Outdoor Insight

to try it out! When can I test it?' That's one of my favorite parts. One of the most difficult parts is that, as we have learned, you can do everything wrong and if it snows you'll be okay, but then you can do everything right and if it doesn't snow, it just doesn't matter. The thing that is most important as a ski shop is snow and it is the thing we have absolutely no control over. We are snow farmers. It is what it is." On the key issues impacting the outdoor retail business… "Online sales, including Amazon, that's a big issue. But in some ways part of our advantage as a shop is that we are new enough that we actually missed the heyday of brick-and-mortar retail. We have always had online competition, so we don't really know any better. "A lot of customers shop online — but a lot have bought gear online and got burned. I do think people are looking to come back into brick-and- mortar. Our sales are solely brick-and-mortar and from the get-go we have striven to be a part of our community. That is what people are looking for these days. They are looking for a shop that not only has the knowledge and expertise, but also has events for the community. We invite people in for movie nights or slide shows and we build relationships with various groups. These are things that are a benefit to us." On beer, gear and movie nights… "We have a two-story building and the upstairs is our used gear attic. Everything is on wheels up there, so we can wheel the racks into the office up there and we have a projector and a mounted movie screen and a sound system. We have seating for 60 people and standing room for 40. We show ski movies and slide shows. And that goes along with our 'beer and gear' thing. Our beer sales could go up 30 percent for the whole month during one movie night." On deciding which brands and products to carry… "I am data driven. I look at sales numbers… we work with NPD to see the info we need to see in terms of category leaders — that's part of it. We also utilize ski demo opportunities and we test out as much product as possible. So we make our decisions in part via data and in part just based on what we like. We get to be gear geeks and bring in our favorite stuff. "The GOA [Grassroots] show is the primary trade show for us for the majority of our brands, aside from ski hardgoods, and we have a regional trade show where we see the rest of our brands. We've gone to Outdoor Retailer, but for the most part we'll go there to maybe find a new brand or look at the accessories." On his hopes for 2019… "I'm looking for balance in my personal life between work and family and keeping myself healthy and active. That's the main thing that I am trying to work on in 2019. On the business side, we have a great store manager and we now have someone who can up our online game, and my primary ski tech is now also becoming a buyer for us, so really I'm just looking to get myself out of their way. You want to get the right people and put them in the right positions to be successful." l January 2019 • Outdoor Insight • 43 outdoorinsightmag.com

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