Long before mermaids ruled TikTok filters, Eric Ducharme was ditching Florida pool noodles for hand-stitched tails, teaching himself to swim dolphin-style by age six. Today the 34-year-old artist helms Mertailor, a coastal factory-studio that ships wearable silicone fins—priced anywhere from $120 beginner flukes to $5,000 couture showpieces—to performers, photographers, and day-dreamers on every continent. Each tail begins as a clay sculpture in Ducharme’s workshop; molds are then filled with platinum-grade silicone, airbrushed into reef-bright gradients, and fitted with carbon-fiber monofins that let swimmers hit four knots without kicking up a splash.
The company’s newest splash zone is Mertailor’s Mermaid Aquarium Encounter in Crystal River, Florida: a 14,000-gallon tank where visitors watch “merfolk” glide through clouds of jack crevalle and spotted rays. Kids queue to test fabric tails in a shallow lagoon while scuba-certified staff explain buoyancy tricks and ocean conservation. “If someone leaves wanting to protect a seagrass bed, the magic worked,” Ducharme says, adjusting a crown of abalone shells before prep for the next show.
Business grew from one viral YouTube clip of teenage Eric flipping through a spring in metallic spandex. Orders poured in, and he pivoted from hobbyist foam tails to professional designs that Hollywood stunt teams and Cirque du Soleil now keep on speed dial. Still, every new pattern hits his personal test pool first. “If I can’t spin a full barrel roll without water up my nose, back to the sculpting table,” he laughs.
Ducharme’s dream client remains the Met Gala—he imagines a crimson tail sweeping the museum steps while attendants spritz glycerine “ocean spray.” Until then, he’s busy prototyping eco-silicone blends and teaching weekend workshops that pair monofin drills with breath-hold yoga. For those who grew up sketching fish scales in notebook margins, Mertailor proves you don’t have to outgrow the fantasy—you just need lungs, imagination, and a tail that fits like second skin.
