Nidecker's Don Brown has spoken about what he sees happening in skateboarding right now, pointing to a mix of corporate influence and long standing leadership that he feels is holding the scene back from moving forward in a natural way.
He describes a problem of too much dilution in skateboarding.
In his view, there is more separation from how things used to be when skateboarding felt more direct and locally driven.
He feels a big part of this change comes from mainstreamification. Skateboarding used to have more core shoe brands that were built by skaters themselves, made by people who were deeply involved in the scene.
Now, he sees major global brands with corporate logos like the swoosh or three stripes dominating the market, and those same products are easy to find in regular sporting goods stores.
Because of that, skate shops are no longer the main place people go to buy skate shoes, which affects how they stay alive.
He said that skate shops are struggling right now.
READ MORE: 10 Reasons to Shop at Your Local Skateshop
These shops are an important part of skateboarding culture and local communities. He believes more attention should go toward supporting them, especially if people want them to stay around in the long term.
Don also talks about timing and direction in the industry.
He feels there is a need for a shift similar to what existed in the 1990s, when younger skaters were shaping things in a more direct and experimental way without waiting for permission or approval.
Back then, many of the people involved were in their early twenties or even younger, figuring things out as they went.
He suggests that this kind of approach led to more originality and movement within skateboarding.
Today, he feels there are too many older decision makers involved in guiding where skateboarding goes next.
He says this slows down change and makes it harder for new ideas and younger voices to take the lead.
There is a gap where a newer generation should already be stepping forward more strongly, but that shift has not fully happened yet.
He encourages people to take initiative and start their own projects, brands, and ideas instead of waiting for larger companies or established figures to define everything.
The future of skateboarding depends on more people creating things from the ground up and building their own paths within the scene, according to Don.