Snowsports Merchandising Corporation (SMC), a buying group of specialty ski and snowboard shops, announced new and continuing retail members amidst some successions and new ownership.
“In the last year we’ve had three sets of owners retire and sell their businesses,” stated company President, Tom Gately. “All new owners saw the benefit of belonging to SMC and have since been approved for membership going forward. And for me it’s bittersweet. I’ve known and worked with these specialty retailers each for at least 30 years and although I wish them well and am extremely happy for them, it will be different moving forward. On the flip side, I’m excited to show these new owners all that SMC can do to help their businesses.”
The continuing members under new ownership include:
- Bill and Paul’s Sporthaus, Grand Rapids, MI (SMC member since 1974)
- Mountainside Ski & Sports, Mechanicsburg, PA (SMC member since 1979)
- Mountain Man, Toldeo, OH (SMC member since 1985)
In addition, SMC has approved two other new members for 2017:
- High Mountain Sports, Oakland, MD
- Hobby Wheel, Ironwood, MI
“We’re extremely pleased to have such quality additions to the group. They join an already impressive list of the finest specialty ski and snowboard shops in the U.S. Each new retailer adds not only to our aggregated buying power, but also brings in a whole new wealth of ideas and networking possibilities. These truly are leaders in their respective markets making SMC even stronger,” Gately said.
SMC is a buying group of 60 stockholder member businesses representing 154 storefronts nationwide. The member businesses primarily sell ski, snowboard and other snowsports-related equipment, apparel and accessories in specialty stores located throughout the United States.
