Farewell, KCDC, You Will Be Dearly Missed
photos shot by Lukas Gansterer and texted over by Erik Ellington.
KCDC, the woman-owned skate shop and one of the only truly cool things in the now Whole Foods-ified Williamsburg closed its doors for good this past weekend, and we are devastated.
Not only because it was a reason to hang out in that fancy bit of Brooklyn, and not only because they carried our Vans collab shoe, but because skate shops in general but especially female-owned and operated shops are absolutely critical to the skateboarding ecosystem.
KCDC - founded in 2001 by Amy Ellington - is one of the world’s best known shops, revered for its influential place in NYC skateboarding history, it’s advocacy for the benefits of skateboarding including the development and implementation of community skate lessons that highlight skatings positive mental health benefits, and years of collaboration with skate brands both international and Brooklyn-local.
Explaining this post to someone else, they responded with something like, ‘yeah, duh, skate shops are important, we know, you’re beating a dead horse,’ and yet, how can that horse possibly be dead if renowned shops like KCDC are shuttering their doors and the life expectancy of skate shops opening today is only two to four years (according to a pool of retail stores classified by the B.B.B. as ‘action sports/apparel’ in North America, specifically)?
That in mind, allow me to reiterate the vital point that skate shops are not only a place to buy and assemble your boards; they are a place that supports you in return. They hook you up with freebies, they put on demos, they attract pros, they repair and advocate for spots and skateparks, they stick up for you, they rep your community, the last point of which, KCDC did a remarkable job of doing.
There are more female-owned and operated businesses in skateboarding now than there ever have been before, which is a reflection of the increase of women and members of the LGBTQ+ community taking up a proper place in skateboarding and its culture, and that is a very good thing. Skateboarding has always been and has always been meant to be open to any and all weirdos, and the increased accessibility of the culture to groups of people outside of cis men in just the last two(-ish) decades is remarkable and has enriched skateboarding as a whole.
For the new communities entering en masse into skateboarding, shops like KCDC play a vital role in providing representation, shelter, and a source of palpable acceptance. A frequent KCDC customer who requested to be quoted as Queenest, lamented the closure, saying, ‘this is where I got my first board, this is where I could go and not be cool guy-ed by some dude wearing a beanie. Where will I go for that now?’
Beyond just a purveyor of goods, KCDC filled a space in skate for thought, art, and interaction, organizing events like in-store discussions of “Racism & Skateboarding” (hosted by Jileen Lao), skate clinics, indoor skate nights, as well as countless art and photo shows with such luminaries as Dennis McNett, FOS, Geoff Rowley, Ed Templeton, Bert Krak, Alessandro Simonetti, Chad Muska, Dylan Goldberger, Jeremy Fish, Leo Baker, Lizzie Reid, Polar, Antihero, Spitfire, Giovanni Reda, RB Umali, and Chris Nieratko.
The reason for KCDC’s closure is unclear, and we sincerely hope that it is for reasons that are more a matter of choice than not, but either way, it is a sad day, and we can’t help but reflect on the times we’ve talked shit on the price of Polar Big Boys, forgetting for a moment that the margin on apparel and boards and all of the things we need to do what we do best is where the money is for shops, and how vital it is that we continue to support them.
In a message posted to their website, KCDC said:
We at KCDC realize that skate shops are the cultural hub of the skate community. We do not take that responsibility lightly. The friends we’ve made, the creators we’ve met, the kids we’ve nurtured over the years, remain a daily source of inspiration. We thank anyone who has ever stepped foot in our shop for your love and support.
For all the fun and support, we love you, KCDC. Thanks for everything!