Kona Big Wave is investing meaningfully to build deep roots in surf and skate communities as part of its mission to become the next-gen lifestyle beer. These aspirational cultures bring people together and tied closely to the aloha spirit, providing clear and authentic opportunities for Kona Big Wave to gain relevance with the next generation of LDA consumers. Through strategic partnerships with people, brands and events, Kona is quickly cementing its role as the go-to beer for surfers and skaters.
This year, Kona continues to make big waves with a growing roster of iconic free surfers that live and breathe the aloha lifestyle. Through their respective travel and immersive content, Mikey February, Racheal Tilley, Mason Ho, and Coco Ho are each known for their styles, creativity and surfing. Alongside the new members of the ohana, Kona has also re-signed Sage Erickson, pro-surfer and 2x US Open of Surfing Champion and California native for a fifth year. These partners have increased Kona’s reach by 1.6M followers on Instagram alone.
The brand has also teamed up with S.T.A.B., the authority in surf culture and preeminent media brand, through a series of film and event collaborations built to deepen the brand’s cultural presence and visibility within the surf community. The partnership with the iconic international surf media, production and event brand further drives relevancy for Kona Big Wave in the surf world.
On the skate side, Kona has partnered with Eric Koston, a legend within the sport that has been rooted in the culture for decades, along with 2024 Street League Skateboarding Apex Champion Braden Hoban, and Olympian, world traveler and international skate icon, Mariah Duran. Kona is excited to continue partnerships with other notable endemic brands including HUF, Murf, LibTech and Skullcandy.
Kona Big Wave has also joined forces with Street League Skateboarding (SLS), an international skateboarding series largely considered the #1 skate competition worldwide. In May, Kona Big Wave and SLS took over the Santa Monica Pier for a competition that featured celebrities and legends within the skateboarding community like Ryan Sheckler, and Machine Gun Kelly, and drew more than 10,000 fans. Stay tuned for more to come this year, as Kona continues to bring new depth to its partnerships rooted in culture to create truly unique experiences for the surf and skate communities, all celebrated with a Big Wave hand.
Since 2024, these strategic partnerships have made a huge impact for Kona’s role within the surf and skate world. Big Wave has dove head first to both sampling and building credibility at scale. The brand is also living at the intersection of music and boardsports - showing up around the country at preeminent festivals including Gov Ball, Lollapalooza and Ocean’s Calling. Alongside the massive reach of 600M impressions to date to the skate and surf core communties through our digital, social and earned network of partners, these relationships have driven a deeper level of authenticity for Kona, a crucial component for success within these dedicated communities.
Cheers to Kona Big Wave for curating these special moments that matter for surfers and skaters alike!
