Is Reef... Back? - Stab Mag

Live Now — New Episode Of How Surfers Get Paid — Agents & Managers

894 Views
Rose Machado is a Reef Girl, refurbished.

Is Reef… Back?

The brand revisits its golden era, with the gaze reassigned.

style // Jun 18, 2025
Words by Jack O'Neill Paterson
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Ad by Reef and Andy Woodward.

Well. This is clever. And unnervingly difficult to write about.

History has a way of camouflaging itself while it’s happening. Only years later does the shape of an era sharpen into something legible, and oftentimes, uncomfortable.

It’s not too far-fetched to assume that, in the not-so-distant future, many will stand on melted pavement and picture themselves as the renegades who would’ve sounded the alarm on the climate collapse. Most people imagine they’d have been the ones to act during history’s awkward stumbles, or, at the very least, called out the early-2000s heyday of selling sandals by marketing women’s bodies.

The great moral test of any time always seems to be the one ignored in real time.

Surfing’s gender imbalance in the early millennium wasn’t the apocalypse, but it wasn’t subtle either. It was on billboards, in major ad campaigns, and very much etched into the culture. Reef’s iconic “Reef Girls” were a high-gloss embodiment of an era obsessed with strategically zooming in on women’s glutes. We covered this in How Surfers Get Paid, in The Sexualisation of Women’s Surfing episode.

Peak surf capitalism. And, presumably, the peak era for Reef — at least to every teenage boy who lingered a little too long in the sandal aisle.

Which brings us, cheerfully, to the question: can you look back on a past era, arguably the brand’s most memorable, and tastefully mock it, while also using it to sell the same product?

And more to the point: what does it mean to reintroduce a cultural symbol that once stood for imbalance? Can marketing evolve without fully letting go of what made it work the first time?

Apparently, yes. To all of the above.

Above, Rose Machado plays the role of the modern, reconsidered Reef Girl. Yes, she’s still selling bikinis and sandals. Yes, she’s still gallivanting through beautiful places. But this time, she’s entirely in charge of the gaze.

We see her thumbing through a carousel of shirtless men, seemingly kept on a string. The suckers? Griff Colapinto, Shion Crawford, and Noah Beschen.

Only later do we learn she’s actually choosing footwear, not men. It’s a tongue-in-cheek bait-and-switch, delivered with a wink.

“Holy fuck reef is back,” commented @saltybeards, aka Chris Papaleo, on Reef’s new ad reveal. Chris of course filmed a former Reef team rider, Nick Rosza, through the early-to-mid 2000s.

Far be it from us to say whether Reef is “back” — nor whether they went anywhere in the first place — but we have to applaud the evolution.

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

How Did Australia’s “Most Visible Wave” Stay Hidden So Long?

Underground charger Tommy Myers has put Queenscliff Bombie back on the map. Twice.

Aug 8, 2025

Teahupo’o Day 1: We Couldn’t Look Away Either

Kauli pulls the leash, Filipe sticks a drop, and Kanoa loses (probably) his worst heat…

Aug 8, 2025

Wanna Get To Fiji? Gotta Survive Teahupo’o First

What to expect from the 2025 Tahiti Pro.

Aug 6, 2025

You’re Invited To Test Dozens Of E.A.S.T. Surfboards With Us

Introducing the 2025 E.A.S.T. Festival at the Palm Springs Surf Club, hosted by Kona Big…

Aug 6, 2025

The Bukit Cooks, Locals Take What’s Theirs At 2025 Rip Curl Cup Padang

Westen Hirst and Jasmine Studer get their flowers.

Aug 6, 2025

Kolby Aipa, Descendant of Shaping Royalty, Passes Away

“This a hard painful lesson to the community of the dangers of electric bikes…" writes…

Aug 6, 2025

Jordy (Finally) Gets His Ghost And Robbo’s Vision Improves

Industry rumblings from Tahiti.

Aug 6, 2025

Joyride: We Recreated Slater’s 1990 Lowers-Winning Merrick

The Channel Islands 2.Pro and Better Everyday get flexed in the Ments.

Aug 4, 2025

Now Free: Sam Piter’s ‘Rogue DNA’ SEOTY Entry

French blood, thick water.

Aug 4, 2025

A Girl Born In 2011 Is Leading The Challenger Series

Meanwhile, Levi Slawson + Sawyer Lindblad bag a $20K US Open check and a spot…

Aug 4, 2025

Why 3D Print A Surfboard? 

The answer is more straightforward than you might think, according to Wyve. 

Aug 2, 2025

What’s Surfing Really Costing You?

An ER doc in the Mentawais and a dying breed of adventure pirate weigh in.

Aug 1, 2025

Mateus Herdy, Now Served With Logo

Signed at In-N-Out, sponsored by Rivvia.

Aug 1, 2025

Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico: Episode 5

Who flew to Texas to lose their chance at $100,000 to a game of S.U.R.F.?

Jul 31, 2025

Empty Set: How To Get More Juice For Your Squeeze 

Small wave wisdom from John Florence, Finn McGill, and Mateus Herdy.

Jul 31, 2025

Five (More) Shapers To Watch In The Next 10 Years

An appendix to our list of blossoming board builders.

Jul 30, 2025

Can Matt Biolos Actually Win Against Gaga?

Gaga responds, and IP lawyer reacts to the now-infamous "Mayhem" case.

Jul 29, 2025

30-Minutes Of Freshly Pioneered Waves In The Canadian Wilderness

"Some fisherman texted us a blurry photo of a wave kinda barreling. So we flew…

Jul 29, 2025
Advertisement