Rodney Smith (skateboarder)
Rodney Smith is an American professional skateboarder, entrepreneur, and skate company founder from New York City.[1][2]
Skateboarding[]
Rodney Smith is considered by many to be the Godfather of .[1][2]
Shut Skates[]
Smith founded Shut Skates in 1986 with Bruno Musso.[1] Shut Skates was New York City’s first and the world’s first entirely street skate based company.[2] The board company shifted the focus of skateboarding away from the surf vibe of California to the urban, street-savvy attitude alive in the streets of the East Coast. The brand went dark in the nineties when Smith co-founded Zoo York with Eli Morgan Gessner and Adam Schatz. SHUT relaunched in 2006 and in 2007, the company reopened their flagship skate shop on the Lower East Side.[3] The storefront space served the community for 10 years, closing in 2017 with the business moving online.[3]
Zoo York[]
In 1993 by Smith, Eli Morgan Gesner, and Adam Schatz founded Zoo York.[4][5] In 2019, the trio that founded Zoo York was brought back into the company.[6]
References[]
- ^ a b c "Rodney Smith". X Games. Retrieved 2020-06-02.
- ^ a b c "Vans & Shut Syndicate/Rodney Smith". Transworld SKATEboarding. 2011-06-01. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
- ^ a b "SHUT Skateboards Shutting Down its Orchard Street HQ". Bowery Boogie. 2017. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
- ^ "The History of the Zoo York Mixtape". Red Bull. Retrieved 2020-06-02.
- ^ "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO ZOO YORK?". Jenkem Magazine. 2018-10-01. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
- ^ Palmieri, Jean E. (2019-09-03). "EXCLUSIVE: Zoo York Brings Back Founders to Create Halo Collection". WWD. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
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