News Blog

Surfs up! City officials recently participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Island Water Sports, marking the famed company’s return to Pompano Beach.

The family-owned business, a true legend in the local surf scene, opened its new location in Pompano Beach’s vibrant Fishing Village a few months back. This move is more than just a business expansion; it's a heartfelt homecoming for the company, which was originally founded in Pompano Beach in the late 1970s by Kirk Cottrell.

The transition back to Pompano Beach was made smoother thanks to a small grant from the Pompano Beach CRA. The family-owned business was able to secure funding through the Minor Commercial Exterior Improvement Program for new signage on their building.

“This is a full circle moment for us,” said Linsey Cottrell Bone, who now runs the company alongside her siblings, Karly Cottrell and Cheyene Cottrell. “We’ve watched the incredible growth taking place in Pompano Beach and knew we had to be a part of it again. The Fishing Village presented the perfect opportunity—the energy here is palpable, with so many young families eager to embrace the beach, surf, skate lifestyle my dad championed.”

The roots of Island Water Sports stretch back to the summer of 1977, when Kirk Cottrell acquired a small surf shop in Pompano Beach. A year later, in 1978, he relocated the business to Deerfield Beach in an effort to expand. He and his wife, Lucinda, quickly established a foundation for the surf community that has endured for decades, driven by a mission that extended far beyond the retail experience.

After Kirk's passing in 2001, his children, Cheyne, Karly, and Linsey, recommitted to the shop in 2006, excited to introduce their dad’s legacy to the next generation. “Pompano Beach is an up-and-coming community filled with families that want to have an active, healthy lifestyle, and we are excited to be part of it,” Linsey concluded.