Right now is time to shop for spring
Outfitters warn that a global demand for skis, bikes, snowshoes and other outdoor gear will limit choices
When the snow falls, buy a bike; when the leaves fall, buy skis.
Wisconsin’s recreation outfitters are warning customers that a sharp, global spike in demand for almost any outdoor gear means they’ll have to shop a season ahead if they want a wide selection and the best chance to get what they want.
It might be too late if you’ve just set out to find cross-country skis, snowshoes, ski boots or fat-tire bikes for this season, as retailers’ inventory dwindles with little hope for restocking. Many actually have turned their attention to warm weather gear like kayaks, bicycles, paddle boards and camping gear scheduled to arrive next month.
Milwaukee-based Wheel & Sprocket, which also has locations in Appleton and Oshkosh, is telling customers not to wait for warm weather after bike sales jumped 47% in 2020. Co-owner Noel Kegel called the spike “huge” and said Wheel & Sprocket learned from last year’s experience.
“It was almost impossible to buy bikes from suppliers last summer. We are already ordering for next year and beyond. Our messaging (to customers) is going to be ‘We have it now. We may not have it in summer, so now is a good time,’” Kegel said. “Now is the time. Whether it’s fixing up a bike or getting a new one, it’s a good time to think about bikes.”
Outfitters across the state said the
pandemic has led many Wisconsinites seeking safe, distanced activities to rediscover the fun of bike rides, the serenity of ski trips and the invigoration of hiking. Robb Shepherd, co-owner of Shepherd & Schaller in Wausau, said he hopes the interest in the simple pleasures of being outdoors is more than a pandemic fad.
“People are stepping back, spending more time with their families, getting outdoors and that, hopefully, is not a one- or two-year thing,” Shepherd said. “... This is what the Midwest is all about: Enjoying the four seasons.”
But shoppers returning to past passions might need an update on when to shop and what to expect with current inventory shortages looking like they could spill over into 2022.
Winter supplies: ‘Wiped out’
Shop owners said it has been a struggle this winter to find enough inventory to meet the massive demand for skis, fat tire bikes, snowshoes, snowboards, boots and winter gear. They’re warning skis, in particular, could be in short supply into next season.
“The problem with product, just like the summer, is this is a worldwide pandemic, not just a U.S. thing,” Shepherd said.
The result has been bare shelves and few chances to restock as suppliers struggle to keep up. To make matters worse: A main ski manufacturing factory burned down in October.
Chris Zeller, the third generation of his family to co-own Zeller’s Ski & Sports in Green Bay, said sales of crosscountry skis are up 350% in the U.S. and 1,700% in Canada. Zeller’s has been a fixture in Green Bay since the 1950s, and in that time, Zeller said, there’s never been a year like this.
“I cannot sell a cross-country ski or snowshoe at all, as of right now. Zero. None. I can’t get any more,” Zeller said. “Customers ... there’s nothing they can do. Normally we would have options, but not this particular year. Inventory levels now are akin to what we’d have in April. I’m wiped out.”
Shepherd & Schaller has served the Wausau area, including Granite Peak
Ski Area, since 1949. Anticipating the spike in demand, Shepherd said, he took “a very aggressive stance” by ordering additional inventory whenever he could since last fall.
“Because Granite Peak’s in our backyard, we’re a destination,” Shepherd said. “We have to be stocked. We have to have bottoms, bindings, boots, gloves, jackets, base layers. If our customers come from Chicago and we don’t have what they’re looking for, they’re not going to come back again.”
Cross-country skis can’t be reordered, but downhill skis and equipment have been a bit easier to come by. Often, he said, he placed an order with only minutes to spare before the window of opportunity closed. The products available aren’t always the brands or styles customers want at the prices they’d like to see. Even so, available inventory has turned Shepherd & Schaller into a statewide and national draw.
“We’ve had people driving from all over the state to buy stuff from us because they’re hearing no one else has it,” Shepherd said. “On our web store, we have never shipped so many ski boots and other Nordic products all over the country. Out west, out east, you name it. It was pretty chaotic.”
Summer supplies: ‘Get your name on it’
Weekend kayaking trips and summer bike rides may seem far away when daily temperatures remain mired in single digits, but this is actually the time to start shopping for summer.
Wheel & Sprocket and other Wisconsin bike shops learned from last year’s spike in demand and ordered what they could to stock up on bikes and parts for this season. They still expect supplies to be limited, though.
“Bikes we ordered last April, we’re receiving now,” Kegel said. “We are ordering for next year and beyond. It’s the brutal reality. If shops didn’t place their orders last year, they aren’t getting anything this year.”
In past years, it would be no problem if a customer waited for warm weather to stop by Pete’s Garage in Green Bay to buy a bike. Every spring, the shop would take delivery of a year’s worth of bicycle inventory and call suppliers for any special orders after that.
This year, co-owner Kurt Schwiesow said, five bicycles might arrive one week, six the next. He said the shop “went a little deeper” on its purchases but that inventory will be limited as manufacturers continue to work through last year’s backlog.
“I’m really proud of our employees for being really proactive so we’ve got a good assortment of core bicycles coming in, but a lot of it has been pre-sold,” Schwiesow said. “If you know you want something, come in, talk to us, let’s look at what we have coming and get your name on it.”
Zeller said the same high demand is already emerging for summer gear like kayaks and camping tents. Zeller said he has about 300 kayaks coming in late March and 25% of them have already been sold.
“(Winter gear) is built in summer and shipped in early fall, August or September. Customers are buying when most are thinking about Packers games and hunting trips,” Zeller said. “Until the weather peaks, people tend not to think about kayaks. This year, with the way things are going, if people wait until June or July, there won’t be any boats.”
Kegel said Wheel & Sprocket “will have a good inventory mix for most of the year” thanks to its close partnership with Trek Bicycles, but he also said the best time to shop is now.
Resurgence in repairs
Robb Shepherd has seen his share of older skis in need of repair come through Shepherd & Shaller’s doors this season.
One pair was so old he wanted them for his office walls.
The lack of inventory has left skiers and cyclists alike with little choice but to dust off their old equipment and bring it in to see if it can be restored to working order.
The staff has finally been able to catch up with repair orders, but it took working seven-day weeks to finally get there, Shepherd said.
“Shop work has been off the charts. In one month, we serviced more skis than we do in a typical year. It’s been a long season,” Shepherd said.
Zeller, in Green Bay, and Shepherd, in Wausau, both have memories and experience that enable them to not only know what component an old set of skis needs, but also to find it buried somewhere in their supply rooms.
“We had a customer bring in 25- to 30-year-old skis with a broken binding. We went through the parts bin and were able to salvage her old skis through this winter until she can come back in September and buy right away,” Zeller said.
Bicycle retailers went through a similar spike in repair requests last summer when new bicycles were in short supply. The demand for repairs led to a run on key replacement parts like tubes, tires and break pads that left some shops unable to find supplies.
Schwiesow, at Pete’s Garage in Green Bay, said the old model of being able to order a part from the supplier and have it delivered to the store a day later is gone, for now. He said the run on replacement parts and equipment will likely get worse before it gets better.
“Most of our parts manufacturers came to us and said there won’t be any options for distribution, that we should put in an order for what we’ll need for the season and that’s what we’ll have,” Schwiesow said. “We’re having to adjust our approach to the season with the understanding there isn’t that limitless well of product.”
Long-term resurgence
If there is one silver lining to the pandemic, it is that the shops are seeing a lot of new faces among the familiar ones, leading them to hope this spike in interest in outdoor activities outlives the coronavirus.
Zeller recounted seeing families stop in for skis this season since their kids aren’t able to play team sports like basketball or soccer as much.
He said they’re remembering fun and relaxing times like a cross-country trek or a weekend getaway to a cabin.
“It’s more family-friendly than sitting in a gym watching people play basketball,” Zeller said.
For decades, Kegel said, Wheel & Sprocket and other bike shops have advocated for communities to develop more trails and lanes while supporting groups like the Wisconsin Bike Fed that encourage more people to ride.
He said it’s nice to see a wider audience remember how much fun it can be to hop on a bike for a ride now and then.
“We hope that it sticks, and when we’re on the other side of COVID, people will continue with it,” he said.
Contact Jeff Bollier at (920) 431-8387 or jbollier@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @GBstreetwise.