Need surfing equipment, clothing, or advice? Sunny Brisbane has plenty of surf shops with experienced staff on hand to help you find what you need. Below, we take a look at three iconic Brisbane surf shops that have forged a place in Australia’s surfing history.

Goodtime Surfboards Australia

29 Ipswich Rd
Woolloongabba Qld 4102

P: 07 3391 8588

Goodtime has been hand shaping surfboards since 1971. It is said that they began with one thought: Having a good time is what surfing is all about. Goodtime prides themselves on being one of the biggest surf and sail retailers in Australia. They are always looking for new products, especially those with natural energy sources in mind. Goodtime Surfboards is right in the middle of Brisbane. These days, if it's related to water sports, they sell it. Along with plenty of other stuff not related to water sports at all! Goodtime Surfboards cover specialist equipment for not only surfing, but also skateboarding, wind and bodyboarding, kayaks, canoes. They also have a large range of surf fashion and soft goods, cameras, sunglasses, watches and accessories.

Goodtime Surf and Natural Energy Sports is owned and operated by Gail Austen (OAM; Telstra Business Woman of the Year 1997). The Goodtime story starts way back in the 1970s, when Gail's brother, Brian, was a top Gold Coast surfboard shaper. Gail's sister, Rae, and mum, Joan, were selling his boards through a shop in Coolangatta, and Gail came home from working in London to help them out in their fledgling business.

Gail was not particularly impressed by the work ethic at the little shop, where surfing came first and business second. Gail moved the shop to Brisbane and expanded the range to include surf skis, skateboards, canoes, kayaks, kitesurfers and windsurfers – pretty much anything you could ride a natural energy wave on.

Business was going from strength to strength. Then, one day in 1984, disaster struck when the shop was firebombed. However, far from marking the demise of Goodtime, Gail turned it into something positive and opened for business out the back of the shop the very next day.

Not only has Gail turned a disaster to a success story, she has turned peoples’ lives around too. She has trained and worked with street-kids, including two young boys who robbed her, and now some of them have their own businesses. The two boys, now a doctor and an engineer, still come to the shop and bring their kids. Gail has devised a unique succession plan: When she retires, the business will pass on to her staff as a form of co-operative. Gail hopes this will ensure that Goodtime remains not just a business, but a way of life, and a good one at that.

Sideways Surf

Shop 5, 1-15 Lexington Road Underwood QLD 4119

Get Directions

PH: (07) 3423 3306

Shop 5, 1-15 Lexington Road

Underwood Qld 4119

P: 07 3423 3306

Sideways Surf has been hand-crafting surfboards for over 20 years. They pride themselves in knowing their stuff, and in knowing what their surfing customers want to be riding. Although their surfboards are made in Indonesia, the factory they are created in is owned and run by Australians and Kiwis. The business is very proud to be responsible for creating jobs for the local Indonesian community.

Sideways Surf stocks big brands, including Sideways, Hughes, Retro Groove, Annesley, Webber, and Matt Hurworth. They provide customers with up to 70% off retail prices on all the big name surf and street labels. Sideways Surf has something for the whole family – wetsuits, surfboards, softboards and boogie boards, surf accessories, skateboards and accessories, fashion, shoes, sunglasses and watches.

Primitive Surf

601 Nudgee Road

Nundah, Brisbane Qld Australia 4012

P: 07 3266 1001

Craig Rees, founder of Primitive Surf, started shaping surfboards as a hobby in the late 1980s. First he and his mate, Cary MacLean, started off shaping boards together in Cary’s garage. It wasn’t long before Craig felt convinced by enthusiastic surfers to set up a surf store in Brisbane, in idea which crystalized in the early 90s while he was on a road trip in an old beat up Kombi.

1995 saw the opening of the first Primitive store in Deagon, an outer suburb of Brisbane. From small beginnings, shaping about one board a week, it slowly grew and moved to larger premises, and twenty years later Primitive employs multiple staff-members (all surfers) to manage the central Brisbane store at Nundah.

While other surf shops were opening boutique surf stores around Australia in large shopping malls, Craig knew that these were the kind of places that surfers avoid. Enter Primitive Surf, a surf shop that smells like wax, resin, and surfboards; the kind of place where surfers feel welcome and at home.

Over the years they have developed their designs along with the advancements in surfing and technology. Their experienced staff possess the technical knowledge to guide beginner surfers to equipment that is tailored to individual needs. Primitive Surf carries a full range of wetsuits and surf hardware products from the most trusted brands. They stock a complete range of men’s and women’s surf wear. Hire boards and surfboard repairs are also available.

Quiksilver

Shop T2, Brisbane DFO
1 Airport Drive
Brisbane Qld 4007

P: 07 3115 2626

Quiksilver has been producing surf and snow clothing, as well as outerwear and accessories since 1969. From its humble beginnings as a boardshort company, Quiksilver today is a global board-riding lifestyle company. Quiksilver has top of the line clothing and gear for every lifestyle – from boardshorts to wetsuits, t-shirts and thongs, to hats. The Winter Sports division is emerging with snowboarding apparel, and hard goods designed for high performance enthusiasts. Every piece of Quiksilver clothing is designed for high performance, and made with durable material.

It all started back in 1969, when Alan Green produced wetsuits with a $2500 loan from his father. Alan also launched a brand of sheepskin boots for surfers. In 1973, Alan Green and partner John Law went into business so they could make a living in Torquay, Victoria and go surfing. Quiksilver was born.

Quiksilver’s first product, and still its flagship, was the “boardshort” – the essential surfing garment. As the reputation of Quiksilver board-shorts quickly grew, so did the demand. By 1975 Quiksilver was available all over Australia, and their boardshorts were being worn by all the top surfers.

In 1976 legendary surfer Jeff Hakman and Bob McKnight established Quiksilver USA. It wasn’t long before Quiksilver had taken hold in Europe, Brazil, Japan, South Africa, Turkey and Asia.

With the establishment of the Quiksilver Foundation in 2004, Quiksilver brought all of its charitable work under one umbrella and expanded its altruistic work for a range of educational and social causes. Major projects focus on children, education, science, oceans and the environment.