in its heyday, the brand continues to make use of those classic 1960s graphics but it has also expanded into very well made and thought out outerwear. It may seem an awkward combination for a surf brand to do winter clothing but the quality of the garments, all produced in Portugal, shows a genuine care and quality and the styling shows that it is more than an afterthought or unnecessary brand extension.
Take its classic plaid shirt, the flannel is much softer and sturdier feeling than anything you would find on the high street, the collar with just the right amount of structure to it that it sits just right when open but not overly stiff to ruin its casual ascetic. The bulk of the collection is smart-ish casual with a leaning towards the practicality of sportswear. The t shirts are in thick, soft cotton and the graphics understated.
It is a slightly more grown up but not entirely different ascetic from the higher end skate brands and with a bit more ruggedness than its competitors. Unsurprisingly there is also a large line in swim wear, fortunately it is not the three quarter length affair that you might expect, they’re well cut, fairly narrow and come in a variety of mostly pleasing colours. They also, unlike some other large men’s swimwear brands that have emerged recently, do not require a small mortgage to pay for them.
We caught up with Maria Joao Nogueira to ask about the influences and challenges of reviving a brand that has meant so much to generations of surfers:
What was your biggest challenge in re-establishing a brand that had been dormant for so many years?
It’s not a challenge. It’s a privilege and we are humbled. Though performing in a market heavy with established players and watching high end brands seizing surfing, we’re thrilled to see how consumers, surfers and retailers cherish the brand. Lightning Bolt represents an alternative to those who are longing for the original soul surfing values. To meet the inspiration and creators of them is easy compared to a bigger brand. Times are changing and kids and adults want to touch the hand of the creator. If you have a good point of view and want to share it, do so. Then, these people are connected to you and you to them and you can grow together.
In the years in between Lightning Bolt originally being established and the company being revived there were huge changes in the surf scene, do you think that the commercial influence was a good or a bad thing for surfing as a culture and surfing as a sport?
That’s a tough question to answer. Pass. Kidding……!! It’s true that surfing has become a kingdom of excessive sponsoring… We think the commercialism is a great thing for the sport, but for the culture, not so much.
With a brand that was founded in Hawaii, where do you look for inspiration or references for your winter apparel and do you find it difficult to marry the two?
Surfing is an individual sport. It’s about doing your best with what’s in front of you. And then doing better the next time and the next time all the while having fun! Within the brand we’re doing the same thing. Apparel isn’t easy. Business isn’t easy. You need to have revenue coming in year round. That means making clothes for the winter, and when you’re passionate and dedicated to something it’s not hard to find inspiration everywhere. We love the mountains. We love being outdoors. We want to make clothes that you can wear across all elements, and that’s what we’re doing.
Five things that sum up a surf culture to you (could be a book, record, bit of shell)?
Foam, fins, water, friends, & laughter.
Any products you would really like to start producing that you haven’t already?
We need to bring the necklace back…. 
Enquiries: https://www.lightningbolt-usa.com/en