In the early summer of 2024, a group of Jetty surfers joined photographer Allie Fisher for a
photoshoot off a Monmouth County pier. The surf was small, clean, and peeling, an idyllic
New Jersey morning. It wasn’t firing, but it was a fun longboard session in a colorful, creative beach town.
photoshoot off a Monmouth County pier. The surf was small, clean, and peeling, an idyllic
New Jersey morning. It wasn’t firing, but it was a fun longboard session in a colorful, creative beach town.
None of the seven surfers lived there. We were interlopers there for morning glass content. There was one other surfer checking it– a longtime local, a veteran of the surf industry. He could have easily been sour. Had we not been there to create content, he would have had a reflective sunrise log session to himself.
That local was Shawn Zappo, who grew up in Ocean County, but was drawn to the
esthetic of a surf scene growing in Asbury Park over two decades ago. Instead of stink-eye, he engaged Carter Dorley about Carter’s surf streak. He chatted with Jamie Contreras
about board design, talked photography with Fisher, and told Jetty partner John Clifford
how much he respected a brand out of New Jersey.
And he glided plenty of waves that morning.
In November, Jetty brought this lifelong surfer and multidiscipline artist from Ocean Grove to steer the ship of the Jetty Long Branch Store. Zappo was chosen because
of his knowledge and authenticity.
“I had a lot of friends in the Monmouth County area going back to the early 90s from the
skateboarding and hardcore scenes,” Zappo explained. Prior to his job as a buyer for Blades NYC, he ran a shop in Belmar in the mid 90s. “I’d always been sort of an honorary Monmouth County guy. When I returned from California after recording an album in 2004, I knew I wanted to live close to Asbury. The surf scene was definitely more progressive in the way of alternative surf-craft. For everything I was into - music, writing, photography, surfing, it just felt like the best area for me. There's a powerful
creative spirit and a healthy community where you can grow and progress in whatever
medium you choose.”
His work spans photography, filmmaking, writing, and music. Active in the skateboard and
surf industry since the 1990s, he brings decades of cultural experience to his creative work
and now Jetty. He has been open minded to different types of boards for years. Zappo also has a very good understanding for the importance of the brick and mortar retail shop and face-to-face interactions. As an event organizer, he is skilled at bringing people together to share in culture. His feature film Rasa Bhava, released in 2020, was somewhat groundbreaking for the East Coast, a cinematic journey that weaves surfing into the world of Eastern philosophies, music, and yogic mindset.
His imagery and films reflect the quiet, introspective side of surf life, while his writing explores the spiritual and transformative nature of wave-riding. He uses his photography skills to tell stories of the ocean’s moods. Shining a light on the East Coast’s best moments. Shawn is currently developing Surfing Sadhana, a project that blends his visual and written perspectives on the mystical dimensions of surfing. He also fronts an ambient psychedelic band that plays meditative world music.
As a manager, we have already seen Zappo’s creativity and esthetic in the store and Long
Branch community. He recently gathered most of the state’s prolific photographers for
a photo art show at The Whitechapel Projects in Long Branch. Jetty is excited to see where
Zappo will take the retail side of the brand, starting with our second brick-and-mortar store in Pier Village.
Branch community. He recently gathered most of the state’s prolific photographers for
a photo art show at The Whitechapel Projects in Long Branch. Jetty is excited to see where
Zappo will take the retail side of the brand, starting with our second brick-and-mortar store in Pier Village.
