Hervé LACASTAIGNERATTE, Surf Lounge & Green Bush Founder
For this ninth episode of the Inside Eurosima Podcast, we welcome Hervé Lacastaigneratte, Founder of Surf Lounge.
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Michel HOFF, AUPA HOFF DISTRIBUTION Founder and a founding member of EUROSIMA
For this episode we are thrilled to welcome a pillar of the European boardsports industry and a founding member of Eurosima : Michel Hoff.
As the exclusive distributor for Morey Boogie back in the day and a key retailer for boardsports in the 90’s and 2000’s, it is partly thanks to Michel Hoff that Europe saw the introduction and eventually the huge success of bodyboarding as a sport. But that is only one of many accomplishments this trend-setter has gifted the industry. Some examples of what a key player he’s been for the industry include importing and selling brands like SexWax, Reef or technologies such as SurfTech, as well as a number of other successful business endeavors.
GREG POISSONNIER, Slappy Agency Manager & cOLLAPSe skateboards co-founder
Every industry has its key players and for French boardculture, Greg Poissonnier is one of them.
Originally from the North of France and having moved to Pau in the Pyrénées at the age of 12, Greg saw the rise of snowboarding in the early 90’s and how it spread to the masses, which is also when he honed his own skills in the sport. Having joined the Quiksilver pro team a few years later, he experienced firsthand the first pro contrats as well as the first editions of several now legendary events such as the Quik Cup. These travels and interactions led him to establish a wide network in the industry.
PIERRE BERNARD GASCOGNE, Founder of Surf System & Surf Session
Pierre-Bernard Gascogne. PBG (“Pébège”) for friends.The name is as legendary in the boardsports industry as it is familiar to Surf Session magazine readers.
A long-time surfer (the first Frenchman to have surfed Mundaka) PBG has always strived to combine his passion with his studies and his career.
MARITXU DARRIGRAND, Co-Founder of Roxy
You can’t talk about female icons of the surfing industry without mentioning Maritxu Darrigand
Back in the 70’s, a visionary and a pioneer, she helped lay the foundations of the industry before it even was an industry. As a world traveler living between the mountain and the ocean, she was behind the first screenings of surf movies in theaters.
JUAN GONZALEZ – VEGA, MOSKOVA
Beyond an impressive career, Juan Gonzalez-Vega’s life is above all about destiny. The destiny of a Spaniard, who arrived in France at a young age, who got into surfing as a teenager, whose ambition and talent first led him to become a trader on Wall Street for the biggest agencies in New York in the late 90’s.
JOOST GROOTSWAGERS – LIBERATED BRANDS
Joost Grootswagers got into board-riding culture when he was very young. Starting out with skateboarding, he then moved on to snowboarding. As a student in university, he admits that he spent more time on the slopes than in class. Since then and throughout his entire career, he has skilfully combined living out his passion with taking on new challenges.
NICHOLAS LARTIZIEN – SURF HARDWARE
On a trip to Australia to learn how to make wetsuits, Nicholas Lartizien discovered the king of sports: surfing. From then on, it would become a lifelong passion. A passion that would take him to Hossegor, where he helped kick off two of the leading and legendary boardsport brands and eventually lead him to take over as head of the European branch for the global leader in surfing accessories. A life led surfing both waves and opportunities.
MARTIAL CAMBLONG – GENETRIX
His passion for kitesurfing was born when he saw a surfer being pulled by a kite in Hawaii. That moment was true revelation for Martial Camblong, who is dedicated to developing the sport and who works towards making it accessible to as many people as possible. In 2005, his dream took flight when he created the kitesurf brand GENETRIX with a friend. It was a daring bet, but one that paid off since their innovations were taken up by the biggest players in the industry.
STEPHEN BELL – EUROGLASS
When Stephen Bell, aka “Belly” arrived in Hossegor at 20 years old, he had no way of knowing what an incredible adventure the surfing industry had in store for him. Originally from Torquay in south-western Australia, he came to France because Harry Hodge asked him to come shape surfboards for Quiksilver. It was the beginning of an amazing experience alongside Kelly Slater that would take him to the most incredible surf spots around the world, a life which he is still pursuing today, coaching Leonardo Fioravanti.
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