It was the second time the popular Somerfield worker had fought the disease - despite never going on a foreign holiday or using a sun bed.
He was first diagnosed in early 2006 but was given the all-clear following surgery and chemotherapy, but in March he was told the cancer had returned.
Now his friends and family are urging other young people to heed warnings about how deadly the sun's rays can be, particularly for Scots, as the country has the highest rates of skin cancer in the UK.
Mr Ross's friend Drew Robertson, who worked alongside him at the Redcloak store, said he hoped some good could come from his tragic death by increasing awareness of the disease.
"Everyone is devastated about losing Colin but his family think it is important to get the message out there," he said.
"He never really went in the sun. He had never been abroad and would never even have thought about using a sun bed. It just shows it can happen to anyone."
Mr Robertson described his friend as "the best person he had ever met".
"He was so kind hearted and never had a bad word to say about anyone," he added.
"He knew almost everyone who came in the shop by their first names and always took the time to talk to them. He was definitely the customers' favourite.
"Colin was really popular here and in Stonehaven and he's going to be really badly missed."
Mr Robertson said he had been a staunch supporter of Macmillan, Somerfield's chosen charity.
"Colin was always encouraging staff and customers to put money in the collection boxes," he added.
"He knew about how dangerous the sun can be and wanted everyone else to so they didn't have to go through what he did."
Friend Sabrina Alexander met Mr Ross through a charity football match.
She said: "Everyone is in shock. Colin was just such a nice person. He was always smiling and that made everyone else smile too.
"He was always positive, despite what he must have been going through. He really wanted to make the most of life."
Following the death of Mr Ross, who lived on Lily Loch Road, hundreds of messages of condolence have been left on the internet site Bebo.
A spokeswoman for Somerfield said: "We are all deeply saddened by the loss of our valued colleague and great friend.
"A number of floral tributes have been laid outside our Redcloak Stonehaven store and we are also collecting donations for Macmillan Cancer Support, the charity that funded a Macmillan nurse to help care for Colin in recent weeks."
A study by Cancer Research UK has revealed that rates of malignant melanoma have quadrupled since the 1970s and that it is the most common cancer in young adults.
The highest rates of the disease in the UK are in Scotland.