When it comes to the Colorado scene, one shop that stood out as being there since back in the day was The Board Room. This shop was a corner stone in the local history that is plentiful in Colorado. Vince Sanders the former owner of this now defunct store weighs in on various issues afflicting our culture and shops.

Over the years did it ever bother you that other shops used the name The Boardroom and would you say you were the first to create a shop by that name?

No, but it bothers me that you would bring that up now. Just kidding of course it did. The only time it would come up would be at trade shows or with my vendors shipping product. I believe that I had the only Board Room that people from Colorado gave a shit about. When I first started I registered my name as Colorado Board Room, Inc., because there was a Board Room that sold office supplies. So technically that was my trade name. Yeah, I would say I was the first to use the name. In 1987 there wasn’t that many snowboard shops in the nation let alone Colorado.

What would you say the biggest challenges of setting up a shop now are verse back then? Any advice you’d give people considering starting a shop in this economic climate?

The biggest challenge now to starting a shop now versus then would be the level of competition. You’re not competing with just the shop across town but with the world. The shop across the nation, box stores,chains, giant online retailers, the guy sitting in a unit w/a computer, craigslist, Ebay etc. On top of all that now in some cases with the manufacture directly. My advice to someone starting a shop today would be to provide as much service and promotional events as possible. Tuning, repairs, rentals,demos, classes, contests etc,  You have to be more creative, diverse and aggressive than ever before. Make sure the e-commerce side of the business is as viable as the brick and mortar. I would also to find  the vendors who are going have clean distribution, protect their retailers, and provide the most support.

During all the years you’ve been in the snowboarding industry what would you say were some of the most definitive turning points for the culture and the industry? Was there any moment when you said to yourself we’ve come so far yet we need to go back to what we once were?

To me the most definitive moment was the advent of metal edges and p-tex base onto snowboards. This enabled snowboarding go from a backhill sport to being allowed at  major ski resorts. Access to long runs on hardpack snow advanced equipment and riding at a much faster pace. The other distinctive time for the culture and the industry was the early 90′s. There was so much excitement with the whole new school phase, board sales were strong, new companies were popping up and pros were doing well. At the same time things were opening up in Alaska. All areas of snowboarding were progressing. So you had so many positive things going on all at once. I would like to see a healthier business climate like that for the core shop again. The only other moment when I think we need to get back to where we once were is the lack of camaraderie. The first time I went to Wolf Creek I was sleeping in my car and a guy knocked on the window because he saw the boards on the roof. He asked us to ride with
him and blew us away.  I had never ridden away from the central mountains before and thought wow people rip down here. That guy was Tim Windell! When does that happen now? Sometimes on a giant pow day or in the backcountry you still do get that bond.

The Internet has definitely changed peoples perceptions of gear and getting information, on one hand we have a lot of good things that it’s done and on the other it’s taken a lot of the personal aspect out of the equation. What do you see as positives and negatives in regards to the impact the Internet has had on the snowboarding world?

The positives are that a wider variety of products and prices have become accessible to the consumer. The negative impact is that these positives often result in the demise of the mom and pop shop. This affects communities in so many negative ways.  Loss of tax revenue, events, a place for kids to hang out and belong. When was the last time you saw one of these big online retailers sponsor a contest, cook a kid a burger and let him hang out watch a movie and then give him a ride home? There is still a need for  the brick and mortar store. You’re laptop isn’t going to grind that board, pound out that kingpin or make that binding part appear the night before you’re going to go ride.

When it comes to online sales are the big warehouse style stores that have mass amounts of inventory ultimately hurting both local shops and the snowboarding scene as a whole? In the last few years the term price gouging has become more present in snowboarding, have online stores created a belief that MSRP is a thing of the past and all gear should be discounted sometimes heavily early in the season?

This belief was created during the labor day sales by the box stores and ski/golf retailers when they finally realized there was enough money in snowboarding to make it worthwhile for them to sell it. It’s just gotten worse. In the early 90,s you never had to put anything on sale until late April. Now it’s such a short selling season and uneven playing field. This cheapening of the product needs to stop or we’ll all be riding Morrows with Lamar bindings. The manufactures who are making a higher end product need to maintain a certain price to continue making product with substance.

Can a brand/shop effectively market itself outside the realm of conventional advertising in the snowboard industry and what’s your take on the abundance of snowboarding sites that are reporting the news and giving advice? Can the mainstream snowboard media learn a thing or two from what they’re doing?

Yeah, I think a brand can defiantly market itself outside the traditional ways. With ads costing thousands that maybe a teenager looks at, brands are looking now more than ever toward advertising this way. Consumers are looking toward these sites for information, reviews, advice and to see what other people are saying about product/brands that they’re interested in before they buy. Look at all the controversy over snowboard tests in mags now, people see through the politics of whose going to win based on advertising dollars. Or the demise of pro models, riders are seeing through the marketing and hype and look more toward the actual product. They see these testimonials as a less biased source of information than what a company is marketing or someone that has more interest in selling that particular product. A good example is when I was at an early season sale this year and had a middle aged women looking at the new Never Summer Infinity I was trying to sell her on. She left and then came back the next day and bought the board after seeing some positive reviews. She wasn’t going to spend her hard earned dollars on a board just on the word from a sales rep that works for that company. Shops too are recognizing marketing themselves this way, most recently with sites like rockerreview.com. I think sites like yours and Shayboarder where there are knowledgeable, passionate people who  test and live/breath snowboarding are a great  source of reference for any level of rider.  They’re are a lot of riders giving great advice on the snowboarding forums. I think this is really important especially for the people just coming into snowboarding. I think the mainstream media is and has to learn from what’s going on, if they don’t they will go the way of
many newspapers and other print.

How would you best describe the current state of the snowboard industry? Anything that drastically needs to change?

Like our economy it’s sad but improving. So many “Mom & Pop” shops like mine are gone. But there is a new breed of shops opening to take their place. Sadly like other segments of our economy the larger businesses will have the resources to continue. This weeding out will consolidate sales to these and whoever remains making them stronger. Only the strongest and most innovative of the core shops will survive. Everything has changed, people are much more conservative with their purchases, especially with what for most is a recreational item.  The online thing isn’t going anywhere, the manufactures and retailers need to find a balance. Companies need to find this balance on what they sell direct, control their distribution and remember who it was that help build their brand in the first place. The mentality of the consumer needs to change, next time your going to buy something on line go to your local shop and at least give them the chance to make the sale. Say I can get this on line for this price but what could you do to keep my business here. It might be some extra service or meet you some where in between on price.  But at least give them the opportunity to make the sale. Don’t be that guy or girl who tries it on, checks it out, gets some knowledge then goes and buys it online. Remember, you might be just helping yourself now but hurting snowboarding in the future.

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