Community . . . Industry
Meet the Brands URT
Akela Surf
By Lindsay Schwarz | Photos by URT
Photos by Akela Surf
Bridging the Gap between Life and Ocean
with owners Annie Gagné & Servio Anez
The first time I tried surfing was 15 years ago in Del Mar, California. It was on an old board from the 80’s, a mini malibu. 10 years later I tried surfing again. I was in Tofino on a short vacation that turn into spending the summer there... I didn’t want to come back home! When Fall came, I decided to go on a surf trip to Asia, and that was it! Since then I’ve been to many places and met many people that gave me good tips that helped me to progress in my surfing. Servio, he’s from Margarita Island, has been surfing for more than 30 years. His older brother taught him, and he calls South Point, Barbados, home! For us, surfing is everything!
Akela, the name of our business, is a Hawaii name. It means happiness. We picked that name
because we started the company pretty much at the same time I got pregnant. We were just so happy to be parents and to share our passion, surfing, with our son, Kaiko. After working 15 years as a fashion designer and travelling to many places, it was the time to do something for me and my family. To create something that we believe in. Something that gives us the flexibility to go on a surf trip and to test our products, and to have the last word on our creation. A fresh new brand is in town, catching the eye of water lovers everywhere, bridging the gap between life and ocean. Surfer girls and mermaid hopefuls, this is the brand for you. A sea lion embodies the logo of their infamous trademark, exclaiming “URT” to all who hear. The name came from a portion of the founder’s last name, Ian Urtnowski, one of two in the URT brand partnership, the other being Doug Mann. Both young men grew up by the water and in the water in sunny Southern California as two ocean lifeguards “just following the sea lion’s throaty call,” as they proudly proclaim. “URT URT,” it sounds just like a sea lion’s bark, doesn’t it? As a brand for ocean lovers, there is a tide chart conveniently located on the inside of most clothing pieces. Organic and lightweight, their apparel is made right in Los Angeles and perfect to throw on for those summer days in the sand, though the brand boasts a year round line perfect for any age while comprising of mainly an 18-30-year-old market. Off the shoulder turquoise tee, ladies? Beach dress to go over that new bikini? A hat for your morning Stand up Paddle? Boasting all original designs and artwork, they’ve got you covered, literally. Originally launched in 2009, URT is now in over 26 stores in California, as well as 1 in Oregon. The brand is expanding... and fast. URT holds a variety of events for their local fans throughout Southern 88 | womenssurfstyle.com | wSSm
California, whether it is a Christmas Eve surf or a lobster diving competition. The guys are involved and making sure their users are, too. This year’s line was inspired by the concept of “fish out of water”, in other words, “the beach doesn’t stop at the boardwalk,” as founder Urtnowski explains. “This brand is for the adventurer, those looking for water and waves. That doesn’t have to stop at the beach, though. Don’t forget about our lakes in the mountains, our oasis in the deserts. Also for those that don’t always have the chance to jump in the water, we’ve got something for you.” “Those that wear and represent our brand personify this unmatched stoke for all things ocean. They go to the beach not just to tan, but to get wet”, Urtnowski mentions. But, a day in the sun purely for a little color is not discouraged by any means. These guys want to get you to the beach, whether you live by it or not. Wearing the brand will embody that spirit. And that’s the goal. “We want that adventure spirit personified through our clothing.” “This is a brand that is by the ocean user, for the ocean user,” Urtnowski happily states. If the URT brand hasn’t popped up into your local surf shop just yet, jump onboard and log on to www.urturt.com to order your first piece of summer, today. F
We’ve created a line of hardwood skateboard decks, surfboards, made by Servio, and I do all the swimwear line, t-shirts and hats designs. We do pretty much everything, the design, graphics, website, taking the pictures and testing the products. It’s fun working together! Sometimes we have too many ideas going on!! We get inspired from surf movies from the 60’S, the latest fashion shows, the ocean, surf punk garage, then we add spices from the Caribbean and we mix everything together!! Some of our favorite pieces to date would be our handcrafted fishpunk skateboard, our monster tee and Tokyoour one-piece swimsuit. All artistic, handmade products. Special things we do that make our brand unique would be our logo- it’s a fin and we stamp it on the garments and boards. It’s really become our identity. And we also use a lot of black and white images.