The Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) unveiled plans for an experiential retail and outdoor activity center to be located at Asheville’s legendary Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa. NOC’s Basecamp Asheville will be the first LEED-certified retail project in downtown Asheville and one of the first nationally within a historic hotel as designated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
NOC’s Basecamp Asheville will not only provide an on-site activity concierge for hotel guests but will also serve as Asheville’s definitive local resource for outdoor trip planning, whether it is a self-guided activity like a hike or a picnic or an outfitted activity by NOC such as rafting, canopy tours, or fly-fishing. The shop’s retail offerings will include leading outdoor brands such as Patagonia, The North Face, and Keen.
“Asheville is one of America's premier outdoor recreation destinations,” says Sutton Bacon, President & CEO of the Nantahala Outdoor Center. “The Grove Park Inn is certainly one of America's finest historic hotels and NOC is one of the nation's preeminent outfitters. Given the unique convergence of those assets, we have an opportunity to create a brand alliance of national scope and significance.”
An integrated relationship, unique elements of the alliance also include adventure concierge buttons on all in-room telephones, multi-day adventure packages, and numerous on-premise experiences such as workshops, educational clinics, and outdoor activities. Off-site activities will include whitewater rafting, guided hiking, fly-fishing, canopy tours, whitewater and flatwater kayaking, and mountain biking.
“A legendary mountain escape meets authentic outdoor adventure, creating a unique vacation experience,” says J. Craig Madison, President & CEO of The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa, which hosted OIA's annual exectuve retretat Rendezvous in October 2010. “Our guests will enjoy the ultimate in accommodations and service coupled with a family-friendly outdoor experience, resulting in a premier mountain vacation.”
In keeping with its sustainability efforts, NOC’s Basecamp Asheville has applied for LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, the leading third-party designation for green building. Upon completion, it will become downtown Asheville’s first LEED retail store and one of the nation’s first LEED renovations within a historic hotel. It will also be NOC’s second LEED retail store; NOC’s Great Outpost Gatlinburg was the first LEED retail project in the entire two-state Great Smoky Mountains region.
NOC’s Basecamp Asheville is expected to celebrate its grand opening in early summer 2011.
