Comments on: Sports Authority, EMS and the change in retail

By: Paul Mags

Paul Mags — Mon, 23 May 2016 01:53:27 +0000

In reply to Bamboo Bob Sartini. Haven't been to an EMS since they left Boulder probably 10+ years ago now. Based on what I heard, you are probably correct.

By: Bamboo Bob Sartini

Bamboo Bob Sartini — Fri, 20 May 2016 16:01:27 +0000

My two cents. EMS went the way of Eddie Bauer, Abercrombie & Fitch, Wilderness House, Go-Lite, and many other local “outdoor” stores. They become clothing stores instead of gear stores. Clothing has a way better retail margin than gear per sq ft of retail space, REI is in danger of being overwhelmed by clothing as well. But they do a lot of things very well and that helps them. There are so many small cottage industry players that compete well too. But really becoming a clothing store is a dead end for gear companies.

By: Mike B

Mike B — Sat, 07 May 2016 01:59:39 +0000

When our Sports Authority started their going out of business sale here in No. California I didn’t realize I was the entire chain. We have a couple of other “Outdoor” chain stores here, Dicks and Sportsmen’s Warehouse, but the only decent places to get decent outdoor gear around here are the local Hermits Hut (mountaineering) and a small local chain, Sports LTD (biking, hiking, skiing, and mountaineering). To tell the truth, I’m not going to miss SA at all. They never carried gear that I found useful. I guess I’m not alone.

By: Bill

Bill — Fri, 06 May 2016 23:11:28 +0000

In reply to Paul Mags. I seldom use the canister stoves, but I like to have the option. For most simple cooking, an alcohol stove works fine and it's not that hard to find yellow HEET. I prefer denatured, but don't always want to buy a gallon.

By: Paul Mags

Paul Mags — Fri, 06 May 2016 15:56:30 +0000

In reply to Bill. Yeah. Canister fuel can be pricey. There are some choices here in town, so I am lucky that way. Though, with a wet spring (as with last year), I may use alchie stoves again more often when not going stoveless.

By: Paul Mags

Paul Mags — Fri, 06 May 2016 15:48:17 +0000

In reply to Misti. Truthfully, I get most of my gear (and to a lesser extent, clothing) online, too. Sometimes is it nice to just pop in and get something. But, I hate shopping. So I tend to make those "pop in" stops less and less! Amazon Prime is my friend. :) As an aside, the Dick's here seems to be more camping/hiking focused. I suspect that is just more the area I am in, though.

By: Misti

Misti — Fri, 06 May 2016 15:00:49 +0000

My only experience with EMS was in Manchester Center, VT on the AT. That one was tiny but I was able to get new boots and a belt to hold up my pants that were falling off me by that point.

Sports Authority was ubiquitous in Florida when we lived there and was really the only outdoor store in many areas of the state. REI only came to Jacksonville (why they went there is beyond me…much better suited for Orlando) a few years ago. I’ll be curious to see what outdoor stores fill in the gap in Florida. Bass Pro might step up in certain areas like south Florida.

Here in Texas we do have Dick’s and Academy. Dick’s, at least the one I have been to, seemed geared for sports-sports, not the outdoors. Academy has a diverse enough selection with affordable gear for the outdoors as does some of the Gander Mountain stores, though GM is more tailored for hunting and fishing.

REI in Texas is on the smaller scale—no coffee shops here! But, at least there’s that option. Honestly, most of the time we get our gear online unless we know a store nearby carries what we need.

By: Bill

Bill — Fri, 06 May 2016 12:08:23 +0000

The closest of any of these stores was still 30 miles away and none were easy to get in and out of. There has never been an EMS store close by. Dicks has had the greatest presence around here, but they are in the mall and traffic is bad. There is a Gander Mountain and a Scheel’s but they are pretty pricey and seldom carry what I might want. I’ve known that the Sports Authority store was closing for some time, but never took the time to look for bargains. The thing that is most difficult to come by and the most likely to be needed is cheap canister fuel. The small canisters are really expensive and the larger ones are uneconomical. Shipping has become prohibitive for mail order, so the choices are dwindling.