Michael Soule
As a shaper who builds every board by hand, start-to-finish, Michael's number one priority is customer satisfaction. He uses only quality materials, shapes with superior craftsmanship, and pays attention to every detail. As a lifelong surfer, Michael builds boards that he himself would be proud to ride.
Michael began shaping surfboards in New Smyrna Beach, Florida in 1989. He has continued building boards in the US Virgin Islands (on the islands of St. John and St. Thomas); in Hawaii (on the island of Kauai); and in urban Seattle, Washington, located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest that he now calls home.
While living on Kauai, Michael had the great fortune to hone his shaping skills under the mentorship of the legendary master shaper, Bill Hamilton. Bill had a
Michael continued his shaping career by working for Dave Implom of Imua Fiberglass. There, he finished boards for Dick Brewer, Terry Chung, Mark Angel, Robin Meir, Mark "Papa Sau" Sausen, and so many more great shapers.
Working with Bill, Michael was able to perfect the precise art of surfboard building for himself. "I am honored to have been mentored by such a legend."
major influence on Michael as a surfboard builder and as a person. Michael worked at Bill's Hanalei Bay surfboard factory for four years and put his hard work into
Michael has developed and refined his shapes by decades of surfing and building his own boards. He is always stoked for the opportunity to meet and learn from other shapers,
finishing boards for surfing greats such as Steve Lis and Laird Hamilton.
whether they be some of the legendary greats or younger shapers moving the craft forward.
Sustainability has become an important part of his work. He is thrilled to be a part of the Eco Board Project and constantly looks for ways to improve sustainability and reuse/repurpose what used to be waste. One of his latest approaches to sustainability is to cut his own blanks out of recycled EPS blocks.