Aussie Island Surf Shop

When did you start your business?

1990

Do you consider the location of your shop a key factor to the business’s success?

Yes because we’re centered in Wilmington in a busy area close to I-40 and UNCW College.

Who is your average buyer?

Our average buyers are a pretty wide range of people. Basically boys and girls from 16-60 and then the mom’s that buy for their kids as well.

If a total Barney walks in do you treat him with the same respect as a full on loc?

Yes absolutely.

What is the dumbest question a customer has ever asked?

“Do you sell male thongs?”

Do you have a mascot (ex. - An animal that roams freely throughout the building)?

We have family dogs that cruise in here all of the time. We’re a dog friendly environment.

What is the craziest return a customer has ever tried to make?

A broken surfboard. The guy came back and wanted his money back for it.

Does your store support any local surfers or have a surf team?

Yes we have a surf /skate & wake team.

What is your most annoying grom story?

When the groms come into the shop and get on the computer and leave their myspace or facebook on the computer. **btw when you guys leave you'r myspace or facebook open it will get changed.**

Have you ever had any type of celeb roll in and make a purchase?

All kinds actually. Julia Roberts and Kiefer Sutherland (Julia came in and wanted to know if we sold white socks. That’s all she bought were white socks), all of the Baldwin Brothers, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Stipe, Mickey Rourke, River Phoenix.

Have you ever pulled a hot chick/guy solely due to the fact that you own/manage a surf shop?

Liz’s answer – “No.” Dean’s answer- “Yes, I used to judge all of the bikini contests.”

How many days a week do you surf now compared to before you owned/managed a surf shop?

Probably more now actually. We want to be able to come into work after we have surfed so we can talk about the waves. Chris and Dean are really flexible about work when the waves are good.

Who is your favorite surfer and why?

Liz’s answer- Taj Burrow because he rules. Flawless. I love the way he surfs. Super fast. Dean’s answer- Tom Curren & Occy because they’re power surfers and hardcore.

Has a customer trying on clothes ever walked out completely naked?

Close to it, but not completely naked.

Has a person ever walked in totally blitzkrieged (really intoxicated) and tried to make a purchase? If so elaborate.

Yes definitely. We’ve seen it all pretty much. Everything. We’ve seen it all.

Every store has to deal with shoplifting. What is your most memorable experience and what is your shoplifting policy?

Our shoplifting policy is we call the cops. We had somebody throw a rock through the window once to break in and they stole the cash register that was empty.

And last but not least tell us one of the craziest shop stories you can remember?

When I was single I would have an “after hours” bikini fashion show pretty often. Definitely genuine good times every time I had one. Another crazy story is we had a helicopter that malfunctioned land right in our parking lot once. We also found a “sawed off” shotgun in the parking lot once.