No Matter The Medium, Hayden Cox Has It Dialed - Stab Mag

Live Now For All — Episode 1 of Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico

381 Views

No Matter The Medium, Hayden Cox Has It Dialed

Get to know the multidisciplinary shaper/artist in his latest profile.

elsewhere // Mar 3, 2021
Words by Zack Raffin
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Building a multi-national board brand is a lot harder than it looks.

Competing against the world’s top shapers with decades of foam dust in their brow, Hayden Cox is one of the few board builders who’s managed to break out over the past decade and find real commercial success. Hayden has achieved this not only by making highly functional boards, but boards that look as good as they ride.

Exceptional Alien‘s latest profile on Mr. Cox takes a look at his journey from building boards in his parent’s backyard to what is now an international success story that includes collaborations with some of the world’s most recognizable brands. We’re talking heavy hitters the likes of Alexander Wang, Daniel Arsham, Google, Audi, and IWC Schaffhausen.

Hayde-Cox-Shaper
A young Mr. Cox shown laying on the elbow grease.

The profile highlights Hayden’s creative process as well as his favorite spots in Los Angeles (shoutout General Admission) and the importance of hiring non-surfers. We’ve included some of the tastiest morsels from their profile for you below.

On his beginnings as a shaper

I did work experience at a surfboard factory in Mona Vale, Sydney. After I shaped my first board I was starting to become more absent from school and found that I really enjoyed my time in the factory. My second board I shaped out the back of my parents’ house. I welded my own shaping stand at school and put lights up by the creek out the back and tried to shape the board at nighttime. I got stuck trying to figure out how to use the planer on the nose rocker, so I had to call the guy from the factory. He told me to get on a bus and bring the board. From then on I rented his shaping bay each time I shaped a board. 

Hayden-Cox-Daniel-Arsham

On creativity outside of surfing.

I’ve always enjoyed design and I have many other interests outside of surfing. I’m interested in technology, architecture, and furniture design. Recently I worked on a cast resin project for the Crown Towers Sydney. I’m also in the design and development phase for a project with Akin Atelier for the Art Gallery of New South Wales. I’m applying the knowledge I’ve learned over my 24 years of surfboard building into how we can work with the chemistry of epoxy and polyester resins for building and furniture design. We’ve also been working on three different surfboards with Daniel Arsham, an amazing artist in New York who applies crystal erosions to different products. 

Hayden-Cox-LA-Showroom
The LA showroom, easy on the eyes both inside and out.

On building a business in the U.S of A.

America has this sense that there’s no ceiling and no limit. As a brand, we still have a long way to go in terms of growing in the American market. Yet there’s this positive feeling that you can achieve your goal there. The energy you put in is what you’ll get back. 

Hayden-Cox-LA-Showroom

On Hayden’s new LA showroom.

When we shut down our US manufacturing, our vision was to maintain a retail presence in America. We ended up renting the old civic building that was built in the early 1900s, right in the township of El Segundo up on the hill. It’s a freestanding building on Richmond Street that’s been newly renovated and it has such a cool vibe. Walk down the hill and Rock & Brews is right there plus a whole heap of other drinking holes. Many come into El Segundo for work, so come 5pm there are a lot of people walking the streets and having post–work drinks.

Click here to read the full profile by Exceptional Alien.

Comments

Comments are a Stab Premium feature. Gotta join to talk shop.

Already a member? Sign In

Want to join? Sign Up

Advertisement

Most Recent

Stab Interview: WSL Tour President Graham Stapelberg On The Changes And Challenge(r)s Of The Post-Cut Era

Maxing Pipe, Triple Crown realities, Jordy Smith, sponsors up the yin-yang, and more.

Jun 16, 2025

Was That The Best Day Of Performance Surfing In 2025?

Kerrupt flips, double airs, and a cornucopia of 9 point waves.

Jun 15, 2025

Watch: Albee Layer Drops His Second Stab Edit Of The Year In 4 Months

And we dare say "Less Than Easy" is even better than the former.

Jun 13, 2025

Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico: Episode 1

Our first loser goes home in this "king of the hill" showdown.

Jun 12, 2025

How To Convince A Bunch Of Small Town Floridians That They Need A Wavepool

Warren Smith is creatively diversifying the tourism portfolio of his hometown.

Jun 12, 2025

Italo And Filipe Lost, But Surfing Won Today

No shortage of excellence on Day Two at Lowers.

Jun 11, 2025

Opinion: Griffin vs Filipe Was A Masterclass In Surfing & Judging

And the exact reason Lowers is on tour.

Jun 11, 2025

How Politics Canceled A WSL Pro Junior Event In The Basque Country

The Israel-Palestine conflict hits surfing.

Jun 11, 2025

Wait, Is Lowers A Left?

Day One of the Lexus June Gloom Pro is wrapped, and Kelly's free for drinks.

Jun 11, 2025

Stab Interview: The Secret Lives Of Keith Malloy

On surf films, big waves, sibling bonds, and stunt-doubling for Matthew McConaughey.

Jun 9, 2025

Why Kelly Slater’s Favorite Wave Isn’t Producing More Pro Surfers

A critical analysis of the Soup Bowl surf community.

Jun 8, 2025

CT Watch: Jacob Willcox And Francisca Veselko Rattle The Cage

Where you begin is where you return: The Newcastle SURFEST.

Jun 8, 2025

Stab High And The Unfortunate Inevitability Of The C-Word 

Does surfing have a culture after all? 

Jun 8, 2025

Jordy Smith Is World #1, Kelly Slater Is A Wildcard, And… Ethan Ewing Is Trying Californian Surfboards?

Your 2025 Lower Trestles CT preview.

Jun 7, 2025

Tom Lowe Suffers Second Near-Fatal Injury at Teahupo’o In 14 Months

Sage Burke and Kala Grace tell the story straight.

Jun 6, 2025

The Return of Surf100: Raw, Unfiltered, Serialized

Seven challenges across California before the OG 100 minute final.

Jun 5, 2025

Snow Bros, A Former WSL CEO, And The Multimillion Dollar Fight To Govern Surfing In America 

"This decision could have massive, cascading, and irreversible consequences," says the CEO of USA Surfing. 

Jun 4, 2025

Everything You Need To Know About The Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico

8 surfers. 8 challenges. $100,000.

Jun 4, 2025
Advertisement