Despite Rhode Island’s status as the Ocean State, Bobby Drought recognizes that people generally don’t associate its coastline with one of the most widely known ocean sports.
“A lot of folks don’t think of Rhode Island as a surf destination,” Drought said, “primarily because it isn’t established like it is in California, and because we have the four seasons.”
But Drought has been surfing in Rhode Island since childhood, and while attending Salve Regina University, he recalls the thrill of having “access to some of the best waves on the East Coast right outside of our dorm rooms.”
There, Drought started offering surf lessons to fund his undergraduate studies. As he continued to an MBA program, Drought developed the business plan for what would become Rhody Surf as part of a capstone project.
Drought soon realized the business wasn’t meant to remain in the concept phase.
“I wanted to do it for real and see what happens,” he said. “Take that risk that every entrepreneur does.”
The leap paid off. Rhody Surf is now at the end of its 14th season and growing each year.
The community “was missing a surf school, a company that really focused on serving the industry and providing a gateway that wasn’t intimidating,” Drought said. “I wanted to be a really approachable avenue to anyone who is willing to learn.”
Drought launched Rhody Surf in 2011 with the idea of a mobile “surf-mobile” traveling around Newport, catching visitors from the downtown area who otherwise may not have reached the beaches during a cruise stop. The following year, the business had its “big break” when Drought secured a five-year municipal contract to operate at Second Beach in Middletown.
Drought continues to run the business out of a mobile unit, though since 2019, Rhody Surf has been based at Easton’s Beach in Newport. About half of the business’s revenue comes from private surf lessons, with the other half split between youth surf camps and equipment rentals.
Rhody Surf operates seasonally from Memorial Day through Labor Day, sometimes extending into the shoulder season.
But for seasoned surfers, wetsuits make the sport accessible year-round. Though business winds down in September, the month provides some of the best surf conditions of the year, Drought said, boasting large waves, warm waters and fewer crowds.
The surf company has recorded incremental growth each year, Drought says, and had a 40% spike in business when it switched from phone bookings to online sign-ups. At one point, the business was featured on HGTV’s “House Hunters.”
Drought suspects that surfing attracts customers for the same reason it’s always appealed to him.
“It’s an outlet from computers and cellphones and everyday distractions we have,” Drought said, and an opportunity “to be out there in nature, get some exercise, and it’s just fun. There are so few of those joyous activities. ... Even approaching 40 years old myself, I still enjoy it like a kid.”
OWNER: Bobby Drought
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Surf lessons, rentals and sales
LOCATION: Easton’s Beach, Newport
EMPLOYEES: 15 last season
YEAR FOUNDED: 2011
ANNUAL REVENUE: WND
