It is always exciting when we bring a new product or product line into the shop, and Skate shoes have been a long time comming. Since the first week we decided to expand into the skateboard market the question has always been, "what lines of shoes are you going to carry?" Now, half a year later that question has been answered, but who would have thought it would be such a journey.
With most of our products, picking a company has been as simple as trying a bunch of products, seeing what we like, and ordering the product. As it turns out shoes are a bit different, so for 7 months now, skateboarders in LaGrange have been skating in BMX shoes.
When we first sat down with our list of 30 shoe manufactures the early eliminations were easy. We got rid of all the ones that had a history of low quality right off the bat. We then took polls of out skaters to see who liked what an why. More brands were eliminated based on style and fashion (I was kept out of this process, because I have neither style or fashion sense).
Then we hit the snag that we hadn't expected. Manufacturers of nice skate shoes are fiercly protective of their immage, and as we are both a bike and a skate shop, on paper we don't look "skate core" enough for the reps who don't bother walking through our door. Never mind that we have one of the best in store selections of skateboard products in the state, and a dedicated skateboard staff, on paper we are still not "skate core".
This left us with a decision to make. Do we just open up an account with one of these big sell to anybody, reasonable to questionable quality, shoe lines that you find in the big box stores, or do we hold out for a nice shoe company and try to convince them to send a rep out. We decided not to comprimise on quality so for a long time LaGrange skateboarders stayed in BMX shoes.
And then we discovered Dekline
Dekline is a small company that has only been on the scene for a couple of years. This is long enough to establish themselves as a quality shoe, but not so long that we had to fight over dealer territories. Finally we had found the perfect match. A young high quality comapany that was not afraid to take a chance on another young company. Now with everything in place, we are proud to introduce Dekline Shoes.
The spring order will be showing up on Monday. A more complete line will be here this summer.
So if you are a skater who needs shoes, or a biker who needs something comportable to wear in the pits, come on down and check out the new line. I think you will like it.
