Tyler Jorgenson turned his lifelong love of surfing into a side hustle while living in Brooklyn in 2010. He formed Wax Surf Co. after seeing a need for someone to design and shape boards specifically for East Coast conditions (aka: gnarly waves) and with a more urban style sensibility (think: black and white, not neon-bright).
The former U.S. Marine and architect now works as a creative director for a real estate developer and lives in Los Angeles, but continues to make two to three custom boards a week for clients who hear about him through word of mouth or see his boards in stores like Ride Surf + Sport in Japan and Lone Wolfs Objets d’Surf in Venice Beach. His workshop is a 20-foot-long shipping container that sits in his backyard.
"Wax Surf is a conduit for me to escape reality. And that's always what it's been. I think if it was a full-time job I wouldn't appreciate and enjoy it as much as I do. That said, it's not any less a real business."
