excerpt from Torment Magazine Nov. 15 2023
full article: https://tormentmag.com/p/how-brick-and-mortar-snowboard-shops-adjust-to-survive-the-21st-century-economy/
"The Bedrock of Our Snowboard Communities: How Brick-and-Mortar Adjusts to Survive the 21st Century Economy" by Caleb Kamins
Words by: Ben Clarke (Owner)
Location: Keego Harbor, MI
In Business Since: 2010
Best Selling Product: Capita Snowboards.
Worst Selling Product: Youth outerwear.
How many shops are in town?
The Peak is the only other shop left in Keego Harbor (it’s not the same as Skiers Peak). Back in the day, there was The Outdoor Action Company, Summit Sports, Skiers Peak, and even TWC (which was around for almost 20 years).
What is the biggest determiner in a successful winter?
Early sales. There's a limited time to sell snowboard gear and we're dealing with changing weather patterns. We’re in Southeast Michigan and we have years where it just rains and rains. Winters seem to be shifting later, which is a huge problem too. We need to have strong sales before the New Year, and weather is the biggest factor in snowboard consumer confidence.
Any standout years for sales? If so, why?
It will be really hard to beat 2020-2021 (the "COVID" years). Supply and demand is the best answer here. There was massive demand and a limited supply. I worked hard with vendors to get the product I needed. I saw the demand early on, and got some reorders placed before other major retailers. Consumer confidence was at an all-time high and we got stimulus checks, there was little to do but get outdoors. It seemed like everyone was getting into snowboarding or replacing their old equipment. I just adapted and handled inventory better than most, and was rewarded for that.
How have you had to make adjustments in the recent years to help business?
We've had to focus much more attention into our e-commerce business. Increasingly, customers are more comfortable with shopping online than going into a store. There's a growing sense of distrust in face-to-face sales interactions. Ironically, there's a strong blind faith in online reviews, most of which are generic and insincere. They're echoes of the brand's marketing material. Some random person behind a keyboard is an authority because they maybe rode a board or bindings for a handful of runs and have followers and a slick looking website? Chat GPT will give you that same information…
What has been the biggest single hurdle to overcome since you started your business?
Managing cash flow and inventory is never easy. Forecasting prebooks almost a year ahead of receiving product, only to be thrown a bunch of curveballs that no one could have predicted. And when the bills come due, no one is there to rescue you. Didn’t sell kids jackets this year? Well, you have a lot of them sitting now and that’s your problem. Forget making money, you're just trying to get it back.
Does weather affect sales for snowboard gear?
It’s probably the single biggest factor in sales. We live and die by the changing climate, and it’s not getting better for snowboarding. Take last year for example: We got a little snow and cold in November, which got the resorts open—great! We are selling stuff. Not so fast… It’s going to rain like crazy in December and then there's no snow in January. February is alright, but there's too much inventory out there due to overly optimistic COVID projections. Now, everything is on discount as soon as manufacturers allow—sometimes directly from them. It's a race to the bottom to not be the one with too much inventory that you can’t pay your bills. It’s like a really cruel version of musical chairs.
How do you deal in a seasonal industry?
Boom or bust. We have such a narrow window to sell merchandise at a sustainable margin, it’s really like two months or 75 days that we have strong sales to determine if we get to keep going. No one is going to bail you out, and while some brands or reps do try to help, it’s often too little too late. It can just soften the blow, but I’ll be the one eating hotdogs for dinner until I can move that inventory that no one wants for another eight months. Selling skateboards is a lot more predictable—markdowns are not an expectation and the consumer hasn’t been trained to expect a deal near a given date.
This is a flaw of the snowboard industry model. Consistently devaluing products because we're trying to clear out over production is not healthy. We end up with a graphic change and little else, but now that $500 is $350. I want $350 boards to exist, but not like this. It’s bad for the environment, and hurts the profitability of brands who will make cuts to things like their snowboard team or promo for events. Precisely the things that should be invested in are the first to get cut because the consumer doesn’t see it. That discounted snowboard actually costs more, it’s just being taken from a different place.