At first it was cold...

At first it was cold. When it was cold the customers came to the store in large quantities. "The snow is wonderful" they would say, "and we need some skis!". It turned out they needed gloves, and jackets, and scarves too. And life was good.

And then it got warm. And when it was warm the customers became far fewer saying "we need some skis!". Some of them were actually saying "I need some new titlist golf balls" or "I need to get my bike tuned up" instead. So what do ski shop employees do when this happens? We skied! The industry demo days were timed perfectly for the warm spell.

Splitting the staff to allow everyone to go to the demo is always risky. If business is strong that week our customer service will be weaker than I want it. Tuning and waxing will get backed up. Rentals will take longer. You know the deal.

But this year it was perfect. The shop was slow, the snow at the demos was great, and we had a great time. Thanks again to the "ringers" brought in to help demo the skis. I figure I personally got in about 55 skis tested. I have test cards on about 160 different models overall. We had about 40 total"skier days" with four testers in Denver, ten in Norcal and nine testers in Socal. That's a lot of testing! I feel I have a pretty good handle on everything we stock and much of what we do not.

So now it is time to get cold again. And it is getting cold. Snowy too. It looks like nine days straight of precipitation at this point. And going right into the holiday weekend. I couldn't have planned it better myself. To top off the cake I am heading to Utah for four days at the end of the week. I am getting some revolutionary new Fisher boots fitted for me (more on this when I get back). And then I must ski on them. So this is a business trip. More importantly to me, I am also getting to see some people that I am close to but don't get to see enough. Marielle, for one, has been absent from my life for way too long! So come on snow, and come on cold. Put away the golf clubs and the bicycles. Let's get another round of winter coming in strong!

Onward we roll

So my beloved Steelers are in the Super Bowl again. I won't see it, but I will be wearing my Franco Harris jersey to work. At the end of the day we head to Alpine Meadows for two days of on snow demo's of next years skis. After that I go to Mammoth for two more days of the same. Alpine with half the staff, Mammoth with the other half. Things are interesting this year and the demo days will be very important.

Last week was the yearly industry trade show in Denver. Last year was ok. The manufacturers mainly just re-painted their skis, boots, and bindings for another year. Not too much new in clothing. A lot of retailers didn't go either, so it was fine, but could have been better.

This year- wow! The manufacturers seemed to all decide to step it up. Innovations were abundant. All new offerings from many brands, And a few mind bending innovations that could change thugs going forward. The Salomon BBR ski and the Fischer custom boot system come to mind first.

And all the skis have changed. Rocker, rocker everywhere. Everything needs to be tested as it is all new. I got a few days in at Winter Park testing the new stuff. Overwhelming? Yes. Challenging? Hell yes! I cannot wait!

As usual I have not had any time off and am beat so I will keep this short. I will let you know some of the winners and losers as soon as I can!

Inspiration

Inspiration can be a fickle thing. If you ever decide to write a blog, inspiration may be the key ingredient for success. Without it, you simply have nothing to write about. That's kid of the spot I am in now. I really want to write about skiing. I suppose that is because I really want to GO skiing. I really want to go skiing because I really like to ski. And I have not skied much this year. And I know the skiing has been fantastic this year. And I know this because you folks tell me on a daily basis what you experienced the day before on the slopes.

Ideally I like to be able to say "yeah, I know, I was up there too, and it was awesome". I haven't got to say that much this year. Bummer...

So I was thinking that every year is a good ski year for me. If I don't ski it is simply because I am too busy at work. That means the register is clicking, and the deposits at night are a bit heavier. If business is slow, I get to ski a lot. So I cannot lose either way, right? Yeah, keep telling yourself that Greg!

Typically I get 40-50 days of skiing in each year. Less than a ski bum, but more than most recreational skiers. Actually pretty good for a person that only takes off one day a week during ski season. I had made myself a deal early on in this business that I would shoot for 40 days a year. If I didn't ski that much, maybe I should get out of the business. It would mean I was either burnt out on skiing or too busy at work to ski. If I was working so much I could not ski, then I should maybe be too busy in a vocation where I could make more money working that amount. Sounds right, don't you think?

Well this year I may not make it. I am about ten ski days behind where I would normally be. In the spring I leave on a three month trip. The departure date is May 4th. We may be open through that date so I may not even be the one to put the sheet across the door indicating that we are closed for the season. That would be a first!

After we close seasonally, I have traditionally taken the staff skiing for a week or so at Mammoth or Mt. Bachelor. Some years this week puts me over the 40 day mark. One year it took a trip to Chili to push me over the magic number. Or maybe I already had over 40 days but just wanted a few more. I cannot remember ; ).

This year I will miss the spring trip. I will also not be going to the southern hemisphere. I may fall short of my goal. Should I fret over this? Well, I don't think so. If I do fret I think I will be compromising my ski year in a different way. I also realize that it would not be due to lack of desire. On top of that, I can average it out with next year and use that as a goal to ski a ton next year. Yeah, that's it! 60 days next year!

So, I have been trying to get to Utah, even if only for a day or two. That would double my days for the year. I have people there I want to ski with, and the window to get there is closing for an opportunity to do that this month. I will still get to Salt Lake a few times later in the season, but I want to get in a trip right now. My chances are a bit slim, but I could really use it, and will be a bit bitter if I cannot figure out a way to do it. To Peter and the others I would like to come ski with, please know I am trying!

If I don't make it this week, I have the national trade show to go to next week in Denver (see the Jan 17th 2010 blog entry for more about the show). Before then I need to catch up on a lot of business analysis. I am usually able to spout off percentages of growth (or decline) in every category on a month to month basis. This year I have no idea. If it doesn't involve having the store open and staffed and giving my customers the best possible experience each day, I haven't really had time to do it. Business analysis is one of the things that has had to suffer. On the other hand I have a hunch that I will like what I see overall. It has just been that kind of year.

So now I leave you to head in to the shop. If I have enough energy after we close at 8 o'clock, and there is not too much boot work to do before tomorrow, I may be able to run some reports. I hope so. I also hope not. I hope it is busy as all get out like most days. Bring it on!

So with the topic of inspiration as a theme for todays entry. I say to you, be inspired today. Be inspired to ski. Be inspired in your work and play. Shoot for all the great days you can. And make the best use of EVERY day!

A Crowded House

Well, it does not get any better than this from a retailers point of view right? We just had the biggest month in gross sales in the history of the business. The weather has been perfect to drive sales and fun on the slopes. I am employing more people in a rough economy. I lucked into having a huge staff ready when the rush hit this fall. I am also lucky to have such a talented and fun staff in general. Everything came together to have record sales.

Yet it has not been a very satisfying month for me. I make a living doing retail the way I think it should be done. Outstanding customer service and product knowledge. A staff that has a very high level of competency in all ways. A reputation earned from years of doing it right.

And I am proud of my staff for being all of what I describe above. Yet we failed some customers this last month. Screw ups happened that normally don't. We had paperwork that disappeared. We screwed up two binding mounts. We had a handful of customers come to pick up skis that weren't ready. We had two Yelp reviews that were from dissatisfied customers.

This is typically a years worth of foul-ups. We are human, so a screw up here and there is expected. To have all this happen in one month is distressing. I could explain it by stating the facts. We had less room to work in the back with all the work coming in. Our ski tech Martin worked every day that he did not race, plus had full time assistance just to get it done, so he was always having to hurry. To process twice as many tunes, waxes and the like in the same space is tough. Where do you put all the skis? And finding them to deliver upon the pick up day is harder too. Now, it is one of the hundred skis in the bursting at the seams racks, instead of one of the fifty. Mounts were done by John, myself, and others after hours just to keep up. An employee working at midnight on their twenty fifth day of work straight means less attention to detail. It is hard to manage boot fitting customers when we have five fitters working and have to try to fairly fit in five people waiting to ensure they get helped in a fair and orderly way. It is hard to really assist a customer buying a helmet well when each sales staffer has 6-8 customers to deal with at a given time. I could go on and on...

So it was an awesome sales month, and we should be happy about that. And yet it is the two yelp reviews, the messed up labor, and the customers complaining that sticks in my mind. I know each one of them by heart. I have agonized about them at night in bed. I have vowed to get better at this business.

Some compromises must be made in business. If I hire and train earlier, I have a massive payroll to maintain waiting for snow that may not happen until after Christmas. This could mean a year with no profits. If I wait too long to hire and train, the snow starts before training is complete. This is a decision that when made is certainly a guess. Without a crystal ball, I have a slim chance of hitting it perfect. Space to handle the volume of December is tough too. To have the set up needed for December to be smooth and uncrowded means 1000+ more square feet of sales floor, and that means paying even more rent in the summer when we are closed. These are tough choices, and I would maintain that we are basically doing the right things as best we can. But we can improve. Organizational systems can be improved. Before and after hours shifts to clean and restock can be added. I see many possible improvements.

Meanwhile, I don't want to dwell on the past too much. I need to try to make January as successful as December from a business standpoint. I need to try to give the staff some relief as they are fried. I need to try to ski a bit! And I better get moving right now as I need to get in early to close the books on December and 2010.

In 2011 we will be even better! Happy New Year!

Have you been skiing? I have!

Every year the local ski reps put on a Demo in early December. This is a "love and hate" demo. I love it and they hate it. I love it because I often have new employees that have to sell gear that they have not tried themselves. Until this demo opportunity they simply have to take my word for how the different skis perform. For this reason the shop owners insist on this event. Of coarse, I also love it because it is an opportunity to demo skis and I can never get enough of that! The reps hate it for a number of reasons. First and foremost is that they really wish that they did not have to still have their demo fleets available. The reps typically have to buy their demo fleets from their own company. After the last demo before the dealers have placed their orders in March they would love to sell their skis. They are "next years" skis and would go for top dollar. Also, their spouses would love to have enough garage space to fit a car in there. In addition the reps must give their skis to a bunch of yahoos in early December. Yahoo's skiing over light snow coverage on skis they do not own could mean a lot of maintenance on an entire fleet of skis before they can be sold.

The demo must be at this time in December because that is just when it works best. Earlier, and hiring may not be done, and there is not a good chance of snow. Later, and we are pushing up against the Christmas rush and shop owners cannot afford to let their staffs off to go ski. So there it is. Some years it is cancelled due to lack of snow. Some years it can be epic conditions. Most years it is just what we got last week- enough snow but early season conditions. So off we went to Reno.

With the event happening at Mount Rose we would have to leave at four in the morning to do it in one day. Therefore, we packed up and left after work on Tuesday night. The group was ten strong. The rookies needed to go. Someone needed to teach them how to demo skis. Being the man that I am I volunteered for the job. So that I would not be stuck with a bunch of youngsters, I had some previous employees along and a few friends that have demo experience. Also in the caravan was Erik Boone of Boone skis (http://www.booneskis.com/).

We arrived in Reno at about midnight at the casino. A nightcap was necessary. One thing led to another and we got to bed at about the same time that we would have had to leave if we had not driven up the night before. The end of the night came when the bartender would not fire up the mechanical bull for us. Looking back we should have tipped him better for probably saving all of our butts!

The wake up call came at 6:30, so we got up and had some breakfast and scoped out the weather. Ouch! The "Pineapple Express" that had been forecast looked to be in full swing. A pineapple express is a storm that comes from the land of pineapples. That means warm air and lots of moisture. Not ideal for skiing. Oh well, there was not a good option but to drive up the hill and check it out.

We got to Rose and there was heavy discussion amongst the reps. There was no precipitation at the moment at the lodge. Up top it seemed to be howling with 80-100 mile per hour winds. Mt Rose was deciding whether to even open up the hill. The reps were deciding if they should cancel the event even if the mountain was open. There were not many dealers there. Most local Tahoe shop employees certainly woke up, looked out the window, and decided to pass. Only a hand full of dedicated testers were there. Jim Fowler from the Start Haus in truckee is always willing and was there with bells on. From the Bay Area only Arturo from Mountain West in San Francisco was around that I saw, and a few REI type youngsters that I did not know. I pushed for them to have the event as we had driven up and paid for rooms just to be here. The ski patrol came over and said they would open- but only the Ponderosa Lift. Ponderosa is their beginner chair by the lodge. The reps looked to be less than psyched about that, but were given little choice. The Demo was on!

In a funny moment Chris Tiller (a Salomon rep) yelled out in his best Squawlywood accent "Dudes- boot up! I heard a rumor they will be opening Ponda in ten minutes!". This may not be KT22, but it was all we had, so boot up we did. And then we skied. Testing on beginner runs is hard. We got some things accomplished though. Wayne Wong was there with his Anton demo's so we skied them. The Antons blew the staff's minds. The rookies also got to see what we meant when we said the Blizzard Magnum 8.1 was "full of pop", and why we said the Peak 78 from Head was "intuitive and easy to ski". Plus they got to see the reps again and feel the bitchin' vibe of a ski industry get together.

And then it all came undone. The skies opened up a bit and Uler spit down what seemed like Elmers Glue. Sticky, sticky, sticky. A light rain combined with a less than steep slope meant we were done. We headed into the lodge for a few minutes to see if it would clear again. It didn't. So at 1:30 the reps began to pack up and we hit the road.

So now what?- I thought. Snow play? No there seemed to be a movement towards dry comfy clothes. Snow play was out. Go home asap?. No, that was no fun. And then I got an idea.

I had found out about a great little restaurant on the way down the hill in the Sierra Summit area that would be a perfect finale for this group. It is called The Rustic Table. I set it up so we would all meet there for dinner. "The directions are easy" I said, "It is the Laing road exit". I explained that Laing is like Lange of Lange ski boots. Others thought it was pronounced "laying" and chose to remember it with a different association. Hmmm...

We got to the restaurant a bit before it opened at 3:30. Luckily we got Therese's attention through the window and she let us wait inside. Therese is one of the owners and was just starting to set things up for the evening. Her husband Adam is the Chef and was still napping before the dinner shift. We chatted with Therese and her daughter. Some of us drank wine or beer in the lounge area. I put in a holiday DVD and the fire was stoked. The rest of the group was all together within a half hour and joined us.

Therese set up a large table and nine of us gathered around and enjoyed a multi course meal for the next three hours. Everyone seemed to be blown away by the Rustic Table. Most agreed that it would be a popular 5 star restaurant if it was in Berkeley or San Francisco. And the prices are good too. We got out of there at 7:00 and zipped down through the valley and back to the bay. The Rustic Table put a great topper to a really fun 24 hours. We played, we skied, and we enjoyed fine dining. All with a great group of friends and employees. What a great day!

Many customers know I ski each Wednesday and ask about conditions and the like. The actual skking last Wednesday was certainly terrible as far as conditions. On the other hand it was great to slide around for a few hours with sticks on my feet no matter what the conditions were. On top of that I had the company of some people I really like to spend time with. So when people asked me how the skiing was this last week I simply say "it was a great day!".

The Rustic Table is a great place to stop on the way down the hill for adults or families. It gets a big CalSkiCo thumbs up!

http://www.rustic-table.com/

43440 Laing Rd

Emigrant Gap, CA 95715 530-389-8900

Have you been skiing yet?

Have you been skiing yet? I have not! After weeks of anticipation. After a summer of waiting. After hundreds of customers talking about opening day. I think everyone has been skiing except me! We got the killer storm we needed for the shop to go nuts with rabid customers, and I could not take advantage. We had made plans to go to Oregon for Thanksgiving instead!

Actually the plans were made weeks ago. Elizabeth and I had "sponsored" our first Thanksgiving dinner while we were in college at Chico State. It was time to pass the torch. Since Jennifer didn't get much time off for the break, so Elizabeth, Rebecca and I drove up for a few days. It made sense when we planned it a few months ago. We would also be able to take in the Ducks football game against Arizona which looked to be a good game to go to. As it turns out, the Ducks are ranked #1 nationally and so it was an even better game to see. ESPN thought so too. Super fun!

We also hiked to the top of Spensers Butte in the snow, had a good Thanksgiving meal, got in some great family time with the girls etc., so no regrets at all. But I want to ski! Looks like this Wednesday should work. I gotta calm down...I will ski on Wednesday at Northstar. My time has come.

Business keeps rolling along. We have topped 100k for November which is a first. I remember when I hoped to do 100k in December one day. Now we should do it four different months this year- maybe five. Thanks for being such great customers. I appreciate it.

As usual I can only thank my staff. We now have 5 Masterfit trained master boot fitters. Gary and Steve were given the Master Boot Fitter aprons they have earned. I handed them over with little ceremony but a good amount of pride on my part and I think theirs too. They are both first rate fitters and the aprons are well deserved.

The rest of the staff is also going gangbusters. We have some new people and they have been "thrown into the fire" due to the early start. We had just wrapped up the reps training clinics and were about to begin the in-house training by category when the weather turned. Customers come first, and so...group training has been put off. Instead we have been trying to work with individuals or small groups of rookies as we can. It works even if it is not ideal.

Luckily the rookies are pretty sharp. A few are still a bit unsure of themselves in some areas but they are picking it up just fine. They remind me of new born horses. On their feet quickly albeit a bit shaky at first. They do not realize it, but they will be off and running on their own in no time.

It is exciting to see their joy at feeling "competent" at anything. Their customer service has been fantastic from the start which is a top priority, but they start out feeling a bit awkward with the products until they have some real knowledge. Success comes quickly however, and it is fun to see them grow. Bekka smiled like she had won the lottery when she fielded her first phone call all by herself. Charles was proud as a rooster when he sold his first pair of goggles without help. Yesterday Emili texted me when she sold her first pair of boots. That's pretty quick progress for the group. Ahh, the joy of learning and succeeding! Their energy and excitement is contagious too. It keeps me smiling and is a shot of youthful energy to all.

OK, so I guess it is time to drive in to Berkeley and see how the grizzled old vets and the bright eyed rookies did on "Black Friday" and then yesterday. Get up there and enjoy the snow. If you are at Northstar on Wednesday maybe I will see you! I will be the one with the big smile!

Gettin' all learned up

Well it is still that special educational time of the year. Clinic time! We have sales reps come in and talk up their products. They use power point presentations, sample cutaways, even some smoke and mirrors. Their goal is to get us psyched on the product they sell. My job is to help them help me to train my staff. So of coarse I end up interjecting at times to keep things in perspective. Overall the sales reps are very knowledgeable. They also know that we are on top of our game too, so they expect the discussions to get very technical. And it does. It is a fun time.

Also taking place in the fall is Masterfit University training. Masterfit does four locations with two days available totaling fifteen hours. The closest location for us is Reno. This year I took seven people. Yikes! That meant four hotel rooms of CalSkiCo employees up in Reno. In addition to the training, there are a lot of industry folk there that we know. Manufacturers boot techs, shop owners and staff from top boot shops. Basically all the boot geeks. It is kid of a boot geek party! In the past it has gotten quite racous at times, and we have typically been front and center. This year we didn't get as rowdy as we usually do, although one night an individual seems to have come home around dawn one night. Sorry no names will be given. What happens in Reno stays in Reno.

So john and I did the Masters Plus "Dark Arts" course as we typically do. Erle, Gary, Steve, and Daniel were moved up into the Masters level and Benelia took the Associates Plus offering. As usual the Masterfit crew were outstanding. Given that they really don't make much money doing their training classes, their spirit of doing this for the good of the sport and to fill an obvious need to create more good boot fitters is to be commended.

The Dark Arts class had I think ten students? This included Mike from Dale boot and Paul from Full Tilt. We know Mike quite well and have fully checked out his operation. I had only recently spoken to Paul on the phone looking for some technical information about his boots. He is the engineer in charge of design and manufacturing the boots and added a lot to the class. It was great to have someone on hand to speak up for the 3 piece shell designs out there. The group used a more open discussion instead of a conventional syllabus. The assumption is that we have all been around the block a few times and so it turns into more of a networking situation. "What have you guys been doing when you run into...." sort of a thing. It is a room full of tremendous talent and knowledge. It reminds me of how much I still have to learn.

I think everyone at the shop is energized about fitting now, so I will be spending time each day with the fitters to try to take the skills they have learned and ingrain it into their boot protocol. It gets me excited about boots too, so I spent more time boot fitting this weekend than I have been doing since we opened for the season. What fun!

Another boot note that happened this week was that I obtained a copy of the legendary "Red Book". At least it has become legendary to me. Sort of a grail hunting expedition actually. One of the really great fitters I have run across is Amy. Amy works for Superfeet. She was a head fitter at Any Mountain back in the day and went on to work for Superfeet. Over the past number of years she has read any and all books on the subject of feet, boots, and fitting ski boots that she could find. I asked her once what her recommended reading list was for me. Many of the books I was already familiar with. Her highest recommendation was "the Red Book". She couldn't remember exactly how to spell the Authors name but figured I could find it using the internet. She warned me that it was out of print, obscure, and probably hard to find. "but it will be worth it if you do" she said.

Well I looked and looked. Nothing coming up at all for "the Red Book''. I got a few footnotes citing "the foot book" by an author who's name was close to her guess on spelling. I called Amy's boss at Superfeet and got the authors properly spelled name. It was the one I had seen. It was called The Foot Book- Advice for Athletes by Harry Hlavac. But trying to find a copy? Nada. Zilch. Nothing. Boo!

So since then I have gone on line and searched for it used every few months. Probably 8 or 9 times in the last few years. Nada. Zilch. Nothing. But I was determined not to give up. Some of the guys at the shop heard me speak of my frustration over not being able to track a copy down. I was about ready this fall to call Amy and ask if I could borrow it. She had not been really keen on the idea when we first talked of it. She didn't want to let it out of her sight. I thought my sob story might soften her up. I mentioned I might call her last week in front of Steve. "Oh", he said "I bought a foot book". He knew I was on the hunt for the elusive "Red Book" and had seen a book on feet in front of the sweets shop near his house. They have a used book rack where you can drop off books or buy used books in front of the store. One of those neighborhood honor system deals. He figured it wasn't what I was looking for, but it could be, and another foot book is never a bad thing. He has purchased it. "Is it red?" I asked. "No, not really". "Oh well," I said" bring it in and we can check it out..."

Well ring up another one for karma or persistence or whatever. I don't care. All I know is that I finally have a copy of The Red Book! It simply said The Foot Book on the front cover. I knew that there were literally dozens of "Foot Books" with various sub titles from my research. It was a brownish red. "Maybe..." I thought to myself. I opened it up. It was unread. The spine crackled as I leafed through the first few pages looking for the author..and there it was- The Foot Book- Advice for Athletes by Harry Hlavac. "Wow, you got one" I said. "No," said Steve, "it's for you". So how do you like that? What a guy!

Well, I am off to bed now. It is a bit early for me, but you know what? I have some reading to do! Thanks Amy! Thanks Stevo! If I am running a bit late tomorrow, you'll know why!

Oh yeah- Fresh snow in the mountains! Keep doing Ulers snow dance and let's get this season rolling!