GUESTS: Russ Towers (Second Gear) and Ferrell Alman (Roanline)

Joining Matt in this podcast:

- Russ Towers, Second Gear
- Ferrell Alman, Roanline

Retail shops with two different business models.

Second Gear, which just celebrated its 15th year, is a consignment shop for outdoor gear, apparel, and footwear. They also sell dealer samples and a selection of new items such as maps, guide books, sunglasses, and hammocks. Outdoor gear (mountain sports related) on consignment include camping and hiking items such as tents and backpacks, boating gear, and biking gear. Apparel for men, women, and children includes shoes, hats, and seasonal clothing items for outdoor adventures. Second Gear supports a different local nonprofit each month with 1% of their sales and in-store events. Since opening, Second Gear has paid out over $3 Million in consignment fees, and donated over $30,000 to local nonprofits.

Roanline is a marketplace for outdoor clothing and accessories for women and men. They seek out up-and-coming and established brands who have a demonstrated commitment to environmental and social responsibility. These brands are made by (and for) outdoors-people and have fascinating back stories, compelling founders and a meaningful commitment to giving back to our natural world. Roanline’s offerings for cool, fashion-forward outdoors products for women is top notch - items that are well made, fit beautifully, and last. (Alice owns quite a few items from their shop.) Brands included in their shop include Free Fly, Cotopaxi, Klean Kanteen, KAVU, Parks Project, Howler Brothers, Astral Footwear, and United By Blue. They started with an online shop and pop-up space on Haywood Road a couple holidays ago. The online shop continued while they moved into a year-round physical shop next to The Hop West and Instant Karma (also above The Black Cloud.)