If you haven't heard, recently there has been a big debate about blank decks "ruining the industry" and the big companies are feeling threatened... So they decided to run ads appealing to you the customer, and to shops to stop buying/selling blank and shop decks, and claiming that if this trend continues, there will be fewer pro skateboarders, fewer videos, less team tours, demos, competitions, etc... The following letter is one that I sent to several people in the industry (Blitz Distribution, the IASC, and a couple other big wigs...) in response. I've posted it here as well, just to let you know my standpoint as well as hopefully to further get the word out to these companies that they've taken the wrong approach to this problem, and yes it actually is a problem. Skateboarding has died before for similar reasons, and something definitely needs to be done to fix it. Spread the word...
This is in response to your recent advertising campaign against blank and shop decks. I agree that it is a problem and I also agree that it needs to be rectified in order to ensure that we all have jobs in the skateboard industry. However, you are overlooking one major point, and that is where did the blank/shop deck market come from? I believe that there are two main reasons that prompted the rise in blank board sales.
First being the move to manufacturing boards in China by most of the big brands. As soon as everyone found out that boards were being manufactured for lower prices (and a lot of the time lower quality) with no drop in the price on the retailer and consumer level, you lost our support. With such a large drop in production costs, there should have been even a slight drop in the wholesale and retail prices, but there wasn't. Not to mention that these boards became readily available to shops for shop decks.
Secondly, the shops that helped to build your brands in the first place, independent shops, owned and operated by and for skateboarders, the blood and life line of every skate community around the world, were not given any kind of exclusivity on product from any distributor or company. Again, you're losing us further. Mall shops carry the exact same product as the indy shops, but sell at lower prices.... Sure we offer more product knowledge, and better customer service, better atmosphere, etc... But when it comes down to it, when West 49 has a sale on backpacks, or half price boards, the kids and parents flock to the mall. They have the buying power, and the advertising dollars that no indy shop can compete with.
These two things together have left indy shops with no realistic alternative to keeping our doors open then to try to find better means to pay the bills. Shop boards appeal to kids because they see they're support going to something real, and tangible, and saving them money. I don't care how you cut it up with actual dollar numbers.... If I only have to put out $1000 to make $1000, as opposed to having to put out $1500 to make $1000, which one do you think I'm going to go for? Especially seeing the lack of support from the pro companies. For example, you could have sold the mall shops team boards, and kept pro boards exclusive to indy shops, but you were greedy. Mall shops waive a big order in front of your face, and you bend over backwards.
To put out an ad like this trying to appeal to kids to support the pros, isn't going to work. The response I've gotten from most people is "f*ck them, what have they done for us? Gouge our pockets?" They see ads of pros rolling in Mercedes and BMW's and waiving money around... the average skateboarder is typically broke so your pleas are falling on deaf ears. I hope you're reading all the message boards to see what people have to say about it, because it's not looking so good for you. They want to see you thrive, but at the same time, they don't see why they should pay double the price of a blank deck for it, when they know what boards cost to make. Work with us to fix skateboarding, don't just put the onus on customers and shops. You have to show that you are doing something to fix it too aside from asking them to spend more money, because whether you want to admit it or not, you're just as much a part of the problem.
That being said, I hope that things change soon, I closed down my indoor park and shop about 6 months ago, because I lost so much money, and I've been hesitant to re-open a shop because of the current state of the industry. I still operate my online shop, and I'm still very much actively involved in my local skateboard community, and I will never stop skating (20 + years and still going strong), but if things don't change, I'm going to seek another career. Good luck, and I hope things go well.
Glen Field
Common Ground Skateboard Shop
glen@commongroundshop.com
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