John John Florence Goes (Seaweed) Green

Surfers, quite often, fancy themselves eco-warriors. When we pick up three pieces of trash on the beach after a session, we mentally pat ourselves on the back, and crown ourselves as stewards of the sea, protectors of the pristine, guardians of Mother Earth.

But the reality is, surfing equals waste. Especially when it comes to gear.

John John Florence, two-time world champion and one of the best to ever do it at waves like Pipeline, recognized surfing’s pollution problem, and when he started his own company, Florence, he decided to do something about it. Enter, Sway, a plastic alternative organization specializing in materials made from seaweed. And Florence decided to give ‘em a go.

Ahead of the collab with Sway, Florence was kind enough to send me a pair of boardshorts wrapped in the signature seaweed packaging. Safe to say, it was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. It was soft, squishy…but no, it did not taste or smell like seaweed (and yes, I tried).

So, with the release of the F1 Pro Hawaii Airtex Weld Boardshort, in collaboration with Sway packaging, we hit up John to hear more about the product, the eco initiative, and more.

Growing up in the surf industry, and receiving countless boxes of gear over the years, you’ve seen your fair share of non-sustainable waste. Now that you have your own company, what’re you hoping to do differently?

It’s my hope that Florence can get to a place where our products are inspiring people and brands to do things ‘better’. Whether it’s making things you only need to buy once, or making things that may not be thought of as ‘performance’ products because they incorporate sustainable materials. I believe durability and sustainability make great performance products and can be even better. Another thing we think about is packaging. I’m proud of how we are progressing in this area. Florence is currently using vela bags and soon moving towards some of the coolest innovation I’ve seen in a long time from Sway. I’m not suggesting that we are doing it perfectly, but we are certainly learning as we go.

This is why we decided to get involved with Lonely Whale and the TOM FORD Plastic Innovation Prize a couple years ago. They basically created a contest with real world business incentives that would promote the development of scalable alternatives to thin film plastic, which I think accounts for nearly half of all plastic pollution in the ocean. If we don’t make any changes to packaging in general, the amount of plastic waste in the ocean is expected to triple by 2040. The Tom Ford Prize Winners were all amazing. They show that there are different solutions that are scalable, affordable and have a lot less impact on the ocean.

So, my goal was to make Florence one of the early adopters of these alternatives. We collaborated with Sway on seaweed packaging for a new boardshort and it’s been an exciting opportunity to show people and share what’s possible. Everyone I’ve shown from friends to people in the industry have been so stoked on it. It’s crazy, you can literally throw it in the garden. We’re hoping other brands get onboard, and all of these alternatives to plastic really start to gain momentum.

What propelled you to go with Sway, and their seaweed-based packaging?

After the Plastic Innovation Prize, Florence became a member of the program’s Early Adopter coalition of brands, which was basically a group committed to putting the Prize-winning materials through a trial. Sway’s seaweed-based material won first place, judged by 11 Scientific and Technical Advisors and a panel of 19 Judges across different industries. Florence will be one of the first brands to adopt Sway’s new material when we ship out these special edition boardshorts. The packaging is made almost entirely from seaweed, so it decomposes rapidly in home compost or industrial compost. But what really makes this exciting is that it’s all designed for scale. This collaboration is the first step for Florence. We are aiming to help scale innovations, like Sway, for a future with cleaner seas.

Tell us a little about the boardshorts…what’s the material, how do they feel when you surf, what’s the feedback you’ve received from North Shore Lifeguards?

To be honest it’s all about keeping it simple for me. I want the boardshorts to be comfortable, durable, and functional. The best boardshort is one that’s versatile enough to wear in a bunch of different conditions. That’s my opinion at least. But if you want more of the technical side, I asked the team.

Here’s the response from Bruce, who is our director of Innovation and Sustainability: “The boardshorts incorporate our signature performance fabric: 80% recycled polyester and 20% spandex with a C-0 water repellency. It’s a nice blend of performance and sustainability. We tuned the weight of the fabric to minimize cling and keep just the right amount of stretch. We also removed the inseam to prevent any chafe, while increasing range of motion. Our goal is zero distraction. Like the boardshort isn’t even there. You should be focusing on the activity, not the boardshort.”

It’s been so cool to have direct feedback from the lifeguards. They literally wear the boardshorts the entire day, moving around, wet, dry, swimming, running, on ATVs, sitting in the tower, everything. I don’t think there is anyone better to test and give feedback, so yeah, it’s really cool to hear the positive feedback they are giving us so far. They are the real experts. The positives they bring up with us are the quality, comfort, and durability. That’s just really cool for us to hear. These are some of the best watermen/women on the planet. I couldn’t be more thankful or proud to have them involved and support them with gear.

How about the design? Lots going on there. Hawaiian flag, USA flag, and the Hawaiian Islands hidden in the camo?

Well, I guess I’ve gone through phases where I gravitate towards camo. It just appeals to my eye right now, and our test-pilots seem to agree so we’re going with that for the moment. Otherwise, we wanted to make sure Hawaii was strongly represented. I couldn’t be more proud to be from where I’m from and have another chance to represent Hawaii on the biggest stage. And then with the last flag we added an ode to Team USA to cap it off.

Will you be wearing these trunks – or some version of them – at the Olympics?

Yes, that is the plan. We designed them with similar technology but a color story that feels relevant to me and unique to what is currently in-line. The Olympics are a special and unique moment, so it feels appropriate to commemorate that through a product story. 

For more, check out the F1 Pro Hawaii Airtex Weld Boardshort here.

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