About Us

There’s been a skislope of some sort in Halifax for a good 15 years or more, for about the last 10 years there’s been a healthy snowboard scene as well, but for some reason there hasn’t been a snowboard specific shop for locals or anyone else to shop at. It’s hard to say why really, perhaps it’s because until now no one has had the expertise, contacts or time in the industry to set up a successful shop. That’s all just changed with the opening of A.K.A snowskate shop on Claremount Road in Halifax.

A.K.A is the outcome of Halifax institution Wayne Taylor’s desire to start a rider owned and rider driven shop that is home to a hand picked selection of cutting edge, core brands that really work and not simply a shop that sells the most commercial brands to make a quick sale. For those who don’t know Wayne he’s been around the UK snowboard scene for a long time now, he’s part of the furniture at Halifax apart from when he’s up and down the country at various competitions pushing the limits of what is possible on a snowboard. Wayne’s a perfectionist with a no nonsense approach to snowboarding and his do or die attitude, along with his massive bag of tricks, has gained him industry wide respect. Throughout his time snowboarding Wayne has been UK Big air champion at men’s and master’s levels. He’s a regular on the boardtests of all the major UK snowboard magazines and works closely with all his sponsors to make sure every product he uses is up to the job.

On top of that, along with his girlfriend Deborah, Wayne has been an instructor at Halifax for the past 3 years as well as instructing at Castleford Xscape, Wayne can also be credited with passing his skills on to the next generation of riders up at Halifax, many who form part of the A.K.A crew. The A.K.A crew is made up of some of the best young snowboarders the country has to offer, most notably wonder kid Jamie Nicholls who has been at Wayne’s side progressing as the years have passed. Wayne and Jamie are constantly pushing each other and have ridden together most nights at Halifax and at most domestic competitions going since Jamie began to ride, it’s the sheer time that they spend learning from one another that has led to Jamie riding at such an advanced level regardless of his age, a fact he wouldn’t deny

A.K.A is an extension of Wayne’s attitude, he’s in touch with the needs of beginners and pro’s alike and is committed to stocking brands he believes in, those he’s ridden, tested and played part in their continual improvement, it goes without saying that at A.K.A everyone is going to get what is best for their individual ability and riding style.

Wayne’s been spreading the word about A.K.A for months now and if there’s been a competition at your local slope it’s probably a safe bet that the A.K.A crew has been around stickering up the slope, sessioning the kickers and rails and usually taking home the prizes. It’s all been part of the build up to the opening of the shop and now the stock is in and the doors are open it’s well worth going along to see what all the fuss is about.