Every day at Paradise Surf Shop, we're reminded of how far we've come in the past year. Locals and out-of-towners alike often remark, "wow, the place looks great!" or "a lot has changed since the last time I was here.” It’s true — a lot has changed. To think that last January Paradise didn’t even have our website and now we’re blogging, tweeting, facebooking and running a completely remodeled store is pretty astounding! So even though we're a little late for that midnight toast, we’d like to take a moment to reflect on 2009 and share our intentions for a healthy and stoked new year.
A New Look and Feel for Paradise! One of the greatest milestones of 2009 was our new space! Literally, we have new floors, a redwood-panelled wall and stage, new paint and a completely new rustic-vintage-living-room feel like that of your most tasteful relative (at least that's our hope). We just want to send a huge thank you to all the people involved in transforming the shop into a really inviting space. And if you haven't stopped by in a while, I think it's about time! You won't be disappointed.
Browse the shop, read a magazine or just hang out in this beautiful space!
Event Recap...To christen the new shop, Paradise was the proud host of several awesome events in 2009 from movie screenings to full-blown concerts. On July 31, Neal Casal (formerly a member of the Cardinals with Ryan Adams) headlined a show with opening performances by Ashley Lloyd and Cary Ott. This event was the first of its kind in the new Paradise space and it certainly revealed the shop's incredible music-venue potential. More recently, Paradise held a screening of Dear and Yonder and hosted a book signing with Nava Young -- all the kind of events we hope to bring into the new year!
Neil Casal performs on a spanking new, wood-paneled stage.
We heart Women on Waves. Paradise also co-sponsored the 12th Annual Women on Waves (W.O.W.) Surf Festival that came to Capitola last October! Being a female-focused surf shop, Women on Waves is an annual event dear to our hearts, which we've been involved in since its inception. While this year's festival may have had smaller waves, it had no less energy than usual and we all had a really great time surfing and cheering on our local ladies!
Nell Newman glides along a little peeler at WOW 2009. Photo Courtesy of Nikki Brooks.
Yoga Saturdays! This winter, Paradise started up a weekly yoga class with instructor Marion Clark, a surfer yogi who hails to Santa Cruz from Hermosa Beach. Starting Jan 23, classes will be held every Saturday morning from 8:30-10am before the shop opens. Start the new year off with the meditative, strengthening power of yoga held in your favorite local surf shop!
Here's to 2010... I know it's late to be announcing new year's resolutions but it's never too late to sit down, evaluate life and set goals for the future, right? I am incredibly proud of every thing we've accomplished at Paradise this past year, but there's no stopping now; we've got to keep pushing forward with our mission to serve the female and local surf communities and provide high-quality, environmentally and socially-conscious gear in a friendly and accessible way. This mission includes continuing to support our local shapers and retail vendors, planning even more community events and the resolution to do our part to get more women out in the water. Weekend surf clinics any one? How about a summer surf expedition? Let us know how we can serve you better.
Finally, none of the achievements of the past year would be possible without the support of our local community and loyal customers who inspire us forward with each friendly greeting and goofy smile that flashes when they find that perfect board. We can't thank you enough for being the life of this shop. With that, I'd like to wish you all a safe, healthy and happy new year from our living room to yours.
The summer '09 line of Ando goods have arrived! Swing by for a new pair of boardies and a rad tee! 
