Rob & Mart Drake-Knight were born in Newport and raised in Lake and run Award-Winning Eco-Fashion brand Rapanui, as well as couple of other small startups. Their childhood was a series of crazes – tamigotchi, yo yos, pogs, rollerblading and skateboarding – but the one that really stuck was surfing. From their clifftop home they spent a lot of time surfing Sandown bay in-between school time. Entrepreneurship started early; Mart’s most successful inventions (a fold up surfboard, a wind powered street light and a d-i-y downhill go-kart) all made it to the business proposal / patent stage thanks to older brother Rob’s appetite for business.
Rapanui was their first successful venture. At 19 and 21 respectively, Rob and Mart set up their brand, which three years later makes some of the most eco-friendly clothing in the world, and have quickly grown to be one of the Islands success stories for young people, recently winning the Sustain Awards, the Sustainable Business awards and opening a new shop at 1 High Street, Sandown. They describe their business as “just another craze, but it’s got totally out of control.”
