Jim Smith, owner/operator of Mountain Chalet in Colorado Springs, knows that being an outdoor user is important to be successful in the business of an outdoor retailer. While his travels have taken him from his roots in Boston and New Hampshire to a stint in Mammoth, California to his current base in Colorado Springs, the pull of the mountains in his backyard has always been a constant.
“I did all my [initial] skiing on the blue ice of New England – that was really my first outdoor [experience] – and then I did mountain biking and hiking in and around New Hampshire. I got into rock climbing in the early ‘90s and I’ve been fly fishing for nearly 20 years.”
His interests inform what he wanted to prioritize in taking on Mountain Chalet –though he doesn’t carry fly-fishing gear.
Smith likes to say that Mountain Chalet is a 50-year-old startup. Smith says he and his wife Elaine, are seven-day-a-week people. Elaine participates in all the sports he does and works with him in the store.
Team building at the Chalet, beyond the inherent spousal connection, is important to Smith, whose business is also part of the PPORA (Pikes Peak Outdoor Recreation Alliance). Building a community that loves and connects through these outdoor activities is key from the inside out. Smith, as a result, tries to organize team days where his staff all go out together and ski, bike, or rock climb or even volunteer with places like Rocky Mountain Field Institute and Concrete Couch.
Team Building Through Experience and Aspiration
“Part of the reason I see folks’ kind of gravitate toward [working at] the Chalet is that they participate in all these kinds of sports or they try to or they want to or they aspire to.” One of the most important parts of helping facilitate the outdoor experience for customers is by the staff being users themselves.
“What I believe separates Mountain Chalet is not just our knowledge base. But we back it up with experience. We are back-country skiers. We’re ice climbers, we’re rock climbers, we’re trail runners, hikers, and backpackers. We do all that stuff. Maybe not as frequently as we used to (or want to) because we’re working so much, but there’s nothing like backing up your knowledge of a product with the experience of using it.”
With the number of people engaging in outdoor experiences blossoming during the pandemic and continuing in its aftermath, the future is unknown and yet bright. “I think what’s cool about outdoor activities is it doesn’t really matter about your background or your political beliefs or anything related to that. We all come together under one umbrella of protecting the outdoor environment and outdoor recreation opportunities.”
This includes different user groups coming together to help protect places that everyone recreates at to make sure “they’re clean, they’re neat, they’re well taken care of and that best practices and ethics [are observed such as ‘Leave No Trace.’”
Smith has worked in finance, real estate, and “some other pretty hardcore industries” and he says the outdoor industry is totally different. “There are so many people out there willing to help and express ideas and thoughts and give feedback across the board. And I think PPORA, with what David and Becky [Leinweber] do, is amazing. The mix of folks that are part of that group speaks volumes to how we see the world through the lens of outdoor recreation.”
Understanding the Capability of People and Products
Part of what Smith, his wife, and his team do at Mountain Chalet is trying to understand what people and products are capable of, and impart that without ego. “We had a customer come in the other day looking for a backpack, and they wanted an Osprey, but Osprey just didn’t fit them, but they really wanted it. My staff person was jokingly like, ‘OK, I’m really not going to sell this to you. It doesn’t fit you, and you’re not going to enjoy it, so don’t make me sell it to you.’” The customer was a husband-and-wife team, and Smith said the husband was pushing for the Osprey because he knew the name. Eventually, they came around.
Smith says that it is important to remember in the outdoor space that everyone was once a beginner. Everyone makes stupid mistakes, but the key is learning and not judging. In the ‘80s, he explains, if people were running an outdoor outfitter shop “if you didn’t climb at a certain level, you weren’t cool, and we’re not going to bother with you.”
Certain shops, he says, would develop a reputation for just being jerks. He says that way of thinking is completely counterproductive. “You didn’t come out of the womb climbing a 14er. We all had to start somewhere.”
Smith and his team try to encourage people to not go from 0 to 100 right away. Smith relates about another couple that came in recently and wanted to do a 14er, despite never having done one before. He tried to angle them more toward Lost Creek Wilderness where there are 11000- and 12,000-foot peaks. “Those are super fun with great views, but everyone shoots for 14ers. You can eventually get there.”
Using their different products from boots to walking sticks to all-terrain gear, he encourages them to train at lower levels with less exposure and shorter routes where a hiker can learn from their mistakes. “And by the way, you’re still out there having a good time, and you’re learning along the way. But, maybe, let’s crawl before we walk, and walk before we run.”
Offering Advice for a More Achievable Outdoor Experience
The couple who received that advice didn’t buy anything, but it was just as important for Smith to offer that education. “If you leave with more information and knowledge than you had when you came in, then we’ve won, and, eventually, you’ll make your way back to Mountain Chalet. If you trust us to give you good advice, and part of that advice may be not buying something, we’re okay with that, because that should show our level of care and conscientiousness for your success as an outdoor participant. That’s authentic Mountain Chalet. It is who we are, and it kind of throws people off every once in a while.”
As far as his continued connection to the outdoors, Smith explains, “I’m a mountain guy through and through. You feel it. It’s emotional and it is physical. Once you head out of the shop and you rise in elevation, you see it out in the distance, the collegiates. The sun grays. Any mountain range that is around us, it totally changes your being and your mental state. It’s impactful. Both my wife and I feel it.”
While they don’t get out there as often as they like because of the business, the power of its impact is still great. “Having Pikes Peak and the surrounding region in the Front Range so close just helps with how I see the world. I know that it’s there and I can touch it and feel it!”
