Natural Necessity Surf Shop

Have you ever wondered how Australia’s largest independent surf shop came to be in the small South Coast town of Gerringong?

The story started back in 1970 when owner Kent Ladkin was 19 years old and opted our of studying economics at Newcastle University to live in a tree house and pursue an alternative lifestyle of yoga, reading and surfing. Back then, surfers were still using big blocks of brittle paraffin to wax their boards, but Kent discovered that by adding beeswax and a few other ingredients, the surf wax didn’t flake off and become slippery. At this stage, Kent’s brother Brad was living on a farm with his family near Gerringong, so Kent decided to move to Gerringong to start his surf wax business with his brother. They set up the production of the wax in the farm’s old dairy barn and used recycled boxes and newspapers to package the wax.

The business grew exponentially over the next 10 years. Kent travelled the coastline promoting and selling his product, and began exporting to New Zealand and the United States. By 1982, Kent and his brother had sold 2.5 million bars of wax, dominating about 90% of the surf wax market. They started producing board covers to expand their product line, and then formed a partnership to produce surfboard leashes, which Kent distributed in NSW and Queensland. The success of the business resulted in Kent deciding to open the flagship ‘Honey Surf Shop’ in Gerringong.

However, in 1976 the old barn burnt down along with 8 tonnes of wax, and the fire could be seen from over 50 km away. The same day as the fire, Council knocked back Kent’s application to rezone the building he wanted to rent for the retail shop. Shortly after, Kent was offered a property to purchase (an abandoned grocery store) on the main street of Gerringong opposite the Town Hall for $22,000, which he did, and the ‘Honey Surf Shop’ opened its doors in 1976.

Kent continued with his road trips up and down the coast selling his products in the ‘Honey Surf Bus’. On one of these trips he met a Brazilian named Pablo who had just started importing clothes from Bali. Kent decided to buy some of these clothes to add to his wholesale surf products. His first stop was Byron Bay, and he completely sold out of the clothes before leaving. As Kent’s reputation grew, he was approached by other clothing labels to represent them, and he was the first to distribute Mambo and DaKine in Australia. He also sold the first pair of Maseur Sandals - an innovative new Australian footwear brand that went on to sell millions.

Around this time Kent went to the United States to launch Maseur Sandals and surf the breaks in California. He spent 10 years in the States, during which time the Honey Surf label was sold to Ocean & Earth and the Gerringong retail premises rented out to another business. In 1989, he returned to Gerringong and took over the shop again, relaunching it as ‘Natural Necessity Surf Shop’.

In the early days of the new shop, Kent would push aside the clothing racks to make room for yoga classes. This was where he met Vivienne Ryder. Six months later they were married, and three sons – Forrest, Ryder and Taj – soon followed. In 1989, the store expanded to incorporate the Perfect Break Vegetarian Café, and in 2008 they launched online sales.
Over 40 years on since the ‘Honey Surf Shop’ first opened, today the business employs over 60 people and is an iconic destination in Gerringong.

All photos courtesy of Kent Ladkin's 'Celebrating 40 years Natural Necessity Surf Shop'.

The Honey Surf Shop before it re-opened as The Natural Necessity Surf Shop.

The new Natural Necessity Surf Shop when it opened its doors in 1989.

Kent Ladkin, the man behind the business c.2010.

Natural Necessity Surf Shop as it is today c.2018.