8/12/2019 Samples 2014

1/6

4 // OCTOBER 2013 // OUTDOOR USA MAGAZIN E

Editorial

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2/6

16 // FEBRUARY 201 4 // OUTDOOR USA MAGAZIN E

[ technology ]

BY MEGAN GLENN

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The Fuse Uno shell (left) and the Thermoball half zip (middle) are big updates to the Summit Series for 2014

Brand new for the Fall/Winter '14 season isa fabric technology and construction methodfrom The North Face that may revolutionizethe way apparel is produced in the outdoorindustry.

Enter Fuse Form, an innovation that canweave two performance properties into a sin-gle fabric. The technology is exclusive to TheNorth Face. In fact, Jake Martin, senior productline manager for The North Face Summit Se-ries, claims that there is nothing else like it onthe market.

So if you're a designer, and you want tobuild a garment with high abrasion resistancein one area and then use a lighter weight ma-terial in another, chances are you're going tobe sourcing multiple fabrics and playing witha lot of seam tape.

The problem with seam tape, Martin toldus, is that it's not breathable; it adds weight;

and it restricts movement. As the consumer demands more and moreversatility from performance apparel, seamtape can be a serious obstacle, especiallyin terms of breathabilityair does not passthrough it at all (0 CFM). The beauty of the newFuse Form technology is that, right now, it al-lows for textiles with different tensile strengthsto be woven into a single fabric. This providesversatile performance with less taping and aclean look.

TWO YARNS, ONE FABRICWhile Fuse Form has made its debut in

several The North Face concept carslikethe U.S. Olympic team Freeskiing Team uni-formsone of its most interesting applica-tions is in the brand's Summit Series.

The purpose of the The North Face Sum-mit Series has stayed very consistent, saidMartin. It is the brand's premier offering forany alpine or expedition climbing application;the description we use is the tip of the spear.

This includes apparel in addition to footwear,gloves, backpacks, tents and sleeping bags.Martin manages the development of SummitSeries apparel from concept to production.

The challenge that he and his team havebeen toying with is the ability to change theway that garments are actually constructed.The goal was to come up with a way to usemultiple fabrics, and at the same time, elimi-

nate seamstwo things that almost never gohand-in-hand.

We spent a lot of time on the back end withour manufacturing partners going through anexhaustive trial and error process just to gureout if we could even achieve this, said Martin.

And there wasn't one single solution. Inother words, Fuse Form is a concept thatencompasses a variety of fabric constructiontechniques.

Martin explained that depending on the typeof characteristics you are trying to create ina single fabrice.g. breathability, abrasionresistance, lightweight, etc.each is going torequire a different methodology for construc-

tion, so the nal product depends on the capa-bility of the supply chain.

It's a two-part puzzle, he said. Separatefrom the entire design process in-house, youhave to nd and develop the actual yarns, andthen you have to work with the factories andmills to see if they have the capacity to makethem.

According to Martin, Fuse Form itself wasn'tsomething the factory brought to the brandand said Hey we are doing this cool Fusething. Martin describes the development pro-cess as an entirely collaborative effort.

The technology requires custom machinery,and currently there are limitations in terms ofwhat yarns can be used. While The North Facehas experimented with different yarn types,weights and strengths, the Fuse Form producton the market for Fall/Winter 2014 is aimedat achieving different levels of abrasion resis-tance in a single fabric.

And in the Summit Series this is best ex-

emplied by the construction of the Fuse Uno(MSRP $399), a technical shell with a name tomatch its story.

THE PAPER AND THE SWANThe concept behind Fuse Uno is twofold.

First, the shell is constructed using Fuse Formtechnology. It is built from two pieces of mate-rial that are woven together into a single fabric.The material for the upper half of the garmenthas a high tensile strength that is more abra-sion resistant, and the lower half is made witha durable, but lighter-weight yarn. This is whatputs the Fuse in Fuse Uno, and the benet isdual performance with minimal seam taping.

In a typical jacket we are going to sewabout 22 yards of seam tape and in the FuseUno, we are only using about 10 yards, saidMartin. As explained, this means more breath-ability, less weight and better freedom ofmovement. It also looks really cool.

So, where does the Uno come from? Thename is a nod to a unique origami-like con-struction method The North Face uses to buildthe garment from a single pattern piece. It iscommon in apparel design to cut dozens ofpieces (arms, hood, torso, etc.) and seam tapeor stitch them together. However, imagine asingle piece of material that lays at on a tableand then can be folded into a jacket, as if youwere folding a piece of paper into a swan. Thisis essentially how the Fuse Uno is built.

Martin informed us that there is some con-fusion in the media about the difference be-tween Fuse Form and the single pattern piececonstruction method. To clarify, Fuse Form isthe technology or process used to weave theface fabric and only the face fabric. It is whatallows that fabric to have two different per-formance qualities woven together instead oftaped.

Entirely separate from Fuse Form, is thesingle piece construction technique. So inthe case of the Fuse Uno shell, the face fab-ric (made using Fuse Form) is layered with awaterproof-breathable membrane and a knitbacker that goes next-to-skin. This 3-layer

laminate is a standard pattern used in techni-cal apparel. Think of this pattern as a singlepiece of paper that is ready to be turned intoa jacket.

The Uno technique is essentially a feat ingeometry. The North Face is able to take that3-layer pattern piece (a.k.a piece of paper)and cut it in a way that allows it to be foldedinto a jacket. The word Uno was chosen be-cause the swan is built from a single piece ofpaper as opposed to cutting wings, a neck, abeak, etc and taping them together.

So, what's the advantage of constructing agarment from a single piece? Again, less seamtaping.

Both technologies exist to the same endsaid Martin.If you take the jacket and turn itinside out, its astounding how few seam linesthere are.

A SEAMLESS PROCESSCurrently the origami construction and Fuse

Form fabric technology do not provide any

advantages on the manufacturing end as faras efciency is concerned, but it is denitely astep in the right direction that has excited thedesign community.

According to Martin the next step is to closethe loop and nd a way to make use of thescraps that are left over in manufacturing. Ma-terial waste can be a huge cost for brands thatproduce at such high volumes.

Best case we can make another garmentfrom the left over material, said Martin. Andmaybe the alternative is to make somethinglike a tote bag.

The brand is also looking forward to seehow the technologies can be applied to oth-er products like backpacks, gloves, or evensleeping bags.

We denitely want to see how far we cantake it, said Martin. If anything's clear, it'sthat people really feel like this is the future ofhow we can construct not only outerwear, butoutdoor products in general.

The advantage of weaving the face fabric us-ing Fuse Form technology and using

the "origami" construction tech-nique from a single pattern pieceis less seem taping. Because there

is less seem tape, the Fuse Uno shellis lightweight, more breathable and has betterfreedom of movement

The geometry allows the jacket to befolded and taped into a three di-

mensional shape. The concept issimilar to origami, the Japanese

art of folding paper

The jacket is cut from a single pieceof material. This material iscomprised of a three layer

laminate. There is a waterproofbreathable membrane in between

a face fabric and a knit backer

The dark red and light red representthe different tensile strengths of the face

fabric. The dark red is a more durableyarn and the light red is alighter-weight yarn. FuseForm technology weaves

them into a single face fabric,requiring zero taping

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OUTDOOR USA MAGAZ INE // FEBRUARY 2014 // 13

[ launch ]

Purnell debuted at OR Summer '13, here's a shot of the booth from the 2014 Winter Show

BY JOSEPH GOMEZ

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Workwear and lifestyle apparel brand Pur-nell debuted at the 2012 Outdoor RetailerSummer show, and We were met with a lotmore enthusiasm than I expected, Presidentand Co-founder Brita Womack told us during

an interview at this past Outdoor Retailer Win-ter Market in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The brand's roots are actually in the windenergy industry, and outdoor specialty retailwas the next logical step. Purnell's other half,co-founder Brent Dehlsen, comes from a fam-ily that has been in the renewable energy busi-ness for over 30 years.

He grew up basically climbing wind tur-bines and doing maintenance on them beforeeventually running multiple renewable energycompanies, said Womack.

Somewhere along the way he felt there wasa need for clothing specically tailored for therenewable industry; it's a very specic niche.

These are people who require comfort, protec-tion and performance while scaling turbinesand other structures, but then they have tostep into the ofce for a meeting. They're in-dustrial athletes, said Womack.

Dehlsen explained that Purnell actually re-sides in a group of several other companiesthat are all related to engineering and designin renewables and sustainable construction.Two examples of businesses in that group are

Avianda, a construction company in Mexico,and Aquantis, a company that builds turbinesto harness the power from deep ocean cur-rents.

It's kind of a mashup of different engi-neering projects, said Dehlsen. It makes it

fun to have a company like Purnell in the mixthat's more creative driven in a whole differ-ent market, but still shares the same designprinciples.

SHIFTING FROM NICHE TO LIFESTYLEWhile Dehlsen assists with the design pro-

cess, Womack runs Purnell on a day-to-daybasis.

We started with a niche in the wind in-dustry market, and then after we debuted atOR, the more lifestyle focused stores were re-ally interested in our aesthetic, she said. Theaesthetic is a product of what the co-foundersdescribe as purpose driven design, clearly tak-ing inspiration from the engineering heritage.

While much of the product began as tech-nical workwear, making use of heavy canvaswith stretch material built into most of thefabrics, the soft-hand and vintage appealcombined with a variety of more profes-sional button-up styles in the men's line givea modern spin on the lifestyle categoryclothing that is appropriate for work and forplay. Softness is always a priority, Dehlsenadded.

Womack explained that Purnell started with just a men's line and after the debut, a lot ofretailers were inquiring about a women's line,so the brand answered this year.

Again, we worked with a lot of stretch

fabrics. We kept with a more vintage look, likerailroad stripes and classic, woven shirts, shesaid.

Versatility and simplicity are key featuresof the brand, which exhibits a more mature,careful design approach compared to otherlifestyle apparel on the market. The goal is tocut out all the unnecessary elements, givingthe garments a more clean, practical look.

We don't consider ourselves a trendybrand, but more of a modern or functional takeon these classic, casual styles, she said. Itgoes back to being inspired by the wind en-ergy industry and this concept of purposefuldesign. All the technology that goes into con-structing these massive structures has a spe-cic purpose, and we try and apply the samephilosophy to our apparel.

IS THAT A POSSUM ON YOUR HEAD? As far as key products in the collection,

women's leggings with the fair isle patternshave been a smash hit, Womack told us.

Women like to wear them as a base layer, butalso maybe with boots and a skirt or a tunic.

Another big push this year is the brand's lineof Awesome Possum beanies, and this isn't tobe confused with the more familiar opossum

that you might see on the side of the road.The line is made with fur from the Australianbrushtail possum that comes with an entirelydifferent story of its own.

Nearly a century ago the brushtail possumwas introduced to New Zealand, where it hadno natural predators, and as is very commonwith invasive species, the possums rapidly re-produced until eventually becoming a seriousproblem. It turns out that the possum's fur isa great natural insulator because air pocketswithin the fur trap air, which retains heat.

Once you put on one of the beanies, youcan literally feel the heat radiating, said Wom-ack. The other cool thing is that a lot of people

aren't familiar with the story about the brush-tail possums, so the response is usually reallygood. People nd it interesting.

Because the brand is based in Santa Barba-ra, Calif., it's seen more adoption onthe West Coast with some growth inthe Midwest and Pacic Northwestas well. The more vintage styles arecatching on in cities like Portlandand Seattle, and this is likely partof a larger trend that's been gainingmomentum in the outdoor industry,Womack told us.

Purnell is also in stores in the Southeast,where the styles are more seasonal and thelook tends to be a bit more rugged than istypical on the coast. Currently, the focus is ongrowing representation in the Colorado andUtah territories, where the founders see a lot

of opportunity. New England is the other reg ionthey are currently seeking more representa-tion.

We're over a year in, and right now whatwe are trying to do is just build awareness. Weare one of those brands where if you touch it,feel it, try it on, you'll be hooked, said Wom-ack.

She explained this is why the sales strategyis focused on specialty stores because theycan provide that in-store experience that isn'taccessible online

Online you can't tell that it feels great,and the simplicity of the design isn't going toresonate like it will in a store, she said. Wethink we are the perfect t for those retailersbecause we can help them differentiate fromthe bigger box brands, and our message issimplequality and purpose driven design.

The Awesome possum beanie is made from the fur of a pesky Australian marsupial A minimalist design approach mixed with creative patterns and functional materials

...lifestyle focused storeswere really interested in

our aesthetic

Co-founder Brent Dehlsen in hisyounger years

Brita Womack, co-founder, and colleague testing appare l functionalityon a wind mill climb

The patterned tights are a big sellerPurnell boasts rened, mature styles for men

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4 // DECEMBER 2013 // OUTDOOR USA MAGAZIN E

Editorial

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30 // FEBRUARY 201 4 // OUTDOOR USA MAGAZIN E

[ focus shop ]

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BY MATT RUPEL

Alpine Shop has 3 locations in Missouri and 1 in Illinois, above the Kirkwood, St Louis, Mo. store

Address of Headquarters: 440 N. Kirkwood Rd. St. Louis, MO 63122

Number of Stores: 4 total; 3 in Missouri (Kirkwood, Chestereld and Columbia), 1 inIllinois (O'Fallon)

Phone Number: 314-962-7715 (Kirkwood location) Website: alpineshop.comStore Hours: Mon-Fri 10-8, Sat 10-6, Sun 12-5

Owner: Russell "Holly" Hollenbeck, Lisa Hollenbeck Date of Establishment: 11/1973 - Original Owner; April 1, 1978 - Russell Hollenbeck

purchased the storeNumber of Employees: 75

Average Store Parking Availability: Sports Covered: Alpine skiing and snowboarding; bicycling; canoeing and kayaking;climbing; camping and backpacking; adventure travel; custom boot tting; sports/active/ outerwear

Average Store Square Footage: Ranges from 4,800 sq. ft. to close to 18,000 sq . ft.,depending on the store

Average Square Footage for Individual Departments (apparel, equipment, etc):

Leading Apparel Brands: Patagonia, The North Face, Columbia Sportswear, MarmotLeading Footwear Brands: Merrell, Salomon, Keen, Chaco

Leading Gear/Equipment Brands: Burton, Specialized, Jackson Kayak, WildernessSystems, Salomon Ski, Osprey

In 1973, Bob Moors, an avid climber, sawthe need for a climbing shop in St. Louis, Mo.where a thriving community of adventurershad been drawn to the mountains and streamsof the Ozark highland region. At the time, heowned a small home winemaking shop, so heopened his new store upstairs.

Shortly thereafter, the climbing outdid thewinemaking, said Russell Holly Hollenbeck,now co-owner of Alpine Shop.

Bob started building on the inventory, start-ing with canoes and cross-country skis, thenmoving into down jackets. In 1978, he waslooking to move to the west coast. Holly, afrequent customer at the shop, was interestedin taking over. He wanted a lifestyle changefrom his career in corporate nance. The op-portunity to make a living out of his passion forthe outdoors was too hard to pass up. It was agamble that paid off.

One of the main inuences of my corporatebackground was tha t I didnt like it, said Holly.So I moved into retail, but I went in know-ing my way around a balance sheet and anincome statement.

Although revenue was down 10 percent an-nually in the rst month, he was able to turnthings around by refreshing the inventory. Thecross country skiing category transitioned intoalpine skiing. The heavy winter offering wasbalanced by bringing in bikes, still a big sellertoday. The store also became the rst roller-blade dealer in town, a trend that was emerg-ing at the time.

In the '80s we got creative and started

sourcing casual apparel from outside the in-dustry. This was before the active lifestyle cat-egory was really established, said Holly.

As the business began to take off, the op-portunity arose to purchase a building downthe street with another partner. It would be asort of fateful decision.

Differences eventually arose between thetwo parties that led to litigation. Owning thebuilding with a partner was more of a hasslethan renting, said Holly. I didn't want to be alandlord, I wanted to be a retailer.

The silver lining was that Holly ended upmarrying his lawyer, Lisa Hollenbeck, who isnow a co-owner of Alpine Shop.

He likes to make the joke that he didn'thave any legal issues before I came around,said Lisa, but thats just because he didntknow he had them before me.

A few years ago the Alpine Shop team re-evaluated its strategic plan for the business,which led to a new mission statement: Gen-erations transformed by discovery outdoors.

Our goal is simple, said Lisa. We want toget people outside and make sure they have

the best experience possible, whether they areout there for a week long trip or for only anhour.

OPENING DOORSTogether, Holly and Lisa have expanded

the Alpine Shop name to four-locations, threebased in St. Louis and another in Illinois. Theagship store in Kirkwood, Mo. is 27,000 sq. ft.with roughly 16,000 devoted to retail and theremainder used as a warehouse space.

The inspiration for the Chestereld, Mo.store came after the rst Sports Authoritymoved to the area. At the time, Sports Author-ity didn't have a ski department, so they con-tracted various specialty retailers in the area to

do the buying and stafng.When we did that, said Holly. We wereable to tap into a lower tier of the market,

which we hadn't done be-fore, and it was good forbusiness. That realizationprompted the owners toseek out a smaller piece ofreal estate they could useas a closeout store. How-ever, that plan evolved into

just opening another shopthat carried more entry lev-el product. This became theChestereld store, which isroughly 5,000 sq. ft.

In that same year, a busi-ness owner in Columbia,Mo. reached out to the team at Alpine Shop tosee if they were interested in buying him out.

He evidently wasn't doing very well, andit was very inexpensive, said Holly. We paidhim less than the value of his inventory.

The Columbia store is about 6,000 sq ft andhas the advantage of being close to a large

university. In March of last year, Alpine Shopopened its newest store in O'Fallon, Ill., whichis 9,800 sq ft. and features a Trek bicycleshop-in-shop.

We've seen a handful of specialty shops inthe area come and go, but somehow we'vestayed in business, said Lisa. Ironically, Ithink both of us have worked more than weever did in corporate America, but we love it.

STAYIN' ALIVE Alpine Shop has continued to thrive for over

three decades, and the competition is strong.There's a Dicks Sporting Goods, REI, Cabela'sand Gander Mountain Sports in close proxim-ity to the stores, as well as multiple specialtydealers and climbing gyms selling outdoorproduct.

The owners told us that after they pur-chased the Columbia store it was at a nega-tive $275,000 net worth before turning a protyears later. The Alpine Shop stores have seentheir fair share of black and red, so Holly andLisa are constantly thinking of new ways tostay relevant. Their team actually just struckup a co-sponsorship deal with the city, to runsome clinics and events for the local O'Falloncommunity.

Opportunities like that are crucial, a yerpromoting the clinics will be sent to everyhouse and school in the area, said Holly.

Lisa, who has been buying for the stores

since they opened, explained that the growthin women's apparel changed the business forthe better.

When I rst started, there were no Gore-Tex products for women, she said. Now,we sell more women's products than men's.I think last year, we were 51 percent women'sand 49 percent men's.

However, the opening of popular chainstores like LuLu Lemon and Athleta is puttingpressure on the store. Lisa has seen a steadydecline in yoga wear and is ready to get outof the category all together. Those chains canlook like specialty stores because they aresmaller and in fancy malls, she said.

The other problem is competition online..We asked the owners what they saw as thebiggest challenge in the industry currently, andthey both said, the internet, the internet andthe internet.

Like many retailers report, the problem isn't just the the big online discounters, but oftenthe vendors themselves. They do big pricepromotions online and then some of them openup a agship store right down the street, saidHolly Now we're competing on both fronts.

Lisa told us that when the store perceivedColumbia was breaking its own pricing poli-cies online, they tried to call them out, but ithad little effect. So, the store dropped them for2013 and brought in Patagonia, a brand thatdoesn't allow its products to be sold on Ama-zon. Patagonia is now one of the shop's fastestgrowing lines.

How do we stay alive? Making sure wehave the right mix, said Lisa. She explainedthat while volume drivers are an importantpart of the business, her strategy is to re-serve roughly 5 percent of a store's inventory

for what she referred to as new, innovative,crazy, expensive and wacky stuff.

Each store's personality is dened by thatve percent, said Lisa. I'll buy crazy printsand high-end stuff you just won't purchaseonline.

Each year, she goes to the AmericasMartgift show in Atlanta to source non-traditionalitems, like jewelry and ornaments. The storealso sells high-end outdoor apparel and ski-wear ranging from $800-$1000. We can'tkeep them in stock, Lisa told us.

This spring, the stores will introduce an ini-tiative on how to prepare for a music festival,which is a popular outdoor experience amongthe younger crowd. Its directed at the cus-tomer who might not have a huge interest inthe outdoors, but needs a backpack, hydrationproducts and camping equipment for that spe-cic type of experience.

Its about showing customers how theycan use our products, instead of just shelvingthem, she said.

SMOOTH OPERATOR According to Holly, what has saved Alpine

Shop on several occasions is having the rightemployees, which became even more impor-tant as the business matured. Rich Husky, theretail manager has been with the companysince June 2009, and he currently oversees

Lisa Hollenbeck Russell "Holly" Hollenbeck

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OUTDOOR USA MAGAZ INE // FEBRUARY2014 // 31

[ focus shop ]

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the operations between each store. Rich gaveus some insight into how Alpine Shop stays or-ganized and well staffed in four locations.

We have a labor budget for each store setat about 10 percent of sales, Rich told us

The stafng uctuates by season. In thesmallest store (Chestereld), there's anywherefrom 5-9 employees, 6-11 for the mid sizedO'Fallon and Columbia stores, and then theagship Kirkwood store can have between30-50 employees. These are mostly part-timepositions with one salaried store manager andhourly key holders. The largest location hasa store manager, a sales manager, a trainingmanager, a bike shop manager and a servicemanager that are all salaried.

Rich explained that the age range of em-ployees is extremely diverse and that in hiringhe is mostly looking for peoplewho are sociable and take aninterest in learning each aspectof the business, especially withevents and new products. Ittakes about 30 days to traineach person, and I can tellimmediately if someone justwants a pay check, he said.

High turnover is one of thebigger issues specialty retail-ers face internally. A fun workenvironment and open commu-nication is the best approach,according to Rich. I make sure the employeesknow they can voice their concerns and thatthey'll be both answered and heard, he said.

We asked Rich at what size a retailer needsa general manager as opposed to just indi-vidual store managers. He explained that it'smore a function of distance. We have storesthat are two-and-a-half hours a part, so havingsomeone overseeing each one lets the ownersstay really involved, said Rich.

For instance, if ski gear is struggling in onestore, but excelling in another, Rich can go in-vestigate why and nd a solution because heunderstands each location. Along with that, healso helps coordinate a lot of the ou treach withevents. While the stores are more cohesive intheir product mixthe core administrativeteam does the buyingtheir autonomy is ex-pressed with merchandising and events.

EVENTS + DATA = ? Alpine Shop has always been marketing

savvy with a heavy emphasis on events. Thestores collectively host over 250 clinics, eventsand races each year with 4,700 unique regis-trations last year.

Behind the marketing strategy is Tom Os-wald, whose background is in sports market-ing for athletic departments at universities. Hewound up at Alpine Shop after adventuring onthe West Coast and then returning to the St.Louis are. He was looking for a whitewaterboat, when a job opportunity at Alpine Shopopened up.

What's interesting with events, he told us,is that when we started charging a registra-tion fee for clinics that were previously free,attendance and registration almost doubled.Todd thinks its because if people are puttingdown money, they are going to be more com-mitted.

When he came on board in 2001, the mar-keting strategy was driven by TV, radio and lo-cal print. Now the cost of TV advertising hassky rocketed, and the local radio and newspa-pers don't have the readership they used to.

Today, the way we reach new customers ismore fragmented than ever, Todd said.

The most consistent marketing tool hasbeen direct mail, which always has a high re-turn. And then email is another big driver thatis great because the store can literally see thespike in web trafc on Google Analytics. Thatusually translates into brick and mortar visits,he said.

Only in the last four or ve years has thestore been putting resources into review siteslike Yelp and Google Reviews. The idea is to

ensure that the online presencemaintains a reputation as theexperts in the are with the best

customer service.The advent of the smart-phone has changed the ap-proach for a lot of businesses,said Todd. When people areconstantly on their phone andcan get a local search fromwherever they are, I want tomake sure our store is one ofthe rst to come up as an op-tion.

To achieve this, Alpine Shop is a paying cus-tomer for Yelp to make sure it can keep com-petitors off of its pages and display video andphotos with better rankings. For us it's a verycost effective move to get as many hits as pos-sible while keeping costs down, said Todd.

The other digital tool that has proven usefulis Facebook. By now, most businesses havediscovered the value of social media, but thereis still a lot to learn in translating likes intosales.

Todd told us he has seen very positive re-sults with Facebook ads in the news feed, butnot with other options like sidebar ads andboosted posts.

For example, the store has hosted a trailrun series for about three years, and it typi-cally averages about 100-125 runners. Lastyear after promoting the event with sponsoredFacebook posts, participation almost doubled.

The marketing team also made sure to havea group of photographers covering the race,so they could share a ton of photos. I think intotal we had something like 30,000 impres-sions on Facebook over the few days follow-ing the race, said Todd. People were taggingphotos of themselves, commenting, thankingthe store, etc.

The social media budget can range any-where from $5 to $50, depending on if thereis a big promotion happening, and content-wise the focus is always on products andevents.

Currently Alpine Shop uses a registrationsoftware for its events. The next progressionin marketing is to combine that informationwith merchant processing data in a CustomerRelationship Management tool (CRM) like As-

cent, and then build a strategy from there.With the Ascent platform, the store is try-

ing to identify its most valuable customers aswell as potential customers who may be eventregistrants in the local area that haven't yetmade a purchase.

With that information we can design a spe-cic promotion that would involve direct mail,email, Facebook, etc. said Todd. In this dayand age, it's more about nding the narrowercustomer that you just havent' reached yet, asopposed to targeting vast numbers.

Right now the main goal is to get to a pointwhere after holding events and collectingemail information, the team can use the plat-form to establish leads for customer purchas-es and make contact within 24 hours. That'swhere we need to be, said Todd.

Brenda Mohr, Lead Buyer

How did you get into buying?I had the opportunity to work in the buying ofce

of an East Coast based chain and kind of got mystart buying there. And then my husband has beenin the Air Force, so we moved around a lot, and Istarted working at a ski shop in Virginia when he wasstationed at Langley Air Force Base. When he gottransferred to St. Louis to y with the Missouri Guard,I started working for the Alpine Shop in the fall of1998. I helped open the Chestereld store when the

Alpine Shop was looking for management staff.

Was it a good winter in St. Louis?We had a very cold, snowy winter, so we were able

to move quite a bit of our core product: gloves, hats, baselayers, winter footwear. So forthis season that has been the strongest for us in terms of pure sell-through.

What brands are doing well?This year we had a very, very good year with Patagonia. We have a concept shop in our

main Kirkwood location. The brand seems to nally be hitting the Midwest in terms oftrend. They have some really strong volume driver styles that are at the right price.

Are there any buying trends you noticed this season?I think we had a good year with luxury products. We carry a brand of skiwear called

Shoos that runs in the $800 to $1000 range for jackets. We couldn't keep them in stock.We don't do a huge volume with it, but it just seemed that the luxury customer wasback in our stores this year.

Have any products surprised you?Lisa and I went to the Gift Show in Atlanta., which exhibits everything from Christmas

ornaments to scarves and gift product. I think as a category that has been the biggestsurprise for meChristmas ornaments, jewelry, little interesting trinkets, etc.

What is on the mark down rack this year?Because it was colder we did really well with insulated apparel, but soft shells seem to

be a little softer than normal, and I think it's that everybody was buying a coat.

How are you keeping the inventory fresh?I think color is one of the best ways to do that, and the jewelry and scarves are also

very unique. Sometimes we go to the mall and look at stores like Anthropology or UrbanOuttters for inspiration in terms of the eclectic mix and presentation.

What is the biggest challenge in buying for the stores?

Well, I think for us the biggest challenge has been that we have four very differentstores in terms of size. It's making sure that we understand the customer in eachcommunity and buying appropriately.

Are there any sales reps that you think are going the extra mile?The one that stands out in our territory is a gentleman by the name of Tim Harwood.

He works with Adventure Sports Marketing based out of Chicago, and he representsEagle Creek, Princeton Tec, Steripen, Stanley and Suunto. Tim just has a really goodgrasp of what retailers need in terms of support. We see him frequently, and he's alwayson the road. He always supports our events. And I think he's always trying to help ourstaff, whether it's sending links to helpful articles or educating us on the latest salesinformation.

2013, Alpine Shop, castlewood state park, trail run series

Marmot i one of the store leading apparell brandsStore sizes range from 4,800 sq.ft. to 18,000 sq. ft., above the Chestereld locationMerrell, Salomon, Keen and Chaco are Alpine Shop's leading footwear brands

Tom Oswald, marketing director