Route One

Awsome shop the staff are great, very helpful and know what they are talking about as aome are skaters and others bmx. The shop is decently priced and sells great stuff for presents as well as traditional skate stuff boards etc its easy to find and the shop is well laid out. couldnt fault the service!

Route One is one of those few places that instantly takes me back to being my fourteen year old self and makes me feel extremely uncool every time I go there and you know what? I have no idea why…
As far as skate shops go it’s fairly standard, there’s a good range of footwear, plenty of decks, a wide choice of seasonal stock, tons of t-​shirts and enough accessories to shake a stick at. But don’t actually shake a stick at them or you’ll probably get thrown out.
All the goods are at the kind of prices you’d expect to pay from a shop of this calibre i.e. probably a little bit more than you’d like to spend, but at a level where you can justify the spend because of the quality/​durability of the products — t’s no real surprise to me that a number of skate brands also make heavy duty work wear.
My only real bugbear is that last time I went in I couldn’t find any branded jeans — only Route One’s home brand. Shame considering their range of other products was fairly widespread.
Weirdly the staff always seem to be working on some secret project behind the till and although this has never caused me a problem in making a purchase, it does make me wonder what the hell they’ve got going on back there…
Saying that though we’re limited in our choice of skate shops in Edinburgh so you’ll already have a fair idea if Route One is up your street or not. Just a tip though — it might be worth checking out their website first as they sometimes have discounted goods on there that you won’t find in their shops.
Don’t forget team that three stars doesn’t mean it’s bad — it’s just not particularly worth shouting about. It’s good if you need it, but if you do you probably knew that already.

Although aimed at guys, I would have loved Route One if I was six years younger when I used to frequent shops like Fopp and Hellfire in Glasgow.
If you’re into skateboarding then they have an excellent range of skateboards and skater related merchandise. They have a great selection of trainers and «cool dude» clothing and if you’re looking for a gift for a guy friend who is into this kind of thing then they have quirky mugs, belts and other very affordable accessories.
As far as skateboarding items go, the prices here are very reasonable and the goods are top notch too.

You might not be able to skate like Tony Hawk but if you get your ass over to Route One, you’ll at least be able to dress like him.
Aimed at skateboarders, surfers and snowboarders, Route One is a sports shop that sells all the gear you’d expect them to from Vans, DC and Adidas sneakers to Dickies and Carhaart jeans. Alongside their own range of hoodies, this particular branch stocks incredibly cool Supra hi-​tops, WeSC baseball jackets and Baby Cakes sweaters.
Even better, Route One is based on a hill that’s perfect for skating down — providing you have the balls.

This is very much a skater store. It’s full of the sort of paraphernalia that will regail the world’s skateboarders and BMXers. At the time I went in, there was a small group of teenage boys gazing in wonder at the range of skateboard decks, whilst the über cool skater-​dude shop assistants hung out by the tills. Some of the clothes on offer did look pretty good, however the prices weren’t particularly cheap, and wearing too much of this stuff would tend to label me as a skater, which I am not. My few meetings with a skateboard came when I was a lot younger. I would use it like a luge, and kind of pull myself around on my front, much to the disappointment of my parents, who promptly confiscated it as I wasn’t using it properly.
I can’t imagine returning to my (brief) skater days, but if this is your inclination, then you will be served well by what Route One has to offer.

My brothers were obsessed with roller blading. They’ve moved onto snowboarding you’ll be glad to know, but it meant that a lot of my youth was spent in here.
This is your typical skateboard shop. Full of Japanese names and baggy jeans, if you’re going through puberty /​never really grew up this is your place.

Route One is not my typical type of store but whilst visiting with a friend, I became pretty intrigued with the different skateboards and related paraphernalia, which made it seem less like something spotty teenage lads did and more like a worthwhile past time.
They do clothes too, stocking brands like Vans, DC and Dickies, the sort of thing any self respecting skater or BMX fan would be seen in. This is the sort of stuff I used to love, and I can remember when a pair of Vans were the coolest thing around. I still like the style for men, but I myself have grown out of it now.
Good shop for all your skating needs.

My sole experience of Skateboarding comes from a 2001 video game titled Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3. To say I was good at it is a bit of an understatement. It’s unfortunate that one of my rare achievements in life is both financially meaningless and suggestive of social inadequacy, but I still view the many days and nights spent twiddling my thumbs on that game as time well spent. I can’t be sure just how good I was, but according to the leaderboards in the Nintendo magazine i used to buy, I was certainly Champions League material.
Anyway, sadly I don’t like skateboarding in real life, I actually find it a bit annoying, but it does often involve quite cool t-​shirts. Route One has a fair few such garments, so is alright by me.

I used to think Route One was the coolest, most interesting shop in the world. I no longer think this, but I do still receive their quarterly catalogue through the door from those ¹⁴⁄₁₅ year old days. It’s mostly skating apparel, including jeans of all fits, baggy t-​shirts, beanies and, of course, hoodies. Hardly any of the styles or brands are my thing at all anymore, but a lot of people of all ages are into it and Route One is a great place to visit to find stuff like this.
They also sell all you need to set up a decent skateboard, including good bearings and trucks as well as tool kits to make life easier setting them up.
The staff are friendly and knowledgeable about this sort stuff so if it’s your thing then it’s the place to come.

Stocking all things skating, Route One sells anything from boards to T-​shirts, skating trainers etc.
I’ve always admired the skate style but have only modestly worn a few items of the said gear as some of it is plain daft. As is so often the case with such gear, occasionally you’ll spot a tempting item, only to find a neon two fingered gesture and some snappy slogan to accompany it printed on the back.
Then you find an equally daft price tag. A hit and miss affair.

Route One has a tough job, with online retailers being more popular, the good old fashioned skate shop is becoming increasingly less popular.
Route One do well to keep the spirit alive, they don’t chase kids from just sitting around the store and hanging about. It’s a place where they can meet like minded kids and brag about all the tricks they secretly didn’t land.
Prices are on par with online retailers. It’s an expensive sport but you’ll find a bargin or two in here. Blank Decks are cheap for skaters who just want to do it instead of making a fashion statement in the process and they sell the usual fiddly bits n bots that fine tuning your board requires.

Route One is for guys who haven’t succumbed to Topman and cardigans. Or Jack Willis and polo shirts. They do girls clothes too, but I always associate Route One with mens clothing.
My boyfriend and his friends (early 20’s) still shop here, and I am kinda glad. With brands like Vans, Famous Stars and Straps and Zoo York this shop is fits the exact style I like my men to be in. It is very teenage-​y what with it being on Cockburn Street and surrounded by emo/​skater clothes shops, so we do feel pretty old when we shop there. And it can be quite expensive but that is what the sale rail is for, right?

I get really sentimental when I walk past Route One because it reminds me of being about 15 and really fancying skater boys with curly hair and beany hats and trainers that look like cartoons. We would sit in the middle of route one on the shoe trying-​on bit (could someone let me know what the real name for this is, please?) and watch out «boyfriends» try on Vans jumpers and stare longingly at wheels for skateboards.
I have no use for it now as I don’t try and pick up teenagers that often, but it still makes me happy that it’s there.

Great shop for all your skate needs. From clothes, to pads, to wax, to bearings, they have everything here. The staff are skaters so know their stuff and the prices are reasonable and compare similarly to other skate shops.