Boy behind the brand

Caitlin Sloan chats to the young Surfing is My Coffee entrepreneur

You know the way you feel about your morning cuppa? That’s how 14-year-old Cooper Palmer feels about surfing – and he’s got the shirt to prove it.

In 2021, the young member of Woonona Boardriders launched his own clothing and accessories label, Surfing Is My Coffee. The name comes from a remark he made when his parents ducked off for a coffee just as Cooper and his friends were gearing up for a surf at Merry Beach.

“I was standing on the sand with three of my mates and I said, ‘Surfing is my coffee’, and they said, ‘Yeah, we like that! Why don’t we say that as a little nod to when we want to go for a surf?’,” Cooper said.

“We did that whilst we were down there for the whole week… [and] I was thinking to myself that I’ve got a textiles class coming up next year, why don’t I screen print it on a bag that I can use?”

Cooper went on to design and screen print the Surfing Is My Coffee logo as part of a school project. “I took it home and showed my dad, and he was like, ‘That’s amazing, Cooper … Why don’t you make shirts out of it?’”

The apparel range now includes unisex t-shirts, singlets, hats, hoodies and dresses, all printed locally at T-Shirt Workshop in North Wollongong. Cooper said the interest in his brand has been a surprise. “People just want to back me… and the fact that I’m a 14-year-old kid running a business, they really want to support me.”

Find the merch at www.surfingismycoffee. com.au and in-store at Thirroul Collective and Bellambi Lane Cafe