Summit Sales NW, a leading outdoor industry sales agency in the Pacific Northwest, has been sold by founder Dave Fitzgerald to partners Kris Stahl and Rob Birzell.
The sale of the business is another step in an ongoing transition of control and management of the business that began 24 months ago.
New owners, Birzell and Stahl, have secured the confidence of their existing vendors and will continue to represent Osprey Packs, Cascade Designs, SCARPA, G3, and Powertraveller in the Pacific Northwest territory. They, along with associates Justin McGregor and Drew Hambleton, will continue to operate from their office and showroom located in Seattle, WA.
“After 21 years as the owner of Summit Sales, I’m excited to turn the reins over to Rob and Kris,” said Fitzgerald. “They have both demonstrated strong leadership and management skills
and will continue to bring fresh ideas to the organization. I plan to
work with them during the rest of our transition plan and will begin to
pursue new opportunities in the outdoor industry in 2016.”
Rob Birzell started his career in the outdoor industry working as an associate and assistant manager at the Benchmark in Columbus, OH in 1995. He later moved to Montana and worked as a ski instructor and river ranger for three years before spending six years as a buyer and manager at Pipestone Mountaineering in Missoula, MT. He joined Summit Sales NW in 2007 and has serviced accounts in Montana, Idaho, and Washington along with heading up sales to REI.
Kris Stahl began his career in outdoor in 1998 as a sales associate for EMS. After finishing college in Colorado he moved to the Pacific Northwest and worked as an associate, buyer and manager for Oregon Mountain Community. He joined Summit Sales NW in 2009 and has serviced accounts in Washington and Oregon while building out a robust sales model for managing Amazon direct sales.
Based in Seattle, WA, Summit Sales NW has represented some of the leading brands in the outdoor industry since 1994. Serving the northwest territory of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Alaska, Summit Sales focuses on developing relationships with a diverse range of outdoor retailers by providing the highest level of sales, support, and training. Their current vendor portfolio consists of Osprey Packs, Cascade Designs, SCARPA, G3, and Powertraveller.
