While the art of surfing finds its origins in ancestral traditions of Polynesia, the sport was popularised in California around the turn of the twentieth century, and again in the 1960s and 1980s. It need not be said that surfing remains popular today. The waves of Santa Monica speak a timeless, rhythmic, calming language, attracting surfers of all skill levels. Local shops display old wooden boards along their walls while selling state-of-the-art fibreglass planks. Our Montana Avenue store, offering skin care and fragrance rather than surf equipment, reinterprets these casual assemblies of wood and fibreglass into a more formalised architecture.
The specific craftsmanship required to produce surfboards was the starting point for the design—raw fibreglass was transformed into a long, functional worktable that appears as if it could serve as a floatation device. At the quartet of basins, visitors can explore our formulations on their skin with gently running water, perhaps rinsing salty sand from their hands. Leaning against the walls, towering boards of mahogany morph into shelves supporting the array of our nonconformist products for the skin, hair, body and home. The timber pieces, incidentally, were made in collaboration with an artisan and surfer based in Venice Beach.
The shell of the space was left mostly untouched, with services exposed on the ceiling, and the concrete floor minimally polished. This no-frills approach emulates the laid-back attitude of most surf shops. For those looking for a more intimate experience—willing to enter the metaphorical barrel of the wave—a secluded room awaits discovery in the depths of the store. Here, sensorial thrill-seekers can test skin care offerings directly on their face, as if in the privacy of their own bathroom. An unassuming Fragrance Armoire offers unparalleled olfactory delights—an invitation to ride the waves of each Eau de Parfum until they reach the shore.