A Decent Skateboarding Accessories Site but They Need to Remove the Ads!
CCS
Every once in a while, I actually shop for someone other than myself. This time, it was for my 16 year old son. I did manage to find something for myself, of course, but CCS is definitely for the younger set, especially those into skateboarding, both the look and the activity. My son is and asked for some things from this site. I had no idea how much stuff there was for skateboarding enthusiasts! Despite being overwhelmed, everything went OK as far as my order went.
What the Site Sells
This site sells clothing, footwear, accessories, and skateboarding stuff of every kind. They sell lots of things for snow sports as well as skateboarding and some casual clothes and shoes.
Navigation
The site is big and busy. There are many subsections on the site for things other than shopping. The store itself has thousands of items, mainly for skateboarders and those into snow sports.
I got lost on the site jumping from place to place mainly because I didn’t know what the heck I was looking for and I don’t know anything about skateboarding so I was wandering around haplessly.
You can browse by category: Guys, Girls, Shoes, Accessories, Skate, Snow, and Clearance or do a keyword search.
Once you click on a main category, several links down the left side will take you to smaller subcategories. You can hone down the areas you search by clicking the subcategories. It seems there is no end in sight to what this online store carries. I clicked on the denim and cords photo on the home page and saw a smattering of offerings. Then I saw that they sell zillions of name brands, most of which I never heard of. They must be "skater" names. They do sell several brand name athletic shoes like Nike and Adidas but the styles are mostly skater and sort of specialized.
Once you find what you want, choose a size and color if needed and add it to your cart. You will see other items that compliment your choice at the bottom of the page. Add some or skip over them and move along.
Annoying to me as I shopped was a flashing advertisement for Netflix which was prominently displayed on the right side of the site. Every time I switched pages, I got that ad again from the start. I now know much more about Netflix than I care to and never want to see that ad again.
Once you are finished shopping, you will go to the checkout. There, you will need to supply your shipping and billing address(es) and your email address. They also ask for your birthday which I hate. I know this site is for younger people but sheesh.
The next page will show your total with shipping. Even if you get free shipping there is a small handling charge so watch out for that. It isn’t really free shipping over $90.00 as they claim.
You can opt to register with the site for future reference or bypass that and continue to the payment area.
Input your major credit card details, expiry date, and your three digit code from the back of the card and you will then be confirmed. An automated confirmation email will be sent to the supplied email address with the pertinent info. You should receive a shipping email in a couple of days.
The order should arrive in a week to 10 days but mine took a bit longer.
Once you shop on this site, you will be inundated with promotional emails even if you don’t check the boxes to get their emails. I get one at least every couple days if not more. I really don’t mind but I wanted to note that for those shopping on the site and not expecting an avalanche of emails and catalogs.
My Experience
Because I was out of my element, I found this site a little complicated to navigate. I also was bogged down by the supposedly cool effects of things that looked like a slide show and other hip but unnecessary features. That nasty Netflix ad had me ready to click off the site and go elsewhere. I don’t know what the connection between the two is but they really don’t need to have a flash ad on the site that refreshes every time a person navigates from one page to another.
I eventually found what I wanted and proceeded to the checkout where I was asked my usual info plus birth date. This reminded me of another site I have shopped on and my suspicions were right. When I clicked on the promotional information, I saw that it had www.delias.com as an address. Apparently the two are owned by the same company. The sites are very similar in style and look except CCS is more edgy.
Anyway, I forgot the promotional code for free shipping over $90.00 the first time and saw my shipping was $13.95 and I was charged tax. I had to back out and find the code then go back and redo the checkout thing. It’s tricky figuring out where to put that code but I did find the spot and shipping was reduced to $1.95 which they claim is a handling charge. Still, that is a good deal for the weight of the items I bought.
I input my Visa info and was asked the name of the person whom the purchase was for and I filled in my son’s name. He now is inundated with snail mail catalogs from CCS. They also asked if I was interested in money for college. It was like taking a survey rather than paying and getting off the site.
At last, my order was confirmed and I got my confirmation email. A few days later, I got an email that said my order was being shipped. I chose standard shipping and was told in the email that my order should arrive in seven to 10 days. It took 15 days to arrive.
The order was fine, packed well, and as described. I had no need for customer service so I can’t tell you how they are in that department — although, if one more day had gone by with no order, I was going to call and find out where the heck it was.
It was an OK experience but I doubt I will shop on the site again unless my son absolutely has to have something they sell. The prices aren’t bad from what I can tell and the shipping was a steal so I have no complaints. I just don’t have a big need for such specialized stuff and the navigation and ads were annoying.
Shipping and Returns
Shipping starts at $5.95 and ends at $15.95 for standard. You can choose from two expedited shipping methods for a higher fee. There is free shipping at the moment (I am not sure if it is free all the time but you need to use a code in order to get it so it may be a special promotion.) for orders over $90.00. There is a $1.95 handling fee for orders with free shipping. I was charged tax. Only those in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York have that honor. Blech.
They do offer international shipping for a $30.00 fee on top of regular shipping fees. See their Customer Service link for more info on that.
You can return items for an exchange or refund within 60 days. After that, you will get store credit. However, skateboards and snowboards that have been used at all are not returnable for any reason unless they have a manufacturer’s defect. You will need to call customer service to deal with that situation.
You receive a return label with all orders and you can use that to make your returns. You will be charged $5.95 to ship back to them. You can also choose to pay for your return at the post office or UPS but I find the prepaid labels are usually cheaper or the same as paying myself.
Contact Info
You can email CCS at cs@ccsmerch.com
Customer service and phone orders: 1-800-477-9283
Mailing Address:
CCS
PO Box 6144
Westerville, OH 43086
Conclusion
This site is good for the skateboarding enthusiast as well as snowboarders and those who like fashion like that of skaters. It has a ton of merchandise but all of it is very nichey to skateboarding and some to snowboarding.
The site is large and has other sections besides the store such as games, news, movies and music, and contests.
Clearly for the younger set, this site is a decent one if you are looking for anything that has to do with skateboarding, both the look and the activity.
I wasn’t pleased with the ad that kept pummeling me nor was navigation the easiest but it wasn’t a disaster. My order only cost $1.95 to ship and it arrived fine albeit a little late.
The products were all fine.
Rating this one is tough because there were some things about the site that turned me off but, in general, I did find and get what I was looking for and everything was as described. I am going to go with 3 stars because there were some things about the site that annoyed me and my order was late in arriving.
If you like skateboarding, you may want to check this site out as it has tons of info and photos on the sport as well as other activities related to skateboarding. The store is fully stocked with everything you need and some of the clothes and shoes are cute for casual wear even if you don’t skateboard. Those who know more about the items being sold on this site will probably have no problem navigating it.
I will shop here again if my son needs something specific and the price is right but it isn’t a site I will frequent. Still, it delivered when I needed it to (albeit a few days later than expected). I have no major complaints but a number of minor ones that brought my star rating down a notch.
Recommended:
Yes
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