Twenty years ago Bryce Phillips asked a shop owner for a deal on used skis. It worked well for both parties – Bryce got a good price, and the shop owner got rid of his used inventory. With minimal effort, Bryce put the skis on eBay. The goal was simple enough. Make a few dollars here and there to augment the ski bum life Bryce was living.
Bryce started to realize soon enough that the demand for skis purchased on the internet would only increase, so he launched evogear.com. The stock started to include new skis on top of the used gear, and expanded outside of the winter sports industry to include bikes, skating and lifestyle brands.
That small internet based business expanded over time to include three flagship stores in Seattle, Portland, and Denver. They developed a travel service called EvoTrip, and a partnership to provide gear for folks staying in LOGE Camps.
However, their entire footprint lived within the boundaries of the contiguous states. That is until today as Evo purchased Whistler Village Sports, based out of British Columbia.
“Had anyone asked me where I’d hope to plant a flag, anywhere in the world at some point, it would have been an easy answer,” said Bryce Phillips, evo founder and CEO. “Whistler is a global icon, mecca for all that love to mountain bike, snowboard, ski and even skate. The breadth of activity and the fact that it’s been designed to appeal to all abilities make this place very special.”
While there are obvious business reasons behind the addition of five mountain based stores, and fifty additional employees, this was personal for both buyer and seller. Whistler Village Sports was the shop that sold Bryce those initial skis that went up on eBay. Evo wouldn’t exist without Whistler Village Sports.
While Evo continues to grow, they’ve managed to maintain the heart and soul behind why we all get into this business in the first place. Just with a bit better benefits package than your standard mom and pop shop.
