Nike, Adidas, & Converse all have one thing in common. THEY DO NOT BELONG ON A SKATEBOARD! As skaters all we have is ourselves to blame for it. By skateshops/real skaters rocking the swoosh before it was "the shit" we gave Nike the respect & credibility it needed to cash in. Now while the big three brands are struggling to generate enough profit to pay the salaries of top pro's they have plans to whore themselves out even further.
Let's take a moment to reflect on the past decade to properly illustrate how we have let corporate America infect our "sport" as they would refer to it. In the beginning it started off as Nike SB. Exclusive Dunk colorways that sold like crack accompanied by shoes such as E-Cue's, URL's & Angus's that you couldn't pay someone to skate in and sold like shit. Once the skateeshops were enslaved to the brand and demand was strong they brought in 6.0 and blew it out to the malls and razor scooter'ers. Then came"P-Rod by SB" which was Nike's foot in the mall's door. Next step in takeover comes in Spring of 2012 and we all have to look forward to Nike SB's in Zumiez, Journey's, and oh yes....PAC SUN. And when I say SB's in these fine retailers I mean Janoski's, Kostons...the whole line. Oh and it get's better too...I have good friends who work at Zumiez corporate (yes it's sad but true) who have confirmed there are exclusive colorways for these stores.
With that said I am all for the Lakai's, Van's, Emerica's, Es' (RIP), and hell even DC's to be successful brands in our industry once again. To see a brand like DC tossing retirement sized contracts at Cole, Mo, & maybe Nyjah or whoever else is a breath of fresh air. If we could get Koston, Janoski, Buzenits, Silas, Kenny, and Trapasso to jump to lejit footwear brands I gaurantee they could sell just as many shoes. Hell, they might even sell more & save a few skateshops in the process because then I could actually justify slipping my foot into their models.. You know skateboarding is at an all time low when brands founded on the sole principal of making products for skateboarders struggle as they go up against corporations with no roots in our culture. If we as skaters don't wake up and support core brands and local shops which are both OWNED BY REAL SKATEBOARDERS neither the shops or the brands are going to stand a chance in the future.
All I ask is that next time you step into your local skate shop think twice before swiping your Mommy's Visa card.
Or maybe it's a good thing... After all without the brainless minions rocking their swoosh's and uniforms there would be nothing seperating the lifer's from the masses.
I'm sure I will get some hate for this so rave on...