Top Seller: Skokie, Illinois Shred Shop

Eric Bennett

• September 17 2008
• 1,105 views
• 8 comments

AS REPORTED IN SEPTEMBER TRANSWORLD BUSINESS

Shred Shop
Skokie, Illinois
shredshop.com
Shop Manager: Tom Thommen

Shred Shop is known as one of the largest skate and snowboard shops of the Midwest. Based in Chicago, Shred Shop makes it a point to make sure you don’t leave the store without finding something you like. They don’t believe in employees pushing product into customers’ faces. Their success is due to their huge selection within the walls of their 10,000 square foot store.

BEST SELLING CATEGORIES

1. Footwear:
The biggest reason shoes are the best selling categories for Shred Shop is because their shoe wall holds more than 200 different pairs of shoes. Shop manager Tom Thommen says, “It is very rare that someone looks and doesn’t find a shoe here.”

Best Selling Brand: Lakai
Thommen takes care of buying the shoes for the shop and says he pays attention to getting in a wide variety of styles and colors. “I try to order a little bit of that and a little bit of this,” he says, “from slip-ons to DC’s new tech shoes.” Shred Shop sells a lot of DC and Lakai, but because of a certain model that is pushed at the shop Lakai beats out DC.

Best Selling SKU: Lakai Telford Hi
Hi- and mid tops are the best selling types of shoes for the shop, due in large part to Thommen himself. “I love shoes. I only skate hi-tops, the [Lakai’s] Telfords,” Thommen says. “They are also really really hot sellers.”

2. Skateboards:
Despite being in Illinois where the weather is far from ideal for skateboarders, Thommen says skateboard sales are consistent, despite a lack of indoor skate parks.

Best Selling Brand: Krooked
Element, Girl, and Chocolate do well in skate sales, but are mostly fill-ins on the skate wall at Shred Shop. Skateboarders of all ages have been stoked on Krooked decks lately.

Best Selling SKU: Krooked Logo Deck
Element’s “15 shapes” have done great for the shop and kids are amped to know exactly what shape they are going to get without even having to step on the board. Yet despite all the hype, skaters are grabbing more of the Krookeds—mostly the logo decks.

3. Bearings:
A surprising category for such a large store, but nonetheless bearings claim the third spot with the sales of wheels closely on their heels.

Best Selling Brand: Bones
It’s hard to beat the appeal of a low price for a high-quality bearing, so Bones is hands-down the best-selling for bearings.

Best Selling SKU: Bones Reds
Reds are the most popular model of bearings at Shred Shop. Wheels are also very successful. Darkstar is gaining popularity with their Lightning Cores and no flat-spot guarantee.