Christy Sports opened new stores in Telluride and Aspen, CO, respectively, bringing its store count to four and providing customers with year-round specialty outdoor rental and retail services.
Christy Sports continues to look for strategic opportunities to expand its network of stores. Last summer, the retailer returned to Aspen following a 30-year hiatus with a new store inside the St. Regis Resort. This past fall, the company opened three new stores in Telluride, with a new flagship Alpineer store on Main Street and two new stores in Telluride’s Mountain Village.
The stores include gear rental and demo centers for the Alpineer and a Christy Sports Snowboard store. The locations were vacated as part of Vail Resorts’ exit from Aspen and Telluride. Christy Sports invested in serving customers in those markets by bringing their services to the two communities.
Said Gary Montes de Oca, chief development and strategy officer at Christy Sports, “These new locations are another great example of our thoughtful expansion to locations where we see a guest need for the best service experience in the outdoors. We are providing an omnichannel service network where and when it is most convenient for guests to maximize their outdoor experiences in the Rockies and beyond.”
The Christy Sports St. Regis store in Aspen was previously an Aspen Sports location. During the winter, the store focuses on equipment, outer and casual wear, ski and snowboard rental and demo equipment, boot fitting, and precision tuning and repairs. In the summer, the store will sell hike, bike, resort wear, active gear, and accessories and offer e-vehicle rentals.
The Aspen store complements the three Christy Sports stores in nearby Snowmass.
Christy Sports introduced The Alpineer in the former Telluride Sports store in downtown Telluride. The full-service Alpineer store represents the initial expansion of this specialized brand by Christy Sports, which began in Crested Butte. A second Alpineer is also open in the former The North Face location in Mountain Village in Telluride, CO.
Also, in the Telluride store, a Christy Sports Snowboard location opened in the former Burton store in Mountain Village—the new snowboard-specific location. The company also rebranded its store on South Oak Street from Bootdoctors to Christy Sports Oak Street, which offers full-time rental and accessories.
The company said the strategic branding and expansion allow it to leverage the network effect of the Christy Sports name.
“Returning to Aspen has been a longtime goal for us. The opportunity to fill the void in outdoor service for Aspen and St. Regis guests is something we are so pleased to support,” said Dan Fox, chief store operations officer of Christy Sports. “We have a long-standing presence in the Telluride community and are excited to optimize our brand banner offering to represent the shared value of best-in-class service that we know as the Christy Difference. Our team is eager to bring that experience to both our guests and our partners in Aspen, Telluride and everywhere people love to ski and ride!”
Image courtesy Christy Sports/Telluride
