EMS closing down?

[Jeff]

Taking this as a sign that the Mom and Pop, single location outfitters can actually survive with good customer service and attention to detail.

[nsherry61]

I don't think e-commerce has a lot to do with it. I think its just extremely poor corporate managers and the "manage to the next quarter" mentality that are so common when private equity firms enter the picture. . .

Actually you are wrong. I went ahead and read the article and that is a primary reason for their problems. . .

And, to quote the article linked to above "If the EMS bankruptcy occurs, it would be another signal of a downward spiral in traditional outdoor retail. Online shopping sites and other factors have hurt “brick and mortar” stores nationwide."

Having been in management and outdoor retail for decades, and watching both REI and EMS over the years, I would suggest that the quoted article is jumping on the "blame e-tailing" bandwagon as an easy and obvious answer without any real evidence to support the supposition. I happen to disagree strongly, and suggest that Offshore is pretty much spot on for this one.

EMS has been a strong presence in the on-line retailing from almost the beginning of on-line outdoor retail. Other companies, REI and Backcountry.com, etc., may have done a better job recently in their implementation of their on-line business, BUT, that is now poor management of the asset, NOT lost market share because of on-line retail in general. And, one final, and interesting point, 90% of outdoor retail sales are still "brick and mortar store" sales. Surely, on-lines sales have impacted some profit from the easy cream off the top, but their impact is minor compared to overall management failure as suggested by Offshore and further supported by noting that the parent company, which is much bigger than just outdoor retail, is going down, not just the EMS part.

[egilbe]

Actually you are wrong. I went ahead and read the article and that is a primary reason for their problems. And their inability to adapt unlike REI which has.

Thats a management failure. Companies that thrive in the e-tailing market and have brick and mortar stores are examples of management successes. REI and LLBean are two examples.

[chknfngrs]

I thought Ems went thru this process before, haven't they?

[Offshore]

Actually you are wrong. I went ahead and read the article and that is a primary reason for their problems. And their inability to adapt unlike REI which has.

Either the article or your reading of it is wrong. EMS has had a presence in e-tail for years. The problem is that its bad because its plagued by poor inventory management and back end sales systems. That is the definition of retail management issues - how do you sell through any channel if you can't manage your SKUs and handle sales, shipping and returns with any level of competency that approaches other more successful retailers? Its also affected the brick and mortar stores, so don't be so quick to jump on the "blame e-tailing" bandwagon. Sometimes life is a bit more complicated.

[DavidNH]

wow I can't believe this. Much of my outdoor gear is from EMS. Been shopping there for decades. It would be sad to see them go if it happens.

[Mags]

EMS was where I bought the first of my "real" outdoor equipment. Their was an EMS store in the Emerald Square Mall just over the border in Massachusetts. All the outdoor stores in RI were mainly fishing based.

I still have an older EMS Glacier down coat that I still use as my "beater" puffy. Has a nice and thick nylon shell and a generous zipper versus the more modern lighter weight puffies. Very warm, too.

The EMS branded avalanche shovel is in my car right now and is a constant companion when winter backpacking...

And I bought my pair of touring skis and boots used from their rental program.

At one point the Boulder EMS was one of the top grossing EMS stores in the country. It closed..hmm, ~10 years ago now when EMS consolidated its operations all back East. Probably the first sign of their decline was this consolidation...

So it goes.

[peakbagger]

EMS is a trademark that has bounced around between several owners of late. At some point the original Mass (subsequently moved up to Peterboough NH) owners sold the business along with the trademark and the new owners emphasized retail and backed off on mail order. The stores got glitzier but the staff quality went down. That owner got in financial issues and I believe the business was bought back by some of the original owners. There were claims that they were going back to their original roots but not that long after they got in financial difficulties and the latest owner bought them.

REI despite being very large has always excelled at convincing folks that they are "club members" while EMS was always just a store to me. I do appreciate that REI is Co-op. As I live in a rural area I tend to order things by mail so Campmor is more my style although since I have Amazon Prime, I generally check things out if amazon has it. I used to buy a lot of LL Beans gear as I could buy 20% off coupons with Discover cash back. I swapped cards so I will be buying less Beans gear although its hard to beat the guarantee. I have a jacket that is getting returned next time I visit beans.

[rocketsocks]

I swung by my local EMS today taking advantage of some deals. I asked a fella that works there what the deal was with closing, he said he wasn't sure yet what was gonna happen, possibly a restructuring, but he didn't think that particular store would close. I wished him well whereever he lands. I like EMS very much, been going there for 30 years.

[mattjv89]

Update on the bankruptcy, looks like the brand will live on at the expense of eight stores. Guess I'm eating my words about Rutland being on the list:

http://www.wcvb.com/news/owner-of-ea...uptcy/39088976

"The Eastern Mountain Sports locations closing include Foxborough, Mass.; Warwick, R.I.; and West Hartford, Conn. in New England. The company will also close locations in Christiana, Del.; Dulles, Va.; Moorestown, N.J.; North Brunswick, N.J. and the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia."

[Trance]

EMS had great people working for it.... but as a company, they were nowhere near the level of something like an REI.

[peakbagger]

In a packaged bankruptcy they look at the cost to run a store versus return. Frequently they have long term leases and the volume doesn't work out. With bankruptcy, they can walk away from the leases. Same with back end operations, they may have warehouse leases and other long term leases that are high cost. They all get wiped out or substantially renegotiated.

[alnitak]

I go to the Dulles, VA store. A week ago I was there and bought some clothes on sale...now it is in the hands of the liquidators. Funny thing is, last week I got 30-40% off a number of items. This week, in liquidation, everything is only 10% off list...even the stuff that was on the clearance rack at 40% off! Will have to wait a few weeks for the discounts to go back up...by then the shelves will be empty I suspect.

[tiptoe]

Our local EMS and Bob's have been spared the ax, thankfully.

[Mags]

Funny thing is, last week I got 30-40% off a number of items. This week, in liquidation, everything is only 10% off list...even the stuff that was on the clearance rack at 40% o.

Happened with GoLite liquidation, too. From what I understand, often times a third party liquidator will buy the individual stock in a store...the third party pretty much charges what they want. The so-called deals are often not really a deal. In the photo attached, the "sale" price is above. The previous price is below.

https://imgur.com/a/uRHPA

[WingedMonkey]

Here's a decent read in the LA Times on the closing of Sports Chalet's (owned by the same Vestis Retail Group as EMS).

I used to hit up Sports Chalet every time I went to California many many years ago.


Why sporting goods retailers are fumbling

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...419-story.html

[Ktaadn]

So, fitness went mainstream and they could no longer get away with charging their ridiculous margins for a mediocre product. Business is fascinating to me.

[alnitak]

Happened with GoLite liquidation, too. From what I understand, often times a third party liquidator will buy the individual stock in a store...the third party pretty much charges what they want. The so-called deals are often not really a deal. In the photo attached, the "sale" price is above. The previous price is below.

https://imgur.com/a/uRHPA

Yeah, the same thing happened recently as well with Sports Authority. It's amazing that people will come in an pay more (only 10% or 20% discount) during "liquidation" then they do when the store is open with sales.

[alnitak]

oops..."than they do..."

(Why isn't there an edit capability for posts??)

[Mags]

oops..."than they do..."

(Why isn't there an edit capability for posts??)

people who donate have this ability. $10/yr
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/payments.php