mardi 30 décembre 2008

A lookback at 2008 and Happy New Year!!!

Another year is about to end, this time it’s 2008 that has come and gone. The last twelve months have left us all with all kinds of memories; the good, the bad, the happy ones, and the sad ones but all we have to remember is that there is a new year upon us and it gives us all a chance to have a fresh start.

We sincerely thank everyone in Quebec and Canada for visiting out our website and encouraging your friends to do the same. When we started our website in 2004 we never thought that 4 years later the impact that our online skate shop would have on the country as a whole would be this huge. The site was supposed to be a tool for the staff at the store so we could better handle our inventory for our shop but somehow destiny had other plans in mind for www.exoshop.com. When a person from a skate shop in Quebec City can talk to people from one end of our country to the next as well as people from the US and Europe is quite sick, I always enjoy my conversations with the folks I get the chance to talk to on the phone with every day and usually they are the high points of my day. And what we appreciate even more is that you guys find us from sites like Google, Msn Live, Yahoo, and all the other site that refer us to you.. It’s simple we thank all of you for giving us a year that we will remember forever. And there is no way I am going to forget all our supporters here in Quebec City, even though there are not as many of you as there once was or we just don’t see your faces enough, we want to thank you as well for all of your support for Quebec’s only ‘core skate shop.

At the store things have changed quite a bit in the last year as well a lot of friendly faces have left us this year to pursue other options in life. Jay P left at the end of the month to do his own thing, Yann Fily left for Montreal to continue university and become a teacher, Pat our graphist has gone to pursue his own personal objective’s, Jessy Baron left EXO after almost 8 years of service to pursue his dream to be a university teacher, and Jean Dan and Yann Burner left for a change in their lives and our dear David Dallaire who left to gain his life's experiences through travelling.. I have a lot of good memories with all of these great guys and for everyone here at EXO I would like to let you guys know that we wish you all the best in life and all the success that life has to offer you. All these guys have left but there is also new blood in the store, guys like Harry in the orders department, Lap, Raphael (Ralph) and Vince in the music department, and the newest member to our family Sam who will be taking over for JayP are all here to make EXO even better than what it already is.

Before I let you all go to enjoy your New Year’s Eve party’s there is something that I have to get off my chest otherwise I will not be able to end this wonderful year with peace at mind. I have been in this industry long enough to have the right to let this kind of steam off. I have beef with a certain types of shops in skateboarding, it’s the Mall Shops. I wish all the local and ‘core board shops the best without a doubt, but all the fuckin’ Mall Shops that have appeared from left to right in the last 4-5 years.. You have no business being in our industry. Stores in mall’s that sell the image of skateboarding are blood sucking leaches that will never support grassroots skateboarding nor sponsor or support local riders. They will take your money and run and worst of all they are diluting the market with the same old watered down crap selection. The skateboard industry is on the wrong side of the curve as we speak, companies are going bankrupt, there are less kids skating, and for some reason there are more and more kids who are walking around looking like skaters there is only one to blame.. The Mall Shops. It’s time for all of us to realize that going into a mall and buying a “skate” t-shirt or shoes at shop that does not even sell a skateboard, trucks, and wheels is not really the right thing to do....realize this fact before it’s too late...because I keep asking myself why should we support skateboarding if it’s attracted to mall’s rather than core skate shop’s. I ask for all ‘core shop’s and skaters to unite and fight for this cause.

Happy New Year to everybody, we wish you all the best in 2009 and please do not drink and drive!

And we are about to begin celebrating the 20 years of EXOSHOP...there are some great things planned ahead so watch out and we will see you there!

The EXO crew!

20years@exoshop.com

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