Head Shaper:

Guy Okazaki

Behind the Brand: Guy Okazaki launched his label in 1971 in Venice Beach, CA. “I started shaping in ’67,” Okazaki says today. “I’d just returned to Los Angeles from Hawaii and I asked Harold Iggy to make me a board. Well, he refused and encouraged me to start shaping my own designs, and I did.” Under Iggy’s tutelage, as well as the influential hands of Tak Kawahara and other shapers at Dewey Weber’s shop, Okazaki emerged as a craftsman with an understanding of every fundamental of the board-building process. Today, he operates with a spotlight on both performance and the strengths inherent in a close surfer-shaper relationship. “I hope that the industry becomes more locally-focused,” he says. “It’s important for everyone to have a personal connection to their boards and their shapers. Surfers should be able to order a custom board and see it made—I like the idea of a cottage industry for people who want to be a part of the creative process.” But this ardor for personalization doesn’t mean Okazaki isn’t also keeping both eyes squarely aimed on the future. He believes new technologies, thought paradigms, and products are a must. “I hope the industry will trend toward more sustainable materials,” he says. “I’d also like to see surfers turn away from foreign-made pop-outs, because it is better for the ocean. All my boards are 100 percent hand-shaped and 95 percent of them are made with Ice Nine Cane biofoam. Ultimately, I have a passion to surf and to design a better product, so that’s where I focus my attention.”

About Okazaki's Most Popular Models: “My Alien Quad and Round-Pintail Tri-Fins seem to be my most popular boards,” says Okazaki. “The Alien is excellent for the beachbreaks, as it is a quick-reacting shortboard, and my round-pintails are just fast.”

Shop Talk: “A good blank is probably the most important feature to have in your surfboard. It forms the core of the shape, the weight, the flex, and the life.”

Tell us about the changes you’ve seen in recent years in the shaping realm, and how it has affected your craft. “I think the story here is about the lack of change. A few years ago, the CNC machines were supposed to replace the human or become the new arm. That didn’t happen. The shapers with skill and creativity are still making innovations, board to board, faster than the programmers, and I think the surfer-shaper—the guys who are out there in the water—still rule, and that will never change.”

Which project are you and your customers having the most fun with at the moment? “We’re working on a stringer-less EPS/Epoxy Alien. They’re fast and loose and have paddling power as well.”

When a new customer comes to you for a custom shape, what kind of questions do you ask to ensure you’ll make them what they’re looking for? “I always ask what type of wave the customer surfs. Listening is often more important than the questions asked.”

What trend would you like to see go away? “Extra baggage charges at the airlines!”