10 Ideas For Skate Shops To Celebrate Skate Shop Day

Skate Shop Day takes place on the third Saturday of February each year.

Skate Shop Day was started by Scotty Coats and Chris Nieratko. However, the people behind Skate Shop Day are actually skate shop owners around the world! Skate Shop Day exists to celebrate one of, if not the most important facet of the skateboarding community – Skate shops. 

Skate Shop Day can be especially important financially for skate shops during a notoriously difficult time of the year. It takes place in February because this is historically one of the deadest months for shops that operate in colder climates. 

In 2022, artist Todd Francis got involved by creating hundreds of original shop graphics as well as a “SUPPORT” graphic that went to shops around the world. In 2023, Mike Gigliotti reimagined the SUPPORT graphic, resulting in many shops surpassing their Black Friday sales records, according to skateshopday.com.

So, how can skate shops benefit from this important day of the year? 

Here’s 10 Skate Shop Day ideas:

1. Lead a city-wide cleanup party
2. Exclusive drops
3. Skate video night
4. Raffle off something special
5. Skate Shop Day discounts
6. Host a shop signing with a pro or team
7. Give out Skate Shop Day freebies
8. Have a live music performance
9. Host a free skate clinic
10. Lead a skate workshop

10 Skate Shop Day Ideas

Try this stuff to get people in your shop and make the most of Skate Shop Day.

1. Lead a city-wide cleanup party:

Gather a crew at your shop and provide them with trash bags and gloves. Then, lead everyone to spots and parks around your city to clean up each spot (and then have a session at each). Not only is it fun to get your whole crew together, but all your local spots will get cleaned up in the process. 

2. Exclusive drops: 

Collaborate with local artists or brands (Deluxe Distribution may be able to help you here…) to offer exclusive items available only on Skate Shop Day. Think outside the box to create a limited SSD item or collectable for customers. 

3. Skate video night:

Set up a projector in or around your shop and host a viewing party of a local video, a big recently released video, or both. Get a popcorn maker or offer drinks to guests. The point is to bring your local skate community together at your shop.

4. Raffle off something special:

Organize a raffle with the help of local artists, skate brands, and even your customers to donate one-of-a-kind decks or skate memorabilia and donate the proceeds to a skate-related cause (money for a local DIY-park?)

5. Skate Shop Day discounts: 

Offer special discounts and deals exclusively for Skate Shop Day. Cut prices on gear, offer buy-one-get-one deals, or throw in freebies with every purchase. You can hype up your sales with social media, check out How To Create a Skate Shop Content Strategy for help with that.

6. Host a shop signing with a pro or team:

If you can get a hold of pros or teams in your area, have them swing by your shop for a meet-and-greet. Do an autograph signing, photo op, or just have them chill with fans and bring a crowd to your shop.

7. Give out Skate Shop Day freebies:

Put together some swag bags with stickers, posters, keychains, or any other limited items you have and give them out to customers. Post on social media that they will be given out to the first 10-20 customers to get people in the door early.

8. Have a live music performance:

If you know a rad local band in your area, have them come through and do a show at your shop. Bonus points if you can collab with them on some merch. 

9. Host a free skate clinic:

If you have room to skate around your shop, bring in some local dudes to help teach kids the basics for free. This can bring whole families to your shop who are ready to support you for helping their kids learn to skate for free. 

10. Lead a skate workshop:

A great addition to the skate clinic mentioned above – Host a skate workshop where you explain the entire process of putting together a complete. Discuss choosing the right component sizes, properly installing bearings, how to apply griptape, etc.

Bonus: Don’t forget online customers

While Skate Shop Day is especially important for your physical shop location, some of your most loyal customers may not be near your shop or able to stop by that day. Make sure to extend your sales or special Skate Shop Day offers to online customers as well. Make sure to check out our SEO Guide for Skate Shops if you need help with your online shop.

Skate Shop Day is the perfect time to give back to your local skate community and to let them do the same for you! 

Salute to all the skate shops that keep skateboarding alive.