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Goodbye to the Core Skateshop?
Do you remember the days when you would stroll down to your local skateshop to get some goods and just chill out? Remember meeting up with your friends, watching skate videos, or just hanging out and talking with the shop owner about the latest skateboard news? Chances are you do and if you are like me, you miss it dearly.
An increase in mall shops has devastatingly decreased the core skateshop that we all grew up loving. The mall shops move in and take business away from the ‘core’ skateshops. Parents take their kids to the mall and save themselves the hassle of that one extra stop by the skateshop. They would rather have there grip tape applied by some girl that has no clue what she’s doing. Not to mention in an atmosphere that has the vibe of “buy and leave” written all over it. No skateboard videos playing, no actual skateboarders working there, sometimes not even a bench to sit down and relax on.
With a core shop you can go in and pick up that extra piece of hardware you broke, and it will be on the house. You wouldn’t have to buy the whole packet and leave like you do when you’re at a corporate store.
For many professional skateboarders out there it all started with the core shop hooking them up on the shop team. That’s all disappearing now though. It’s tough enough for a core skateshop to make enough to pay the rent, let alone sponsor pros.
If I’m not mistaken there’s a golden rule that all these corporate shops are breaking. The same brands should not be sold within 5 miles of each other. It seems like this rule is a total fluke in today’s day and age when all everyone cares about is the all-might dollar. Whatever happened to exclusive and staying ‘core’?
To all of you skateboarders out there please don’t forget where we came from, the core skateshop. There’s nothing like the feeling of going to a pure skateboard shop run by real skateboarders. I can’t fully explain the feeling of being in a core shop, it truly feels like you are at your second home. Please support your local skateshop. If you have one in your area and they are still in business help them keep it that way. They are a dieing breed, a species on the endangered list if you would like to think of it that way.
Posted by Ruben 'Studdard' Najera on Thursday, March 20th, 2008 in Skateboarding.
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March 21st, 2008 at 11:07 pm
i coulden’t of said it any better myself bro, its very real and very true and at the same time very sad i remember the core shop that was right down the street from my house me and my bros would go there everyday and watch skate vids, check out the latest pro models and just chill and then go skate we were always welcome there and the skaters who worked there always had a smile on there face to greet us with when we stepped in the door not to mention always hooked us up with discounts and free gear just for being around and being good customers, that shop is no longer there, a sporting good store chain bought um out and sold the building, its a tire shop now and every time i drive by there i remember the good times and how they came and gone so for everyone out there please support your local skate shop
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