We are proud to announce that Shapers Club has been featured in an article in Les Echos. Founded by Thomas and Renaud Cardinal, Shapers Club, formerly UWL Surfboards, has come a long way since its inception in 1991. Today, we're delighted to share that we've tripled our capacity with a new workshop near Marennes, in the Charente-Maritime region of France. This workshop is not only a place of manufacture, but also a space dedicated to surf culture, offering glassed-in workshops for tours, coworking offices, a specialized gym, and much more. A big thank you to everyone who supported us throughout the trip.
Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/63zd4

The Shapers Club is proud to announce the arrival of Takuya "Tappy" Yoshikawa, a passionate and innovative Japanese surfboard shaper. He is considered one of the most talented and respected shapers of his generation, and he combines tradition and modernity to create unique and quality products.

From MAY 22 to JUNE 05 !

Tappy started surfing at a young age and shaved his first board at the age of 17. After a ten year hiatus, he returned to making boards at the age of 30 and continues to do so today. He was influenced by San Diego shaping legend Skip Frye and became friends with Frye disciple Chris Christenson. They introduced him to the traditional San Diego FISH shapes, which have had a significant influence on the way he shapes his surfboards.

In 2014, Tappy founded his own brand, TRANSISTOR, with a mission to seek out fun experiences, keeping it international and unique in design. He strives to create handmade products by exploring and pushing the boundaries of surfboard design to offer unique and quality products.

We are delighted to welcome Tappy Yoshikawa to the Shapers Club, and we are confident that his passion and innovation will inspire our community. Join us for an evening of meeting Tappy and discovering his collection of unique surfboards on May 27th. We look forward to seeing you there!

More info: www.tappysurfboards.eu

The new rising star of the Australian alternative shape.

After 2 successful sessions at the SHAPERS CLUB, Joshua comes back after his tour in Japan... An opportunity not to be missed !

"My name is Joshua Keogh, I come from a small coastal town in Australia. The city is called Merimbula and is located in southern New South Wales, halfway between Sydney and Melbourne. In winter it is a sleepy seaside town with little going on and in summer it becomes a major tourist destination. It's also only 2 hours to the mountains, compared to Europe, our mountains are tiny, but in winter we can still get good snow cover and in summer there is mountain biking, trail running and fly fishing.

I'm actually half German, my mother came to Australia in her early twenties and that's when she met my father in Sydney. I have dual citizenship, so there is a strong desire for me to return to Germany at some point and reconnect with that part of my history.

Since I started surfing, I have always been filled with a great sense of wonder about surfboards. When I was 18 I suffered a back injury while surfing, it's a long story but basically I was out of the water for 18 months. This injury came at a time when my entire personal identity was tied to surfing, so to have it suddenly removed was pretty devastating. I started shaping as a way to always feel close to surfing and to maintain its presence in the fabric of my life.

One of my dad's close friends is a very experienced surfboard shaper in Australia, so while there he took me under his wing and taught me all the secrets, from there I bought my tools and started making surfboards for myself and my friends.

Today, I am proud to have pro surfers on my boards like Justin Quintal, Harrison Roach or Harry Bryant... "

Continuing the Martin family legacy that my father established over 60 years brings me great comfort and joy. Loving what I do and doing what I love, I have come full circle. I will be eternally grateful to my father for teaching me the love of the trade, the training and the skills it requires.

From an early age, I spent a lot of time in and around my father's modeling room. My first job was as a "cleaner" in the old Hobie factory in Capistrano Beach. I finally went from sweeping up dust to cutting and foiling fins. Foiling fins was as simple as shaping surfboards on a small scale. In the late 80's I started shaping full time at Just Add Water Surfboards in Laguna Canyon. Shortly after I started working there, I had the opportunity to shape several hundred identical boards for display in JC Penny stores. I was to be paid half of what I would earn for shaping other boards at that time. I remember my dad telling me that this was a great opportunity for me to hone my production skills. I chose to accept the offer. The boards had to be shaped by hand. There were no computer shaping programs or CNC shaping machines at the time. I look back today and think what a privilege it was to have had this opportunity. The systems and methods developed back then are second nature, muscle memory today. I have a special love for the hand shaped surfboard and have chosen to continue in this traditional craft. For me, it is a joy to jump into my shaping room and create functional works of art every day. I can't wait to build one for you! If I may quote my father,"I aim to make people happy in the water". I am waiting for your answer.