Hi-Performance Board Sports, the skate shop located in Stubbeman Village just west of Adams Tower, is like nearly every other campus business - having a slow summer.
But owner/operator Mike Anderson attributes more of the slow-down to the fact that most of his customer base is not buying local anymore.
"Kids are now going online to buy their gear just to save $10 or $15 dollars," said Anderson. "But then they want to come in and try on my shoes, or snowboard boots, or jackets just so they know they got the right size. They'll rub my face right in it."
Anderson says he tries to keep prices down and doesn't even make a 10 percent profit on most of what he sells.
He also said the store will be running sales like "buy one pair of shoes, get the next half off" for the remainder of the summer and into the fall semester to try and draw customers, but his biggest challenge will be convincing the new breed of high-tech shoppers to switch gears and keep their money local.
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