Twin sisters Izzy and Coco Tihanyi opened Surf Diva, the world’s first surf school for women and girls in 1996, and launched a successful clothing line, surfboard brand, and surf boutique in La Jolla, California (surfdiva.com). They were the official surfing school for the “Blue Crush” movie and have run surf camps for the likes of OP, Vans, Spy, O’Neill, Billabong, and Roxy. Surf Diva has doubled sales annually for the past several years. Staff size has grown from three in 1996, to fifty-five instructors in 2004. “We have outgrown all of the surf schools catering to men,” said Izzy Tihanyi, in an MTV interview this September.
Surf entrepreneurs Izzy and Coco Tihanyi have written a new book: Surf Diva: A Girl’s Guide To Getting Good Waves (A Harvest Original, Harcourt
The Facts: Between 1999 and 2001, the number of women reported to surf daily, rose 120%. And, it’s just continuing to grow. As of the latest survey, the number has grown an additional 160%. (From Board-Trac, the action sports industry’s leading marketing research firm.) According to SIMA (Surf Industry Manufacturers Association), women’s surf apparel is by far the fastest growing segment in the surf industry. Quiksilver saw sales of its Roxy women’s surf apparel line jump by a staggering 40% last year. Moreover, big brands are acknowledging surfing as a growing sport, for both men and women. Majors such as Billabong, Rip Curl, Pac/Sun, O’Neill, Body Glove, Roxy/Quiksilver, Vans, etc. are increasing their monetary support of major women’s surfing competitions, attracting worldwide attention.
Surfing is also taking
