Zumiez - Why They're Hated
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- Опубліковано 11 вер 2024
- Today we’re going to look at the history of Zumiez, why they’re hated by some, and whether or not that hate is warranted.
If you’ve been to Zumiez before, but didn’t know they’ve faced massive criticism from some areas of the extreme sports world, this video may interest you. My mom always took me to the mall to buy pants from Zumiez as a kid so this video was really fun and interesting to make.
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@@modernbusinesschannel Are you from Bakersfield. I noticed the skate shop image was from Bakersfield 12:33.
I feel like you’ll have at least 50k-100k subs by summer for sure, this channel started off strong!
4K subs now wtf 😭
@@res577 I am!
You neglected to mention that local skate shops run by skaters are usually the very first sponsor a skateboarder with potential will get. Without this opportunity, all of the best skaters in the world that are the driving force for the culture would have never been able to get a foothold to begin with. Zumiez doesn't sponsor skaters, therefore interrupting the cycle of skateboarding.
This is a really great point, and I definitely should’ve hit on it. Honestly not sure why i didn’t. Thank you for bringing that to my attention. Hope you have an awesome one.
Didn’t know that. Thanks coop
That doesn’t make it objectively bad to support zumiez
Tf u doin here coopie
@@sterbenodonis2772 you sound like you kiss other dudes and 34t their a22h0l3
As worker at zumiez (one of few who actually skates), I will say you did a great job explaining the company. One thing I would add, is in recent years (since covid, really) zumiez has been trending away from skate culture and closer to a “hot topic” type store. It’s sad, but that’s big corporations for you.
dude yes this the hot topic switch i noticed when there was less skate brands and more anime stuff not saying its not cool just i am seeing the relation between them and hot topic gaps slowly narrow
Yeah I see it it’s slowly turning into hot topic with anime/cartoon stuff within the mix of the merchandise they have.
Ayy I work at Zumiez too lol what store #
Agreed! Cole, in every sense possible, your point is very well made! They have shifted the store to be very trendy while keepin their toes in th extreme sports
Thats because the Collectables Market has seen massive growth for at least the last 10 years.
"Zumiez is selling what they think skateboarding is to non-skaters"... That nails it for me! I respect the business, respect what they've done, but the end result is skate culture being bastardized and sold as a "look"...
I mean, China is just going to sell fake stuff for $10 so they may as well capitalize. I can't speak for Leon because he's a dipshit, but Thrasher has gained a significant amount of income they have very obviously been dumping back into skateboarding. Enjoi has thrived because of Zumiez and kept people like Louie Barletta getting paid and keeping his team paid which leaks into the Ben Raemers foundation. Zumiez has done and still continues to do plenty for us whether its things like that or best foot forward or whatever. Name one thing Jamie Thomas has ever donated or given to an entire community.
@@kronickruesader haha but we all know Jamie is a kook..just an industry kook
@@bcutting6847 I used him as an example because over the years hes been like the biggest advocate in the community for supporting core shops etc and that was his big complaint when fallen went out of business that first time. He actually got annoyed at the last signing I went to because they were selling decks for like $75 and you could get them signed, or you could go to the wall and buy one from escapist for $50 and also get it signed so most of us did that and he complained then too lmao. Mad we gave one of the most core skate shops in the country our money instead of him directly so he could get biggie size instead of small when they went to wendys.
this was right after Chris Cole left Zero as well so he wasn't around to help keep making Jamie money so I'm sure that added to it. I think it was their first tour without Cole.
yeah i hate when people where all this skate wear and thinking its fashion but its not its just helps performance like baggy pants there not for looks just more room to move
i actually used to genuinely love the nice and colorful clothes they sold but they have gotten way too expensive and unaffordable. as a skater, i do wish they incorporated more skate stuff
yeah. they have alot of their clothes are just 75+ dollar hoodie that just has a anime character slapped on it with no orginality
I bought a teddy fresh hoodie that was almost 100$ and now after 2 years it still fits me and wear it sometimes but I'm just mad that it was so expensive and how I got ripped off for a hoodie with a teddy bear on it.
I hadn't experienced zumiez when they were cheaper, and thought them being expensive was normal, I had saved roughly 81 dollars over the course of two pay checks for one hoodie. One. though the hoodie was probably one of the most complex there with a tie-die type orange color to it. I however have missplaced it somewhere in my room and I swear on my life I need to find that thing.
I haven't gone back lately because as much as my sister who is getting into skating wants to go, I don't want her to spend all her money on things that will eat at her paychecks. So I've been looking for other more local skate stores to take her to (still looking sadly). if anyone's got suggestions, that'd be great.
@@Its_Asteria I exactly did what you did I would spend all my birthday money on Zumiez for a dumbass cat putting up the middle finger it's overpriced stuff that you can get for way cheaper on Amazon or make yourself and the skateboard are ridiculously expensive because it's all hype materials to make your board not good stuff just hype beast stuff
Yeah. You a skater
As someone who just started working for Zumiez, I completely understand. I personally don’t skate but that’s because I’ve been too scared to. I have a board and genuinely am intrigued by skating. Also, my manager is amazing, he’s been skating for 20+ years so he really cares about his customers. He tries to teach all of us (his employees) anything we’d need to know about skating and encourages us to skate if we don’t. He wants customers to get the experience they deserve bc of how bad retail has gotten. But this is the location I work at, they’re all different
That’s awesome to hear! Hope you have an amazing day
I can tag onto this, it really depends on the location/store you’re at. Zumiez management higher up can be annoying and weirdly by the book at times-but everyone who works at our store absolutely adores our dorky ass store manager and the environment is drama free and just generally a good time. It’s the karens, creeps, and annoying danny duncan teens that can kill it lmao
haha poser take a tylenol & grow up
I went to zumies once to get a blank deck and new trucks,wheels, bearings and some new shoes. I was finally getting back into skating cause I didn’t have money for a long time. After I purchased everything I asked if he could put my board together cause I didn’t have any tools at the house and I wanted to hit the park on the way home and he laughed and said “I love when hipster kids come buy whole boards and can’t even put them together”. I was like bruh lmaoaooa how you gonna say that to a customer
And that's when you promptly walk out of the store with your stuff, grab some lunch and a fat soft pretzel, then return all of the gear you just bought. That kind of behavior is unacceptable.
That actually pisses me off so bad
bruh probably doesn’t know how tbh
Because you're a poser lol
I've never met a more closed-minded group of people than skaters.
On one hand, I always purchase board from my local shop before I'd consider going to a Zumiez. But on the other hand, in the 15 years I've skated I've been seeing more gatekeeping happen in the community despite all the progress I've seen skateboarding achieve. Like the infighting and politics shouldn't matter as long as you have a genuine love for skating first and foremost.
SUPPORT YOUR ZUMIEZ KILL THE GATE KEEPERS
@Purrington Wiskerton SKATHEIST
@@sheanroche2548 I know youre joking but how is he a skatheist.
@@rohdger3390 and on the fifth day god said "history shows again & again how nature points out the foley of man" - Proverbs BOC 3:00
tbh i only go shop at zumiez because of the fact my local shop closed and the closes skate shop is quite farther that's why I also buy some shit online
My local mall had a “cosmic” in it before zuimez. Cosmic wad amazing the associates were dope and let you skate around the store. The store was laid out open with everything on the wall so you could skate in the store. The people who worked there all skated, and even though it wasn’t a local skate store it was the closest thing to it.
When zuimez came to the same mall they ran Cosmic out of business because they crowded its floor with more merchandise that appealed to a larger demographic of people. No more skating in the store though and the associates didn’t skate. Your video hits the problem on the head
I've never understood the whole "poser" thing. I've got physical issues from a snowboarding accident so I can't skate anymore. Idgaf if people wear skate brands, don't care if they hang out at the parks even if they don't skate. People come at me sometimes asking me why I don't skate, and why I'm at the park if I'm not a skater. Let people enjoy what they want ffs.
The thing is about hanging out at a skatepark is that it often eats space to an already small skatepark if the town isn't too big so that really is an annoyance for skaters who actually want to do line and stuff
@@smashypixel4188 I can move out the way damn 😩
@@smashypixel4188 obviously if you're standing in the middle of everything you shouldn't be there. I'm talking about ppl chilling and just watching. They aren't hurting anything.
for real! i'm very into extreme sports and almost all my friends skate or do some type of extreme sport but i don't. and they always fully appreciate me being their to support them :)
it’s really entertaining, i’m learning how to skate but when i go watch and someone ask me why i’m even there, it kinda makes me feel not welcomed
As a current manager at zumiez, i understand the frustration local skate shops have with the company. however there are times where certain areas don’t have access to a skate shop or skating community and all they have is zumiez. But this video definitely had a lot of great points and i happen to actually skate too
this right here!, when I was first skating I was born/raised in a small town and there was no skateshops except for a little tattoo shop 30 miles away that had a few boards and they were VERY expensive, I would literally have to travel across the state when my family would go on vacations to at least get a 35$ blank board (and I made sure to make it last long) [This was before online was popular to buy from]
later in the years zumies finally showed up in a mall 40 miles away from me and there was a huge burst of new skaters in the bigger city's and now it was WAYY easier to get products. Zumies literally changed the skate culture in a very positive way from my local area where I lived at as a kid
I didnt even knew there was hate for zumies because it did a lot of net positives for the local skate scene here.
👢👅
Personally for me, what offset me from buying there was the employees. They gave off this "I don't want to be here, so i am not going to help you" attitude. On top of that, their merch is way too expensive. So is it really catered to the typically poor skater?
@@TheSyconerd no the only skate brand they sell now is thrasher the rest is wanna be trash
0
Idk who came up with the idea of the zumiez stickers.. but it was absolute genius marketing, even if on accident. Those stickers were EVERYWHERE. I was into the “scene” look in high school I had those stickers all over all of my school supplies. Obviously everyone who was even semi alternative had them all over their stuff. And so then even the preppy kids were asking where to get them, and wanted them on their stuff.
* I remember me and my friends would go get a bunch of them and then go into hollister, Abercrombie, etc and put them on the big photos of models in the stores lol we thought we were sooo bad ass.
I highly agree with this comment. Zumiez stickers were EVERYWHERE
I had no idea i was watching a channel with 80 subs this video is very well made. You got mine
Appreciate that so much! Have a good one
Agreed idek how this ended up in my recommended but baller quality bro keep it up
Keep up the good work. Uploading a video evry week is a lot better then most channels you will make it
I didn't even realize there's only a little over 100 subscribers until the OP mentioned it. The quality of the videos are like what you see with the major channels that have millions of subscribers. Just off the strength of the quality alone I subbed immediately, but the content is very interesting as well. This channel will inevitably prosper in no time 👏
Within almost two weeks the channel has reached from 80 to 300 subs 👀🔥🔥
I remember when zumiez came to the mall in my home town. I think it helped grow the skating community by making it more accessible and affordable. I think we were lucky to have them come to our mall, the impact was pretty positive. Also couch tour was awesome idk why the ever cancelled that
Zummiez sucks because it’s not skateboarding style it’s 2016 style😂
I do enjoy how accessible they've made skating for the average lil tike
@@skatingwithIuke Yeah honestly. A couple days ago I went to go run an errand at my local mall and I decided to pop my head into the Zumiez they have there, mind you this prior I haven’t genuinely stepped foot in there for about 2 years and honestly going back there again in 2 years felt like I was 13 again in a bad way like honestly everything felt outdated like a Ross
Zumiez is so so unnecessarily expensive, I promise you. My local skate shop is not like cheap but then yet it’s not unnecessarily expensive, one time when I was 13 i went to a Zumiez trynna buy a thrasher hoodie and I didn’t have the sufficient money and then when I went to the local i was able to purchase it
@@babyenzo.
I do have to say that Thrasher hoodies are usually overpriced in general
We had a local shop in my town that was there even way before I moved in. Owned by a super rad retired pro from the 80s a real OG of the sport. He was the only shop in town. Nothing crazy but a nice local shop for the community and successful enough to support his family. That store was there at least twenty years and going strong. Zumiez moved into the mall and the shop had to close less than a year later. They just couldn't compete. It's a shame just how much of an impact a corporation can have on a small business community in such a short time.
I worked at Zumiez from 2007 - 2011 in Texas. I skated and really enjoyed the work environment. Helping kids pick out their very first skateboard and showing them how to build it was really cool. Also if you were in the top 1000 top sellers of the company you got to go on a free snowboarding trip in Keystone Colorado (and got a bunch of free gear). This was called 100K and I got to go 3 years in a row. All that being said, I'm 31 now and I recently went into a Zumiez just to remember old times and the store has changed a lot. It does seem as though they have moved away from skate/snowboard culture and is now only about "the look", just fashion. I still have a love for Zumiez but I can definitely see why it can be seen more as a poser shop now.
i just quit working at zumiez over a month ago after working there since Nov. of 2020
i agree w you on the environment being fun but also it gets less fun when your commissions are stolen and you get paid below minimum wage. and also its like 99% streetwear and thats about it
the skate section at the location i worked is microscopic at best
Sounds like they HAD to shift away from the skating gear because the "cool kids" decided they were too corporate. What are they supposed to do?
@@mercster It all comes down to the bottom line.
100K 2007 was crazy fun. 😁
I’m hoping to go to 100k next year. This last one they had ludacris and everything
As a skater myself, I honestly feel indifferent to those whole debate about Zumiez. Here in Connecticut, the only places that have Core shops are in Berlin, New London and Avon (The latter being mostly a sports store but does boast an impressive roster) From where I am, it's nearly impossible to reach those locations without big trips. Zumiez for me is really convenient and it's the only place for me to get cupsole shoes without having to order from out of state vendors online (The local shops only carry Vulcanized shoes which I personally cannot skate in anymore.)
I understand the hatred for Zumiez and can see where it does come from but at the end of the day the one thing to realize is, money dictates everything. Skateboarding is indeed founded on rebellion and being creative. But sadly, it's money that drives the expansion products and improvements in the community. While I do personally don't like Zumiez taking over all shop scenes and essentially flushing out the Core shops, sadly, people need to work and some Core shops aren't too keen on letting outsiders in to work for them.
We have one in Manchester too at the mall it’s not that good either tho lmfao
@@TheRealBlackKen_ I know, that is my go to place if I can't make it to the local joints. Surprisingly the employees that I talk to are mostly skaters who go through decks and shoes. I can't speak for all other locations though.
That means you have opportunity to create a real skateshop. If all you have is Zumies I feel bad for you bro.
Yea I live in ct too I go to the one in the waterberry mall
Its really hard for New England in general unless you live in boston, or some other major city.
I was recruited into Zumiez when I worked at vans next door when I was 17, they liked my charisma but I don’t know anything about skating or snowboarding except of the general concept, working at Zumiez were my favorite years and I learned to skate, longboard and snowboard along with a lot of history, I dedicated my time teaching people who weren’t familiar with the culture instead of focusing on my sales which ended up helping my sales anyways because people would come back to buy gear, I loved the culture of helping people who are new to skating and snowboarding
I love zumiez because it has clothes from brands that I can never find in most places. Brands like A Lost Cause and Broken Promises are amazing and I wouldn't have discovered them if zumiez wasn't around.
fr my whole beveled collection is from zumies tbh (rastaclats)
When I stared skateboarding 14 years ago I was young and inexperienced . My mom drove me to the only skate store I knew which was Zumiez. So is where I went to buy my first skateboard and shoes, the employee basically picked out everything for me. Once I understood more of the culture and progressed in my skills. I went to an actual Skateshop in my city. The difference was immense. It was like stepping from a McDonald’s to a locally owned restaurant, with friendly and helpful owners/employees. I continued to shop and support this local store for many years after. Some say that stores like Zumiez are important because they gets kids into the sport but I disagree. It’s continuing to be involved in skateboarding is what matters, and that’s what locally owed Skateshop do that Zumiez does not. Might get people to buy a skateboard but how many of those people continue in the sport, from my experience not many. Sadly many locally owed Skate shops like mine are forced to close due to not being able to compete with prices of stores like Zumiez.
i agree, the older guys that i grew up around at the local shop taught me a lot. that place was somewhere me and my friends would go to hang out and skate in the back or even sometimes inside if the owner was being nice lol a place like zumiez will never be able to have that impact. everyone has a different experience though
It depends. I work at a zumiez in a smaller town in Tennessee. It’s the only skate place for miles. All my coworkers skate and we take it very seriously when it comes to our customers. We have regulars come in. Seeing kids come back in over the years. Customers bonding with certain employees to always build and adjust their board. So definitely support local skate shops. But when you are in places like mine where skating isn’t big and we are the only shop, we help keep the community alive in our area. And we all love seeing ppl start it. Girls, kids. Heck we’ve even got some moms on cruisers so they can try it with their kids. So that’s my experience. But That’s the perspective of a really tight knit employee base and smaller town.
the problem with the locally owned skateshop is that A, the "friendly staff" experience is entirely random. The employees at these shops are just as likely to be elitist and condescending as they are to be likeable, helpful, and friendly. the second, and im aware that its largely Zumiez and other big companies fault, but the price point was just too much. you need to replace your deck? 35 at zumiez and 50 at the local shop. they are convenient and affordable, the basic equation for retail success.
this is all from the pov of a guy who was good friends with the owners of the local skateshop, as their son was my friend from elementary school.
what was the store you found? if its in the Utah davis county area, I'd like to take my younger sister to it, she's getting into skating and I wanted to make sure I found her something... better than zumiez but haven't found any local ones (yet)
Very well said- it’s about continuing to be involved in skating and maintaining that passion in the local community
I used to work at Zumiez. Honestly one of the least fun jobs I have ever had. We had to memorize a huge booklet on how to interact with customers. Talking to customers was extremely superficial and based purely on getting them to buy as much product as humanly possible. also finding shoes and climbing ladders to get them was exhausting.
Any retail job bro
Have you heard of worker discretion? Some rules you just don’t follow for the well-being of the customer
oh no not a ladder... 🙄
As someone who has won a Zumiez Best Foot Forward competition I have to somewhat disagree with the hate. Every year Zumiez throws contests all over the US and then takes all 10-15 winners from every stop and throws the most fun skate contest. They pay for every skaters flight, hotel, food and gave us spending money. Yeah they're a huge corp but they've taken care of a lot of skaters who are AM and Pro today.
Thats awesome and Major props to them for that level of support. My problem with them is, You can't go in any store anymore and buy things like and anti hero hat, a zero belt, or a birdhouse hoody. I saw Carhart and Champion being sold there and was really turned off by that. I still go look at decks since i collect and I'll get a spitfire shirt or some shoes but it's just like any other trendy store out there in my opinion. Congrats on winning by the way.
@@jamescastle1327 I used to buy zero decks from Zumiez and they don’t ever carry them anymore so I have to order them online.
That's ALL they do a year ? Based on there net worth they should be doing A LOT more.
@@brocksamson9737 not since Covid but they did at least 15 -20 stops around the United States then host a Finals somewhere where they flight out all the winners.
Don't be a shill yeager
As a manager at a zumiez. I’d say it all really depends on the zumiez and area you go to For example. The store I work at has a huge community of skaters that come thru. We love to support them and try to create a sense of community for them. We just started hanging up broken and old boards that the skaters bring in when they get new boards and it has had a positive impact. Karen’s are the biggest issue. Not skaters
I want to pet your profile picture. Or I'm just afraid of it.
Average Zumiez manager pfp
Which "comic" is the pfp?
@@carldalord lmfao, I was gonna say. Certainly checks out
@@Reiilmao😂
Zumiez surely doesn't deserve the hate it gets from the community. As someone who skates out of Toronto, Ontario Canada - I'd love to tell the story of three shops (at one point) present in the city; two old, one new.
Hogtown Skateshop was the classic bastion for "cool" boardsports in the city. The people that worked there often thought they possessed privileged opinions and the owners were blatantly rude to new and old skaters alike if they didn't fit the mould, so to speak. It's the kind of shop you'd go into to get your board tuned up after skating downtown, and be chastised for even having deck graphics. The kind of place where instead of welcoming you at the door, you'd often receive cringes from employees. The kind of place that never had significant sales, never cared about the consumer, hardly cared about the community, and rarely did any event notable enough for me to show up.
Hogtown died in 2015. Barely anyone cared. They were the oldest skateboard shop in the city of Toronto.
Zumiez? They showed up around 2013 in Canada and immediately received disdain from the skateboarding community at large here. Why? It was corporate, it was cheap, and I'd go so far to say - it was friendly. You could go in and get your board tuned and might have to deal with an employee not fully versed in the art of gripping, or installing rails, or even skateboarding in general. What you did receive from those employees overwhelmingly however, was someone acknowledging your presence and treating you like a human being. Honestly it might help more local skateshops if they actually trained their employees. I can tell that Zumiez at least trains them in customer service and it goes a long way. I still buy from Zumiez occasionally when I need a cheap deck or parts. I have no shame in admitting that. I'm not a rich man, I'm a skateboarder - and frankly Idgaf past how big the hole in my wallet is.
The oldest skateshop in Toronto is now So Hip it Hurts. The shop is run by a team of great people and I am in no way sponsored or endorsed by them to say that. The owner is an extremely nice guy who actually skates, actually treats people with respect and runs his shop the right way. Take notes, prospective skate shop owners. So Hip is literally positioned in one of the highest rent neighbourhoods in the city and country, but survives because they do it right.
My 2 cents.
edit: Shout out to Hammer Skateshop because I should have mentioned them as well. Another fantastic Toronto shop.
This was a fun read, thank you
I love so hip
@iLoveJackingOn No there are quite a few, actually. I'm mostly naming the big ones. Other goodies are Blue Tile Lounge, Longboard Living (for longboarders), and Brockton Haunt. The rest are lifestyle stores masquerading as skate shops.
yooo I live in toronto to and have been skateboarding for a while I'm surprised I never heard about hogtown considering I was still semi skateboarding in 2014 (I've been skateboarding a lot in the last 2 years) but yeah I love so hip the energy and employes there are always nice and blue tile is also good but i feel a little bit out of place there maybe because I respect the people who skate for them more Idk
I love Hammer! Great shop. Unfortunately I moved into the sticks so the closest shop to me is, you guessed it, Zumiez at the mall.
honestly i can see the point of needing their employees to skate. My firts board was from zumiez and it was heavy and hard for a beginner. but i was told it was good because "it was the brand that made tony hawk's board" but later on i got a board for free someone gave away and it was much more beginner friendly. the board and advice matters
Started skating when I was 9, and my dad took me to a local skate shop to get set up with my first deck. It was an awesome experience because the store associate actually knew what he was talking about and could work with my dad to get me the best first setup. I still have that deck all these years later (it's definitely beat up) because it holds a special spot in my heart. The shop went out of business in 2009 sadly...
Lots of business went out in that time
Exactly why I always liked local shops, they would help you in ways Zumiez couldn’t. Ask a Zumiez employee what size deck would work for you and they can’t tell you
I bought my first two real boards at Sessions in Sunnyvale CA. I had to skate for 45 minutes to get there.
Exact same story for me, down to Hogtown in Toronto at the fresh age of 8 lol. Got to see big brother magazines, classic skate vids playing on the tv, and the scariest motherfuckers I'd ever seen helping my set up my first board.
if this is the shop I think it is "special sauce" in NY?
The last time I went into Zumiez was like a month ago and I remember seeing a ton of White Castle merch and I literally said to my friend “who is this for???” like I can’t imagine any skater wearing head to toe White Castle logos 💀
I would wear that for laughs, honestly
@@Spaghetti742 you could also get a matching board to complete the look🥴🍔🛹
@@eddiethewhale3268 Get a friend and we cosplay as harold and kumar LOL
@@Spaghetti742 omfg😭
The burger place?
I remember when I first found zumiez. it was like 2005-2006 and I had just moved to AZ and was starting 7th grade at a new school. there was this girl at my new school with the same name as me but she was like a human personification of "skateboard" and me being my awkward self thought she was so cool (because she was lol) but anyways, she had a seemingly endless supply of zumiez stickers that she had all of her binders, notebooks and folders absolutely covered with them and she would stick them all over my school and I had no idea what it was until I went to mall and saw the store. (the nearest mall was like 30 mins from where I lived so I rarely went there)
but of course I didn't actually start shopping there until I became an adult and started buying my own clothes because they're so expensive my mom couldn't justify it lol other than maybe one outfit and a pair of shoes once a year for school clothes shopping.
You're spooky.
I used to go to Zumiez sometimes in the early 2000's because they had good deals on shoes and skate shirts etc. I went in to one the other day and eeessh I definitely felt the hot topic vibe when I walked in there. Not to mention how everything there is a competition for the employees which is why you get overwhelmed with the amount of employees who will not stop trying to sell you things.
“If you need anything let me know.”
Ikr? I feel like they are following me around, it’s creepy.
@@robo-dale3746 it’s modern day corporate stuff. It’s bad but we live in that reality. It’s something you gotta get used to so you can eventually work to fix things
That's what I hated about hottopic they always hovered
used to work at a zumiez, yeah, that's the problem with the store as one who was on the 'bottom line'. I applied to make connections and learn/hone my skating skills with likeminded people. i wasn't taught anything, was told to grip decks with no experience/nobody showing me how to do it *properly*, just make the sale. left shortly after that. it was just about metrics.
My biggest problem with zumiez is that they price out their “core” audience. I use to hit the asphalt with jeans I knew I would fuck up and comfy shirts I would sweat in, but it still felt chill enough to catch the bus, meet up with friends, or hangout before. Now I walk in and it’s like $80 pants, $50 shirts, “skate brands” that sold out.
Buy when they have a sale. They just had a sale in June buy one get one 50% off and additional 50% off. I picked up so many pair of shoes and T-shirt at a discount.
I find that a lot of these kind of stores aren't so much 'hated' as much as they simply outgrow their original target audience. Hot Topic and Zumiez both fall under this sort of category for me. While it still has some of it's roots, the general atmosphere and feel of the stores has been somewhat modernized/changed from what it might've felt like 20 years ago.
For the record, this is the most surface level analysis I could've ever come up with on this topic. If something is general or inaccurate, that might be why.
As a skater, you're right about everything we think about. We make jokes about getting someone to grip your board at Zumiez 😂 If they would sponsor local skaters, it would fix their image with the skater community 🤔
💯 The amount of times I’ve got a board from zumiez and ask for the grip separate but then some young girl working the counter that obviously doesn’t skate says she’s a “pro” so I let her do it and then I have bubbles in the grip when I leave smh
@@danielaupperle thats such an easy thing to do too. were they small enough to pop with a pin?
@@danielaupperle she said shes a pro simply because she tested on it and the manager said "good enough". i used to work there and thats exactly how it all went down
theres like a list of things to test on, one being building a board, and then "yay you can be a manager now"
I remember my friend and I pretty much getting chased out of the store by some neckbeard employee for just browsing.
Similar thing happened at a Vans store too. An employee tried to insult the living shit out of me and my friends for the shoes we were wearing, to get us to buy some new Vans.
People are weird lol.
Those were definitely just some really whack-ass employees. Sorry you had those experiences bro that’s so shitty
@@badbrisket Haha its all good man. Any other time at Zumiez, the employees were always friendly.
that's why i'm usually unsure to shop at zumiez because I've ran into several unfriendly people there 💀
yeah, sure trevor, i'm sure you and your friends were just browsing and totally not antagonizing the employees. nope, not a chance. i guess they just didn't like your vibes... lol
@@snowcloudshinobi Honestly we weren't lol.
I think zumiez has headed in a very different direction since its skateboarding era. its more of a hype beast streetwear shop for teenagers now. it has a lot of cool edgy clothing that other stores simply don't provide.
Skateboarding gave birth to “street wear”
As a former zumiez employee and addict (I got one of their couches if you need proof) this is so spot on! You killed this! I think best foot forward is worth mentioning as it is their attempt at correcting this image with skaters but killer video man!
I have been an employee of zumiez for almost 5 years and have been skateboarding for 12 years and still going. I think the criticism of using skate culture as a commodity is valid however what I tell people is that it’s where many skateboarders start. When I started skating I was gifted a board from big 5 which was plywood, plastic trucks, with a big sticker as the graphic. Zumiez was the only skate shop around and is where I got my first real board. And as I worked with zumiez and customers would come in I would give them the truth and if that meant plugging the local skate shop which had only shown up recently, than I would direct them there. Obviously I can’t speak for every other employee out there and some that I’ve worked with, but I honestly believe skateboarding wouldn’t be where it is without zumiez. People have to start somewhere and the convenience of corporate skating acts as a stepping stone to what skate culture and local skate scenes offer.
Appreciate your insight
I mean there’s also Amazon and the internet…. So idk boards in my opinion are cheaper online.
Only shop around? Or were they the only shop left after they killed the core shops?
@@timothygarcia3192 most people probably dont know what parts to buy nor will they want to look into that when they first get started. If i had to choose between buying some prebuilt shit and going to zumiez.. id pick zumiez. zumiez will actually build a board for you and they're kinda decent.. not top quality by any means.. but if you get an employee that actually skates.. thats gonna help a lot. most people who dont know if they actually like it yet or not arent gonna spend the time looking into things as extensively as a skater might. some people also just dont like the idea of ordering online.. those sorts of people are becoming rarer and rarer now.. but its the truth. also im gonna be real.. knowing my generation lol (gen z).. half of these people wouldnt know how to put a board together anyways.. let alone what tools to use and all that.. so it really aint the worst option.
@@timothygarcia3192 Amazon decks aren’t regulated to size standards well. Also tell a brand new skater who knows nothing to buy all the parts and assemble it themselves with no help. Sounds crazy
i'm a manager at zumiez, so i definitely have some bias, but before that i had been shopping there for years prior, growing up i always loved skate and especially snowboard culture so it was cool to have a store near me that i could walk in and actually enjoy.
a lot of the "superficial" feel of the store and the products they sell is completely understandable, and a most days when we get product in i get upset because of how disconnected some of it is, but its important to acknowledge what a lot of these points in the comments were about, which is typically "i don't have a local shop around me, but there was a zumiez" which is exactly how it was for me, it was the only place in a 50 mile radius where i actually felt like i fit in to some degree in my stupid child mind lmao.
i used it as a place to escape while my family went into places like forever 21 and just hang out and not feel bastardized.
(where i grew up and still live is very very against skating and skate culture)
even with all this i'm still huge on supporting local shops, one or two have popped up in my area and i tell people about them all the time. i think the best way to look at zumiez especially nowadays is a great place to start, no parents want to take their kid to some hidden skate shop in an alley but they loooooove going to the mall so it's an easy way to get started, and we see that a lot and i love it!
there are a lot of things about the company i'm not big on, like how they care more about making money than getting people into skating but once you look past big tom look at the workers, a lot of workers aren't genuine at all and don't know a thing then there's store where if it was a different name you would even guess its a zumiez, like my shop. the store manager has been skating for 20 years and all of the workers at least skate to some degree, and it's great! we get a lot of skate regulars from parks near by and we hear all the time that we're one of the only good zumiez shops.
A lot needs to be changed and that's obvious, but whenever you see a zumiez logo it drives me nuts that people get angry even though it's a huge way people start off skating nowadays, and it's kind of funny how upset people get that they get started at one specific business when bottom line they're joining the community that has taken SO LONG to become accepted by the masses.
bottom line i completely get the anger behind the community as the company as a whole, but just be excited more people could be getting into the thing you fight so hard to protect! you love the community, so act like it
also yea i know how overpriced some of our clothes are trust me it drives me nuts too i'm the one that has to listen to your mom yell at you for wanting it
You realize there isn't a local shop around becuase of zumiez right?
My best friend worked for Zumiez for a couple of years as a sales-person at one of their PNW stores. He got to the point where he was in the top 50 sales people in the entire company due to his charming personality, enthusiasm, and the fact that he knew a LOT about skating and could actually help people set up their boards in the shop, pick the right parts, etc.
He told me all the time about how he was getting sick of selling shirts that say "FUCK YOU" to 12 years and shit like that. Since ZUMIEZ is such a trend-chaser in their purchasing methodology, their ability to inject into a community and put their own twist on the products goes beyond action sports. There are tons of young kids who naturally think that streetwear, skate culture, and the "big kids" are all cool in their shitty little kid perspective - so they want to shop "where those people shop" (but as you've pointed out: DON'T) they end up as another demographic that companies like ZUMIEZ can target a sell utter bullshit too because they know that they can. Suddenly the store has more vapid trend-chasing Zoomer kids, and Boomers doing Christmas shopping for their Simp hypebeast son than you do people who just wanna buy certain brands because they genuinely, unironically, and without a desire to fit in - LIKE THE CLOTHES. But when you go to a store and don't even feel like you can't even relate to the other customers - you feel cheated.
In general, I think a lot of people hate on ZUMIEZ because it's turned into that is causing bad trends to proliferate, more posers to emerge, and more throwaway fashion in general. Lame products = lame society that wants more lame products so long as their emotional needs are met in the short term, over and over, and over until the landfills are in our back yards. And then we will skate that shit.
I like Primitive ... 🤕
For such a cool laid back guy, you sound very judgmental about everyone else.
@@mercster I'm sorry that I've had such a negative impact on your life.
@@Kekkndslgnlwnh nah dude, I feel like as an anime fan, that Primitive shit should piss you off. I was excited to see some stuff in there at first until I noticed that Primitive MUST superimpose their shitty branding all over the artwork. Just get the anime shit from some other legitimate source, Spencer’s and HT sell official anime merch without it having that bs all over it
Edit: the boards are an exception but I’ve heard they’re of a lesser quality for whatever reason, I’m no expert. But screw the clothing they have lol
@@mercster You have successfully described the average "skater"
Zach did make some good points though, I have to say.
ima manager at a zumiez in GA, and i really wanna open my own local shop someday. it was so sad to see Zumiez come into my town and kill all 3 of the local skate shops off, I had no other choice but than to join them if I wanted a skateboarding related job in my area.
Killed all 3? That’s sad
@@modernbusinesschannel one of them was an indoor skatepark/skate shop combo too it was so cool :[
rip progessive and ambush and shooting star
Kota,
You should look into Coast Board Shop in Chico, California. The old GM of the Zumiez in that city literally opened a shop in the same mall Zumiez is in and they do a mix of online and on premise sales.
Because she worked at Zumiez she knew exactly what sold and was able to incorporate that experience into the shop which if you look at both the stores there store puts Zumiez to shame.
i work at a zumiez in tn! hi neighbor
I've been kinda diving into a lot of skate related videos, About the culture business aspects etc. The number 1 interesting aspect that I've seen that almost everyone has in common is skaters seems to genuinely hate or dislike anything related to making money and not necessarily putting it back into the community. Which I just think is weird to me. Having use to skate myself in my teen years I never really cared on who or what is making money. As long as I had a board and homiez to skate with that was all that mattered at the end of the day. I feel like if you dive into the logistics and start to gatekeep due to shopping at X or Y store and getting teased or whatever just seems to put the complete opposite message out there for that community vibe. Not only that but you did mention that Zumiez couch tour and I vaguely remember back when I was like 14 I went to one of those in Washington and remember seeing my favorite skate team there which was the Enjoi skate team. Was super cool to see them out there and sign a couple boards and not only that but I also am now remembering I hardly even watched the event after the team was done skating and for the rest of the event I was in a moshpit of skaters just playing Skate over and over with my broken arm for hours. To me thats what skateboarding was not really anything related to money or what company was providing x or y items or accessories for skating. Zumiez was honestly the goats from my teen years and I don't think the hate is warranted by anyone over not really progressing the community forward.
I'm not a skater or anything, but I always shopped at Zumiez simply because I liked the clothes. As I got older there were a few incidents where people called me a poser or something like that, even though I have never claimed or pretended to be a skater. Even a friend was once confused when I said I didn't skateboard, simply because she knew I really liked vans and often wore brands sold at Zumiez. I don't really get it tbh. I've always viewed Zumiez as a clothing store more than anything. I mean, the clothes are what's in the entire front half of their stores. Any actual sport equipment is in the back. It's obvious their main goal is to sell clothing and attract customers with their clothing. They're a mall store, they were never some kind of special skaters-only store. They don't make you do a kickflip to gain entry. They're a clothing store.
Poser
Hypebeast
Skaters are gonna hate it but skateboarding, snow boarding and most of those "action" sport have been dying for years. Skating is nowhere as large as it was during the 90's and Tony hawk era.
It's also not an "outsider" sport anymore so you can buy all the best skateboarding gear online for bassicly the same price or even less if you have Amazon Prime. It's really hard for box stores to complete with the versatility of online.
I'll be honest, literally a poser. No, really, you're in Webster's, I'm 50 and know this. It's okay though, live it.
Lul poser
I think that zumiez is a gift, there are NO skate shops near me besides zumiez, so many people have gotten into skating because of them, it might not be a true skate shop, but it’s a perfect accessible entry level
i work at zumiez and am a skater i feel like,
1. yes zumiez should do more community stuff i get that
2. we seem to sell more clothes than skate stuff, i open the fitting room more than i open the skate counter
3. i feel like walking into zumiez gets you excited about seeing the boards yk and is a good place to get started, and then as you delve deeper into skate culture than it’s easier to go local
4. joining the skate skate community can be really hard. a lot of skaters gate keep and are unhelpful or rude. getting back into skating was really hard because the people honestly were so mean about it. and god forbid i ask for help on how to build my board i’d get bs answers.
5. at my store at least, you’re taught how to build a board at least before you actually do it. so some might not know what exact items to help you grab, but we can at least find someone who can actually properly put the board together. since skaters were scary when i asked for help, if i wasn’t going to build the boards before myself i would’ve most likely asked someone at zumiez to
A Zumiez store recently opened in a mall that I go to frequently, and I feel like another hot topic store. The first time I went there, I didn't even know it was a skate shop. All of the skateboarding gear was in the very back and it mostly was selling anime graphic tee's and trendy clothes.
I actually had no idea Zumiez is supposed to be specifically catered to the extreme sports market, other than skateboarding. I went in there for the first time recently because they had some cool anime shirts. It made me assume the store is like… a version of hot topic or something. Great video!
I had a similar experience when I went into a Hot Topic for the first time because I saw Doctor Who stuff. Looked around and wondered why everyone was dressed all scene for some nerd store.
When I started skating I had never really heard of Zumiez, but skating wasn’t really big in the area. The one skate shop we did have was also part piercing and weed shit, so it was tough to convince my mom to take me to get my first board. We moved to a place with a zumiez and by that time I had broken a foot and never really got back into skating because of it. Zumiez is really just a clothing store for me with some neat but pricey shirts. It seems kinda wack to get a board or tape there if you have a Local shop.
I loved Zumiez when I was a teen, me and my friends were skate boarders, there wasn't a local shop near us, so it was cool seeing a store that catered to us, plus they had a game cube and playstation 2, and the staff was super chill
yo! zumiez employee here :) this was really cool to see! i started working there to further my knowledge about skating and the community surrounding it (which seems kinda redundant after watching this lol). i try my best to be as genuine as possible with the customers that come in and if anyone has any doubts about our products or anything i heavily encourage them to shop local. after this im going to try my best to incorporate some more of the skate principles outlined here into my work. thank you for this! the most important thing is getting young skaters out there fo sho!
Thank you for watching! Loved reading this
At least Zumiez is more for the culture than Supreme is at this point. It feels like they are all hype and have forgot their roots
@@palmtreewhisperer Supreme is the king of cringe in skateboarding right now. I don't think anything even comes close.
@@thepancakemann apart from their skate team do kinda slap and they do come out with some sick parts icl
so you dont skate, you just push merch for the corpos? gross....
I love Zumiez. I became pretty good friends with the manager and two workers of my local shop, who all actually do skate. I mostly buy Odd Future, Primitive, or Lurking Class stuff. And three of my boards have come from that store. Honestly it's a cool place
Honestly as a skateboarder I can say my distain for Zumiez comes fron two places. 1. Pushing what was an smaller subculture into the main stream and 2. Taking business from smaller, local skate shops. I remember going in there at 11 and asking someone to grip a board for me... I was shown the door.
Now that I'm in my 30s and have watched Hot Topic become a literal meme in real time, Watched Pac Sun go from a very skate centered store to a Store that is for Rich preppy Whores and Zumiez becoming exactly what it is now, I hate that so many excusice alternative spaces/Subcultures became mainstream and open to anyone who just suddenly claimed to be there the whole time. And by those people, I ment the Sound cloud/New age rap crowd. Along with Anime becoming the GO TOO entertainment of late Gen Z and what we used to call "Normies".
When something becomes mainstream and for "Everyone", It always becomes bland and boring. As well as losing any of its specialness that it once held. Which is sad. And I am shocked it happened so fast and almost with no warning. Because I remember in the very early 2010s, I had met the last of my alternative friends, and Zumiez and skate culture was still what I knew it as, as well as Hot Topic being what it always was. But then around 2014, everything switched and Anime was king, Rap was the default music heard in Zumiez and Pac Sun, Clothes began to become low effort and safe, There was no more Alterantive crowd anymore and Skate culture was pretty much rap culture out of no where. And now we are here....
this video is well made keep it up 🙏🏽
Thank you so much!
Wow verified with a single video and a single word name, pretty suspicious...
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The last time I was at a Zumiez it was me and my wife. We walked in and proceeded to look around. There were two girls working there and neither of them ever said a single word to us. They just continued their own conversation without even bothering to ever check to see if we needed help or even to greet us when we walked in. So that was the last time we ever went to Zumiez.
When my brother was in high school, he loved skating and worked at zumiez and told us about how none of his coworkers skated lmao
and that still goes on
imo its a lot of the gatekeeping snobs that absolutely despise zumiez. there's a local near me that I go to but I will admit its a lot more expensive than what zumiez offers. i always say "if you can, buy local, but if it isn't in your budget and you really want to skate, zumiez is fine" no one's gonna know unless you tell them.
Its the same thing that happens to a lot of brands. You find a niche to grow in, but eventually you reach a point where you can either continue to cater to your niche and stagnate, or continue to grow at the risk of alienating your niche.
Zumiez serves a purpose like most businesses do, when their is no shop near by that is locally owned, and you don’t want to mail order in gear, you go to Zumiez.
it does have that convenience factor going for it. thats for sure
but it makes it harder for a local skateshop to set up there. skateshops contribute a lot more to the scene than zumiez
@@lavenderfana3137 what about poverty? You ever think about the little guy? That’s important to mention before making comments like this
@@Bellitchi what about poverty?
When I was in middle school the Zumiez at my local mall was one of the hang out spots after school. There wasn't many local skate shops around where I lived and the closest thing in skating distance was Zumiez or Industrial in the mall. There was a couch in the back that was a washed out red, and a coffee table with skate and snowboard magazines scattered across it. Everyone would just sit around and bullshit after buying decks or shoes or whatever. It became a regular meet up spot whether we were buying anything or not. A few of the workers knew my older brother and would give me free stickers, bearings, etc. It was easily my favorite store in the mall which is now demolished. RIP the couch in the back of Zumiez at the mall.
You absolutely nailed it with one of the last lines, they sell the image of something to people who aren’t actively engaged with it. I’m a diehard snowboarder, and I’ve gone into the store a few times, yeah, they may have a few odds and ends about snowboarding, but it’s not like you’re gonna go here if you need a replacement part for a binding or any serious gear. It’s basically going towards the team crowd like the vibe of extreme sports, but not people that are actually into it.
That’s where I got my best board!
I got to be honest, I’ve been to Zumiez so many times in my life and never even knew that they were considered a skateboard shop or that the even sold skateboards you can actually ride. I thought they were ironic hang on the wall art skateboards. I really thought they were just like a clothing trendy shop like pac sun or tilly’s. Lol
Mate 😉 this is a good one!
Haha thanks Patrick! Hope you’ve been well
Daaaang patrick cc in the cut?! you're gonna blow @Modern Business keep it up
@@TchSktch thank you! Patrick is one of my good friends :) one of the most genuine people on the internet for sure ❤️
My biggest issue with zumiez is often times local shops will just straight up be cheaper anyways. so there's literally no reason to shop there.
It really depends on the shop and the people working in it. I went there to get my nephew his first board. The first employee that approached me had no clue but the other one did. We assembled a fairly forgiving board that isn't too fast for an 8 year old to learn on.
For me there was only ever zumiez. I live in rural upstate NY and the skate scene has just never been big enough to support a core skateshop. Zumiez was always the closest shop, and they often even had the best variety of products and of course their buying power meant that they also had the best prices by far. As far as cash grabs are concerned, I've seen many many more people attempt to open "core" skate-shops sheerly to capitalize on skateboarding, and in much more overt and destructive ways than zumiez.
I’m upstate too. No skate shops here except for a Zumiez
False. If your community can have a zumiez - it could have several core shops.
@@wwbohall1 "false 🤓"
“It could” is different from “ it does”
I am an old dude who has been out of the skate scene for a long time. I'm proud to say at 47 I can still ollie a skateboard after having not skated for 20+ years. But my kids wanted to get into skating... and since the covid crap didn't have much choice but to buy from Zumiez. As a online retailer they were good enough and unfortunately for my kids they ended up getting brands that I recognized from my day.
The complete decks were fair. Better than what you would get at a Walmart but not much more. I don't know if it's a thing now to put the trucks on the deck with no riser but that felt WEIRD. The trucks that came with them is passable for noobs but would be demolished by anyone with experience. So after getting risers and better mounting bolts it felt like a good ride, minus the wheels that are too hard for my tastes.
So this was my first experience with a main stream shop. It was an alright experience. I mean, it felt like buying plumbing parts from Amazon. You know damn well that Amazon doesn't know crap about plumbing but you know the parts will be par. I've encouraged my kids to find a local skate shop if they want to continue doing the skating thing. There is more value in your local skate shop than the gear sold there. Just my humble opinion. But to be honest... The old local skate shop in my home town I used to go to when I was a kid pretty much turned into a clothes store anyways. Kind of tells me there is more money in skateboard culture than actually selling skateboards.
So unless you live in a city with a population of skaters that can support a hardcore skateboard shop I think you will probably get a bit of that Zumiez influence no matter where you go.
This video was super insightful and I appreciate getting that perspective. Unfortunately I will have to disagree with some aspects of the criticism. For one, Zumiez to me functions like a fast food restaurant that is more near to you than a full restaurant that’s 4 hours away. It’s the convenience I benefit from as a poor individual. Skaters have to understand the people who are buying that stuff. The nearest local shop from me is hours and hours away. I don’t have a scene in my area so I can’t fund my hobby At someplace local. Just like someone who’s poor and doesn’t have the resources to support local businesses so they go to Publix to get food, that’s how I feel about it. So I feel like these kids and adult skaters are not understanding the systems we all have to live in. We live under capitalism. We live under corporate nonsense. We should continue to fight for small businesses. But some people don’t have that privilege. There are lots of poor people who can’t do that. I’m poor myself. And I don’t have consistent transportation. I go to Zumiez because they’re right next my complex. Don’t shame others for where they got their passion. Let people become more involved. Shaming and elitism hurts your community. Then you got no one who’s gonna fight for the little guy when the little guy keeps belittling them for how they live their individual lives
Unless you're buying from the discount racks, zumiez isn't really the place to be shopping if you're poor..m
If you really live in the middle of nowhere and there are no local shops then there is also likely no one around to hate on you for going to Zumiez. Seems like the shame you feel is self inflicted and not actually coming from anyone. Just because you see criticism of Zumiez online doesn't mean the criticism is aimed at you. Relax, do your thing.
Exactly this. Not everyone lives in California with a big skating scene and plenty of local shops. Ppl shit on zumiez cuz it seems cool but don’t have so much of a reason at times because there are areas with smaller skate scenes that need zumiez. A kid walked into my store wearing a shop local skate shirt. But ur in zumiez asking for help on a custom board because there is no local store for miles and miles.
Congrats for thinking like an adult. Anyone who would shade a company for being "too big" is a child.
The general consensus in the scene surrounding me is that we're happy Zumiez exists if it's getting kids into skateboarding. But those who stay in skateboarding should not shop there; they should turn around and go to their nearest local shop. As you said Zumiez doesn't help skateboarding, at least not nearly as much as a real shop does.
i’m currently a zumiez employee and this video was very much informative
You hit the nail on the head with this video, while I dont think theres anything wrong with the store its self I would always choose skater owned and operated shops because even if we dont know the people behind the counter your still giving back to someone how has dedicated themselves to a sport that has provided us with some of our best memories. Support your local shop!
As someone who skated very seriously for 10+ years, I'm against Zumiez. I've been guilty of using them in a pinch whenever I couldn't find a local skate shop, however I'd personally rather pay a slightly higher price knowing that my money will better support the skateboard industry.
Amen brother
I grew up skating and always held contempt for the store simply because they didn’t have your best interest in mind. A local shop would let you try decks to find your size, recommended the durometer of wheel you needed for park or street and which trucks are suited for your budget. A zumiez would sell you a mass produced heat pressed board for 80$ which would either split a truck or warp in a month.
I love zumiez and at 26 years old I’ve been shopping there for most of my clothes since I was 13. That’s almost 14 years of good memories I have with a clothing store. I used to skate but haven’t since I was about 18. I still shop at zumiez and feel the way I dress evolved with zumiez. Idk if it’s just me but it feels like the store has matured with me. I understand the hate but I can also understand why someone loves them. I grew up with zumiez and I remember so many times where all I wanted was a pair of shoes or a hoodie because it’s all I could afford as a kid, and I would always go and pick something out at zumiez. Whether that be online or in store. It helped me define my sense of self in a way. Idk if anyone else feels that way , but damn is it one of my favorite stores.
Their business model actively hurts independent Mom and Pop shops it's a mater of opinion whether or not that constitutes "doing nothing wrong". Entering into any of these sports from a business stand point instead of a riding stand point is going to be off putting to the core demographic. Great, well edited video, subscribed.
I think you're missing an important thing about the flack Zumiez gets. As a result from Zumiez's expansion, other smaller stores and chains were replaced by Zumiez. In my case the store in the mall I went to called Fast Forward was replaced by a Zumiez. They both sold the same skate apparel, accessories, and boards etc but there was just something a little off and watered down about Zumiez for me- it was just a larger more corporate mainstream chain and it showed.
The Zumiez in my area went from half skate shop half clothing store to a clothing store with 2 racks of skateboards, one of the racks being longboards. (Oh but hey there's snowboarding gear in the winter!) But yeah they got rid of all their skate gear except for a few full decks, just decks, and wheels, no trucks, no tape
That's why I have disdain for Zumiez lol
no tape? wow
@@modernbusinesschannel yeah unfortunately after the 1 local skate shop closed and this Zumiez changed the skate scene in my town is slim to none
as a zumiez employee, every store gets different stock, based on what people are buying. so if you want more skate stuff in your local store, order stuff on the website and pick it up in store. example: no one buys volcom at my zumiez, so we stopped getting it. so, i buy volcom stuff online and get it delivered to the store i want it in, and pick it up :)
I also think so too and they sell skate clothing brands but not skate gear like cmon man
I'm stuck in sort of a precarious situation. I'm completely blind, and I've thought about learning to skate multiple times. The problem is, I live in the middle of alabama, which isn't really known for skate culture. The only store that sells that kind of apparel around here is Zumiez. I'm sure there's local skate shops and stuff scattered across the state, but since I can't legally drive I have to settle with what I could feasibly get to. It's really irritating.
Zumies has turned into a high end hot topic for apparel. Half the stuff in there is anime related now. And the markups are insane. I paid almost $80 for a JJK hoodie with a screen print on it…
As a zumiez employee, i think this fits what alot of true skaters feel that come into zumiez. The thing i see the most is that a local skate shop isnt in every city. The closest skate shop from our zumiez is over an hour away (and to get to it you pass 2 other zumiez). I think zumiez because of how big they are brings skateboarding to people who never would have seen it in the first place. Although I think its true that zumiez doesnt push the skate scene forward traditionally, it expands its recognition regardless.
I just started really skating this past year, used to longboard, and even back then I heard the sentiment "fuck zumiez".
Now I think I understand why. Totally makes sense, but like welcome to mainstream anything.
Seems the individual zumiez store plays a big part in the reception from local communities. Want to grow the scene? Hire skaters. Or at least push some knowledge on em to spread.
I've seen comments bitching about employees not being able to do shtuff like grip etc. But like, who cares? Do it yourself.
I know some ppl working for zumiez (in my town) just like the vibes. The management and atmosphere are WAAAY better than Hot topic or spencers. Imma try applying myself soon.
Like they actually let the employees pick the music they listen to all day. Which so far is mostly metal genres.
So like I get part of the hate, but like...not really. It's just capitalism doing what it does.
yeah, its hard.. bc for skating to grow there has to be money in.. but it's so hard haha
I remeber when hot topic came out me and my friends hated it becuse it was a big corporate store chain ripping off the punk rock culture Saleing pre-made "punk" clothing but are clothing was d.i.y not some fake Factory made shit
Thought this was a new Company Man video haha 😆. Though, I love this presentation, keep it up 👍
I’m a skater and honestly ever since I’vr started working at Zumiez i’ve appreciated it more and more. The shop we have only hires skaters from what I’ve seen and the non-skaters we hire are looking to become part of the community and I honestly think Zumiez the place to start. When I first started out my local shop was rude because I didn’t understand all the intricacies of building a board, but Zumiez had experienced skater who we’re willing to help. We help non-skaters find their first board and teach them how to grip and build boards, we plug our local skate shops, but also create a community around ours.
Also false. They hire more people from footlocker.
@@wwbohall1 bro I literally work at a zumiez with all skaters
@@d.m.demartini7059 Did you lose your job at footlocker?
@@wwbohall1 mans is so heated lmao
Great video, well said Nate! Fun fact, I'm from Australia and Zumiez bought our version of Zumiez called fast times
No way that’s crazy!
Way ahead of me haha
We have no local shop here, one could argue it’s thanks to them for keeping skateboarding alive in areas that don’t have local skate shops
I feel like zumiez is more for the culture and style of skating more than for skaters because their is so many other better shops to get skate gear and zumiez is mostly for clothes
Culture and style for sure
Yeah the workers there are all poser and are cringe they don’t understand skateboard go to your local skate shop
@@skatingwithIuke damn as a zumiez employee, that hurts :(. all of my co-workers skate lmao
I've been skating since the 80's and honestly didn't know Zumiez existed till like 2 years ago, my teen years was in the 90s and we had lots of local shops. Since then as an adult skater who avoids all malls at all costs I didn't even know it was a store till my daughter who was around 15 got into skating with her friends. I got her a pretty nice creature deck at a small local shop and he mentioned the Zumiez in the mall had more options but was happy with what we got setup.
I have since got a few things from them when the local is out of stock and I don't want to wait for shipping but I think it does fill a good void in the local shop market. Most parents are not going to drop $200 on a custom built complete for a 15 year old who is just mildly interested in skating, so if the option is that or a $50 complete at walmart they will get the walmart setup. That setup will kill off a good portion of skaters before they ever get going. Zumiez provides that middle ground of $100 starter setups that are not great but also not junk. My daughters friend litterally cracked a truck in half learning to ollie. I took her to our local shop Eastern Boarder and got her a set of indies and shes been riding them on several decks for a few years now.
So while I still say vote with your $ and support local, I can't hate on Zumiez to get the next generation of groms on half decent setups
I love your video essays, I’m so glad I’ve found this channel. I hope you are enjoying making this type of content, mate
This is the type of video that will have a million views by next year. I wish I was this early with Bitcoin.
Made my day, thank you
Nate the Mate!! love to see you talking skateboarding and culture besides just Pop Punk! Much Love brother
Happy you found my channel!
I actually shopped at above the belt in Bellingham in the early 90's but never have been in a Zumiez. As a skateboarder and as i was in the board industry and manufactured board sports products i have always supported my local shop.
Straight up can't afford skate shops but I fuckin do when I can. Big paycheck, skate shop, grandma's insurance fund, skate shop. Otherwise my broke ass goes to Zumiez for decks and Walmart for shoes. Don't hate the player hate the game. They need to sponsor some skatepark builders.
Can you do a video on why hot topic is hated so much today
Also great video keep up the good work🤘🏼
Absolutely. And thank you!
Yes, my mom indeed did take me to Zumiez to buy pants. She never understand that the cool kids didn't wear their pants like she wanted me to
I like visiting Zumiez whenever I am at the mall. But for real, the only things I buy there are shoes and bucket hats. I can see why the skateboarding community might be put off by Zumiez and their goals. I feel like I understand that view and can respect it as well.
I don't really skateboard, I just do some downhill longboarding here and there. The community for longboarding is a bit different than the skateboarding community it seems.
Hell yeah brother! Glad to see you back!
Thank you!
I remember Zumiez was my go to store. Lmao. Haven’t been there in forever man.
I love zumiez for the history but with my area they are the only shop with shaped boards compared to other local shop that have a small handful. My favorite so far is welcome skateboards
Welcome has sweet art
Me to Zumiez employee: “Do you even skate bro”
Haha I just fingerboard
Second time I’m watching a video from this channel and would have expected to see over 1M subs but only see 50k.
Great luck on your UA-cam journey, this channel is going far
Do you even skate tho???? 🤔
From my own experiences over the years core skateshops some times are like high school and the cool kids who work or hang out there treat everyone else like garbage. Zumiez may not be perfect but it makes skateboarding accessible at least. All the people at the local one here skate and are quite approachable. Us skaters can be quite discriminating. Live and let live, shut up and skate.
Truth most core shops are cool guy central. Ironically the nicest shop employees were at Supreme LA
Oh boy. I used to be a manager for a Zumiez store. Our store's GM was seeing the district manager and would never show up for work/wouldn't do her job when she'd show up, and when I called to complain about it to HR and the higher ups, I was basically told "If you don't like it, leave." So I peaced out.