Skateboarding and Skateboarders,you either love them or you think they wear too much baggy clothing…read moreand ride around on planks... I'm pretty much somewhere in the middle,I can't skate,and I wouldn't say that i'm that much of a fan of any particular famous Boarder (Although Rodney Mullen has got some serious skills!). What I do like however is the whole (Sub)culture of boarding,and because of this I find it very hard to pass by a Skate shop without popping in to see their wares.As was the case a couple of weeks ago when myself and Mrs Z had been for a Simple lunch. It's odd that I had walked past Note several times in the past without ever really noticing that it was there. Anyway,on this particular day I did notice it and thus I went in,and other than the fact that it was a skate shop,there was another reason why I was eager to pop in,from the outside I espied a hooded top,no ordinary hooded top mind you,this was a "Thrasher" hooded top. For those that don't know,or for that matter don't care, Thrasher is a skateboarding magazine from San Francisco,and it is also the name of the single greatest genre of Heavy Metal that there has ever been,also arguably founded in the Bay Area of San Francisco. Now the hooded top in question was dark grey with the word THRASHER emblazoned accross the front in bio-hazzardous green.Now I ask you,what self respecting Thrash loving Zombi could resist this top? Not this one is the answer,so after a couple of seconds of Zombi doeyedness (Real word) towards Mrs Z it was bought for me as an early birthday present. In addition to the greatest top ever made Note also stocked some seriously good looking skating equipment,the type of stuff that makes you wish you'd learnt to skate in your younger years (when falls didn't hurt as much). I was especially taken by the collection on decks,some of which had some cool designs on them. Every time i'm on Tibb Street from now on I will pop into Note in the off chance that they can somehow top the top that was bought for me....THRASH!!!!!!

Another rad skateboard shop in the Northern Quarter is NOTE…read more A few doors down from Vans, this is a cracking little store that's been going for about ten years now. As well as a great range of decks, wheels and accesories, they sell a terrific range of sneakers and threads from US, UK and European labels like Etnies, DC, Converse, Emerica, Supra, Fallen, Matrix, Rebel 8, Skate Mental, Nike SB, Royal and Zoo York. The reason they get 5 stars however, is for their attention to detail and the fact they sell specific sneakers that have been designed and tested for better grip, flick and durability. They also sponsor a whole team of skaters including Ben Grove, Kevin Eley and Tony DaSilva.

So friendly and the best skate range at the best prices in Manchester for sure. Very Helpful and…read morebeen back a bunch of times now my new favourite Manchester Skateboard shop.

From the owner: Manchester Finest Skateboard Shop with a host of your favourite skate related brands such as…read moreStussy, Vans Shoes, Nike Sb, Adidas, Thrasher, Dickies, Palace and much more.

Vans in the Manchester Arndale is a fairly nice, spacious store which is located on the lower…read morelevel, next to Sock Shop and opposite Superdry. While I wouldn't say I'm a huge fan of the Vans brand overall, this is one of the better stores I've seen and visited in malls across the UK and it does have a rather nice selection of Vans product, perhaps a little too trainer orientated and the overall feel of the store is pretty good too. The staff seemed pretty friendly too, a solid three-stars for Vans Manchester.

I've absolutely loved Vans clothing for about 15 years now and I don't mind admitting that I'm a…read moreshameless fanboy. I mean on my honeymoon I even travelled superlightly just so as I could stock up on a new wardrobe in San Diego - Ocean beach I wish I could visit your surf shops every week! As Vans has become more and more popular over the past few years, their small boutique shops have slowly been getting shutdown with mall size units popping up in their place - with something lost a little bit in terms of the cool underground vibe in the process. Saying that, the range on offer in this new store is excellent with a full dedicated shoe shop area, Vans for any season all year round stalls and they even sell skateboard decks and ready to roll out models. My only criticism over the price (lovely coat I saw the other day but £150 for it, really...) is the incredible overeagerness of the staff to ask if everything's ok or can they help as soon as you get through the door. Just let me browse peeps... There are a lot of shops in NYC that it's so obvious everyone is on commission that it's painful to enter (every single store assistant wants to know your life story) and I've blacklisted visiting - I just hope it's not catching to UK surf/skate stores too. Overall though, a vast improvement on the old Manchester Vans store which is now the more independent Black Sheep store - check them out in the Northern Quarter too!

a fantastic skating shop that has absolutely everything there from BMXing to rollerblading. all the…read morestaff are really nice and will help you for any reason. the place is clean and well maintained. they is a large variety of items you can buy like cloths and skate gear. it is reasonably priced. it is a really good skate shop and i would definately recomend it

a really good place to get gear and clothing. they sell all your skateing and BMXing equipment. the…read moreguys there are really nice and it is very clean, a bit pricey but recomended to all you skaters out there.

Best shop ive been and has the best owner 10/10 defo go if you need out and you a good ammount of…read morestickers when u buy stuff so thats a plus

I've been here a few times now. It was especially useful where I used to live as I'd pass it on…read moremy bike enroute from my daily commute. Soon as you step in you are warmly greeted with a cosy patch of living room to your right filled with arm chairs, books and board games to chill or pass the time while your bike gets attended to. The coffee has always been spot on too with very fair prices attached. As for the bike repairs/assessments themselves they are very knowledgeable and transparent with pricing etc. It is quite busy at the moment with depending on your bike can take a while to get looked at but besides this all the staff are lovely . Highly recommend if you need a bike repair or just a coffee..just ring in advance if you do require your bike to be looked at just in case they are fully booked!

I've used the services from these awesome bunch of bike lovers several times and I cannot rate it…read moreenough. Nothing is too much trouble, they're fantastically knowledgeable and always aim to get the repairs done on the same day. Absolute first class service and my go to in Manchester.