Bird Rock Surf Shop breaks through

Bird Rock Surf Shop in La Jolla, California was recently nominated for a SIMA Image Award in the Breakthrough Retailer of the Year category.

We caught up with co-owner Ben Murphy to find out how the store, which opened in 2007, got started, why the owners carry so many hardgoods compared to many surf shops, and how they have grown their business and customer base during one of the hardest times in history to be a surf retailer.

Why and how did you start a surf shop in Bird Rock?

Bird Rock Surf Shop’s current location

We opened our first shop in 2007. My brother, Matt and I grew up in San Diego then we both studied business at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. While on the Central Coast, Matt started shaping surfboards and I worked in surf retail – mostly at Wavelengths in Morro Bay.

After graduating, Matt moved back to San Diego, found a warehouse space in Sorrento Valley to shape boards, and lived in Bird Rock. A few years later, I was getting ready to graduate and trying to figure out what to do next. That’s when Matt mentioned there wasn’t a surf shop in the area. We really had no idea what we were getting into, but we pieced together our life savings of $20K, signed a lease and went for it.

You started across the street from where you are today?

Yes, we started with an extremely tight budget and an 800-square-foot boutique shop. It was definitely a challenge. The first six months were just the two of us working all day everyday without any income. We had to make a lot of sacrifices and chose to reinvest any and all profits back into the business in order to grow inventory levels.

How has the shop evolved over the years and locations?

It’s been a crazy four years. We opened with the small, 800-square-foot location, then after a year, we made a huge leap and moved into a 4,100-square-foot corner location.

That location, along with hiring two good friends (Pat Tugend and Scott Van Vugt) to help with purchasing and day-to-day shop responsibilities, really helped us grow and solidify our presence in the neighborhood.

Unfortunately, after two years our landlord became extremely difficult to deal with and we had no choice but to move again.

We were extremely blessed to find and secure a 5,000-plus square foot location just one block down the street. We’ve been in the new location almost a year now and couldn’t be happier.

What type of gear/brands do you carry?

We try to focus on our core market — surfboards and wetsuits are still our best sellers. We currently stock over 350 new and used surfboards. We try to carry a unique product selection focusing on our core local customer base. We carry brands like Rusty, Rip Curl, Reef, Hurley, Billabong, Ezekiel, Olukai, Toes on the Nose, Honolua, Hippy Tree, and more.

You seem to have more space than most surf shops these days dedicated to boards. And you even have a shaping bay in the back, and let customers come in and shape their own boards. Is that a big part of your business?

The shaping bay

Yeah, we pride ourselves in still being a board shop. The money and margins are obviously in the clothing, but customers can get clothing anywhere, so we try to differentiate ourselves by staying core and having as many surfboards as possible.

One of our main goals is to educate our customers. It doesn’t matter what their experience level is, we really focus on making sure everybody finds a board to suit their ability. And if they decide to shape their own board, we’re here for advice and assistance.

See Page 2 for more about Bird Rock, including financing challenges during the recession

What’s the vibe of the Bird Rock? Where is it?

We are in south La Jolla just north of Pacific Beach, right on the coast. Our little community is really tight knit. Since day one, the support from people in town has been amazing. Our customers have become our friends and we truly appreciate each and every sale.

What’s been the biggest obstacle about starting in the recession?

Our biggest obstacle has been trying to find capital for growth. It’s extremely difficult to get the lines of credit or loans necessary to increase inventory levels and continue growing so we have literally reinvested all profits and pay checks back into the business. Our inventory levels still aren’t where we’d like them to be, but it’s a work in progress and we’re just fortunate to be in the position we’re in.

What kinds of promotions and events do you have?

We haven’t had the budget to do any kind of marketing or advertising yet so we focus on supporting our local customers who support us. We like to do quarterly shop parties, usually a storewide sale along with live music, product giveaways and a free BBQ in the parking lot.

Tell me about MTV’s Real World. I saw they were filming some shows at your shop this season.

Yeah…the Real World was interesting. We heard they were filming in the area, but didn’t expect much out of it. When the cast and crew finally came in, they were extremely friendly and actually did quite a bit of shopping. We got to know some of them pretty well and ended up having one of the cast members sing live at one of our shop parties. Overall it was a great experience.

Did the Real World Drive sales for the shop?

It has helped a bit with website sales but it’s hard to tell if the show has increased in-store sales. I don’t think it mattered to locals but we’ll have to wait until the tourist season picks up to really tell if it made a difference.

How have brands responded to you guys being a new shop in La Jolla? San Diego is a big surf market. A lot of companies are all based here or in Orange County an hour away. What’s been the response from manufacturers?

San Diego is pretty saturated with surf shops so when we opened, not many people or companies thought we’d survive. Four years later, I think people realize we’re not going anywhere and they have become really supportive. I think a lot of people respect the fact that we’re a brother-owned business with a young, fresh perspective and a hard work ethic.

And you are here to stay in this spot?

Yeah, this is it for us. We got extremely lucky and were able to purchase our building so we’re here to stay! It’s a pretty great space smack dab in the heart of Bird Rock, with a ton of private parking and even an ocean view. The building itself is pretty old, but has a lot of character and plenty of expandability options for the future.

As a young business, how were you able to buy the building?

After having difficulty securing a long term lease, we contacted the owner of our new location and attempted to negotiate a lease. The owner informed us that the property was just about to go into foreclosure and suggested we throw in a short sale offer.

The bank accepted our offer, however, we couldn’t get approved for conventional financing. Luckily, we were able to find a hard money loan which is secured with the property. Our mortgage and property taxes combine to be the exact same amount that we were paying in rent at our old location.

What was it like being nominated for a SIMA award?

It was a huge honor. We’re kind of stuck in our little bubble here, so to have the industry give us this nomination was really unexpected and pretty overwhelming. To be nominated amongst such incredible shops is truly an honor.