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#MadeInCapeTown is a docu-style video series, created exclusively by Cape {Town} Etc with one goal and one goal alone: showcase local talent.

“I wanted to use this incredible platform to maximise the ‘Etc’ that we promise our audience. This space is raw, unfiltered, pure people of Cape Town.”

– Robyn Simpson, Editor.

EPISODE FOUR: Botanical boards making waves

PROFILE: 

  • Name: Henry “Chomper” Muller
  • Age: 25
  • Origin: Cape Town
  • Craft: Surfboard Crafter and founder of Chomper Surfcraft

WATCH:

THE DETAILS: 

It’s not often you walk into a working environment and can tangibly feel the creative energy bouncing off the walls. The addition of a rad ping-pong table might have helped but the ambience of magic, family, and pure vibes at Chomper Surfcraft is truly something special in its own right.

Have you spotted Henry Muller’s iconic, bright orange Chomper van driving around town? Well, we followed it all the way to his factory in Woodstock where this local surfboard crafter is seriously making waves (couldn’t help it).

At 25, Henry is proving that the future of Cape Town really does belong to young creatives. And it all started on the first day of his second year in college. The day he went home to his parents after one class and told them, “If I drop out now, we can still get the deposit back.”

Sometimes, it’s the bold, unconventional moves that separate the extraordinary from the status quo. Henry used the return deposit to start up his own business, one which has him creating boards like nobody else in the city.

“Chomper”, you might wonder?

“When I was born, my sister’s favourite TV programme was called The Land Before Time. There was a baby T-Rex in the show named Chomper.

“When my parents brought me home from the hospital for the first time, she exclaimed, “It’s Chomper!” And the name stuck ever since.”

Chomper Surfcraft is taking surfboards out of the production line and putting the focus back into the realm of relationships. It’s about a process here. One guided by both artisan and customer, whereby the final product encompasses the journey of handmade production, personalised finishes, and the unique touch of the craftsman at hand.

Perhaps the most striking technique explored by Henry is his use of botanicals that live beneath the resin. Real flowers, frozen in time. The results are simply stunning and like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Clients are invited into the workshop to help layout their floral arrangements – like a fingerprint; one of a kind.

For Henry, it’s all about doing what you love.

“If you find yourself being successful but you don’t love what you do, it’s going to collapse.”

And success?

“There isn’t really a formula. Just put your head down and be consistent. The main thing is just consistency.”

The Chomper boys, along with their spirit for the sea and hearts for art, have reminded us again that local truly is lekker. In fact, it’s incredible…

#MadeinCapeTown

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