I've had this internal argument over Zumiez for about 10 years now. They suck, plain and simple, but like previously mentioned for most young people in the mid-west getting into skating it's their only option as far as trying on shoes and seeing different board sizes in person. I've accepted that skate shops are a dying business, but the ones that focused more on an online presence like Tactics or the Skatepark of Tampa kind of paved the way for the rise of Zumiez. They had a brick and mortar store where you could see all of this product in person, but they also offered an online store for people that didn't have that luxury. Zumiez had a store in every mall in America at one point, so of course children without a local shop would choose the widely known place online for cheaper shit. So if we're speaking of skate shops as a business they're pretty smart. Luckily I live in Kansas City and Escapist is one of the best shops I've been to. They'll be doing great things for the community, and I'll always support them first, but I have fallen prey to Zumiez crazy online sales. I bought three pairs of shoes for under $15 and I felt greasy doing it, but still. I also feel that their corny staff is kind of responsible for the weird youtube skateboard craze. They're so corporate and cheesy and these young kids got all hyper and excited. When I was younger at a shop, you kind of knew your place, if you did or said something stupid you got called out on it by the employees. Sorry I'm rambling. Zumiez is lame.