Note sponsored by Milano Surfboards

Half Argentine and half Peruvian, shaper Darío Milano, one of the most recognized and active young makers in Latin America, has just turned 15 years in the profession and decided to celebrate it with different members of his team (and another celebration is coming, read more below).

A few months ago he celebrated that the board that won the ISA World Championship in Japan had been made by him for Sofía Mulanovich; it was a Timmy Patterson, Dario's mentor shaper who gave him the license to manufacture and sell his boards in South America several years ago (and who is now his main back shaper).

Shortly after the aforementioned commemoration, the two celebrated that WSL World Champion Italo Ferreira's board was also a Patterson.

Milano's shapes are characterized by always being at the forefront; he prides himself on always being aware of new trends and materials and makes them available for Peru and Latin America.

His ambition is to become one of the most recognized in the world and below he discusses his plan to achieve this.

How does it make you feel to have been in the shaping room for 15 years?
It feels amazing. It all started as a dream, and now it's been 15 years.

How many boards were made in this time?
Around 7.000 boards, between what was Derrem, now Milano and T. Patterson South America. I must have shaped another 3.000 for Timmy in California over the ten years I've been working with him.

How were your first boards compared to the ones you have now?
I have kept the first and second ones I made, they are relics for me, they mark the beginning of everything.

The first one isn't that bad, it's pretty neat, it was a board I made for myself and its measurements are 6'2'' x 19'' x 2 ¼''. The second one does have some defects (laughs), it was a board I made for a friend from Peru, Franco De Tramontana, but it didn't work out very well for him and I sold it to Marcelo Rodriguez, he liked it and used it in some championships.

The first ones I remember I made super deep concaves, they didn't come out 100% symmetrical, but thank God as time went by I improved and I think that from board 25-30 onwards was where I began to feel more of a connection between my mind and my hands.

"I have kept the first and second ones I made, they are relics for me, they mark the beginning of everything"

How did you decide to start making boards?
It was something I felt from the first day I entered a board factory., as if it had been predestined, it was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

Who taught you?
When I was 15, in Argentina, I worked in a surf shop in the afternoons after school. After being there for almost a year, they had to close it. The owner of the shop was Lucas Romanelli, an Argentine shaper. He asked me if I wanted to go work with him at the board factory. My answer was automatic: “Yes.”

I first started like most shapers, I was cleaning the shop (laughs), then I learned how to repair boards, sanding the edges of new boards, then I moved on to sanding full boards, I learned how to put on fin systems and the last thing was laminating. I always saw him shaping, but he never taught me that part, he told me that I had to master the rest 100% first in order to confidently reach the most important part, which is the "shape".

Then, when I arrived in Peru in 2004, I met Santiago Bóveda, an Argentine shaper who lived in Lima. I spent six months working and learning with Santi, but one day he decided to return to Argentina and that was when, with the help of my sister, I was able to buy the workshop from him. On March 23, 2005, I started shaping my first boards, which at that time were called Derrem..

What was it that attracted you to that?
What attracted me most to being a shaper was the idea of ​​being able to create with my hands and that that creation would bear my name, those boards would give people happiness.. There is something I could never figure out and that was why it caught me with so much power, sometimes I feel like it was my destiny.

You were born in Argentina, but you live in Peru. How and why did the move happen?
My mother is Peruvian and my father is Argentine, I have had a lifelong connection with Peru, I practically spent all my summers here.

In 2003 I finished high school and already knew that shaping was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, I had to choose a place to start making my dream come true. In Argentina the board industry was not very developed, Brazil was an option, but being without money, with a different language and alone, in a foreign country did not convince me. It was there that I thought: "What if I go to Peru? After Brazil it is the second country with the largest board production in South America."

"What attracted me most to being a shaper was the idea of ​​being able to create with my hands and that this creation would bear my name, those boards would bring happiness to people"

Over time, what have you identified as your strengths as a shaper?
I like to always be on the cutting edge and keep up to date, knowing what the best surfers in the world use in terms of designs and materials, I can do this thanks to my connection with California. Since 2010, every year I spend several months shaping with Timmy Patterson - shaper of the world champion, Italo Ferreira - and this gives me the opportunity to learn everything from one of the best in the world.

The constant and close feedback I give to my team riders is one of the factors that make me improve day by day. I am always aware of how they are doing in their championships, how their boards are working for them, and sometimes I travel with them to be able to get involved as much as possible in the most important moments, such as competitions.

When a board doesn't work as expected, I look for the reason for that, I analyze everything within my reach to try to solve the problem, there are times when this doesn't let me sleep and keeps me thinking all night.

What did you feel were your main weaknesses?
Without a doubt, the biggest factor was the economic factor. I started this project with zero money, which put a lot of limitations on me. It has taken me a lot of effort and years to reach the point of equilibrium that allows me to have a stable team to which I can give free boards, make good investments in marketing and research and development.

Why did you initially choose the name Derrem and then switch to your last name, Milano?
The name “Derrem” came from the combination of 2 letters from my full name (Rubén Dario) and my last name (Milano). The D stands for Dario, the “r” for how the R in Rubén is pronounced and the M in Milano. My friends from the neighborhood in Argentina called me “erre”.

"When a board doesn't work as expected, I look for the reason for that, I analyze everything within my reach to try to solve the problem, there are times when this doesn't let me sleep and keeps me thinking all night long"

The change from “Derrem” to “Milano” was not my idea, but Timmy Patterson’s. One day we were talking on the stairs of his workshop and I told him that I was bored with everyone calling me “Derrem” as if it were my name, many clients didn’t even know that my name was Dario. That’s when he said to me: “Why don’t you use your last name as a brand? Milano, it sounds elegant, Ferrari-style”, I looked at him and said: “Like Ferrari? (laughs)”. That’s how the change was born, two months later, I already had the new logo.

"Timmy Patterson is the shaper who has had and continues to have the greatest influence on me"

How did your relationship with Timmy Patterson begin?
It all started in 2010, before traveling to California for the first time to learn new things, I was talking to him on Messenger and we agreed that I would visit him. When I arrived in San Clemente, I went straight to Timmy's workshop. He started shaping a board to show me his techniques and when he finished he said to me "I have to go for a couple of hours, but there are 2 boards for you to shape." About 2 hours passed and he had finished the shapes, which had previously been cut by the machine. It took much longer than it should have, but you had to put in the maximum effort and be very detailed, he was shaping a Patterson!

Timmy came back and saw what I had done, I felt very happy and relieved when he told me ¨it's okay, we have to correct some things, but it's normal because you have to adapt to my style, I'll see you tomorrow so you can continue shaping¨.

That's how, after three months of working every day with him, he decided to give me the representation and production license for his boards for South America.

Year after year our friendship and work relationship grew stronger to the point where I became his main back-shaper every time I went to California.

Timmy Patterson is the shaper who has had and continues to have the greatest influence on me.

What do you consider to be your main achievements as a shaper?
As for achievements, 2009 was the first great year of my career as a shaper. Lolo Bellorin was crowned Latin American Open and Junior champion, Marcelo Rodriguez was runner-up in the Open, Dylan Southworth was runner-up in the Junior and almost the entire ALAS TOP 16 was riding my boards. It was a dream year.

In 2012, Luisma Iturria was crowned Latin American champion with the "T.Patterson Sudamérica" ​​and Lucas Madrid was Latin junior runner-up.

In 2017, Tomás Tudela won the QS3000 at El Gringo, it was a very special moment. It was the first international WSL competition that one of my boards won and on one of the most dangerous waves in the world.

And for now, the greatest achievement is that of Sofia Mulanovich, in 2019 when she became world champion at the ISA World Surfing Games in Japan.

And what have been your biggest mistakes?
It's hard to say, but it's also important to acknowledge and learn from it. Lack of humility and ego were the biggest mistakes I made in my life. Perhaps it was the product of the immaturity of a 25-year-old (11 years ago), but I am thankful for having realized that it was the wrong path.

Do you have a routine every time you go to shape?
Music, without a good playlist I can't shape, I feel like I'm not connecting. Then, a bottle of water and I'm ready.

How do you compare the surfboard market in Peru and Latin America today with what it was 15 years ago?Totally different, when I started the prices were different, a board cost $250 to the public and now they cost $500. The materials changed, with the closure of Clark Foam, blanks from Australia and other countries began to be used. The trend to produce boards made with EPS also began to take off, the era of epoxy..

There was practically no import of foreign boards, much less production under licenses; Latin shapers dominated their own market, and their boards did not compete against the best in the world.

In recent years you have been investing heavily in internationalising your brand. What was the aim of this desire? How is internationalisation going?
The desire points to one of my main goals, which is to one day become one of the best shapers in the world.

What I'm looking for with the internationalization of the brand is to get some elite surfers interested in the boards and start working with them. If we want to grow as a brand and reach markets where the demand for boards is greater and more frequent, we need this.

How do you see yourself in 15 years?
I hope that by shaping, being a good person and being with my family, who are the main pillar of my life.

Regarding work, I would like to be in San Clemente, California selling my boards to everyone, with some riders on the tour and who knows, maybe even with a world champion.

Which are the next steps?
Now I am very focused on continuing to improve my high performance boards for competition. A very important event is coming up for Sofia Mulanovich, which is the ISA World Championship in El Salvador (which has been postponed due to the pandemic) and providing her with the best possible equipment is my main focus now. And, God willing,, Then we will start thinking about the tables for the Tokyo Olympic Games.

And, as always, to provide our customers with the best product, service and advice.