“If there’s any pattern to all this, it’s to聽expect delays. Which categories, brands, or products鈥攖hat’s anybody’s guess. It’s best to just assume everything will be delayed and end up pleasantly surprised if it’s not.”

That’s Eastside Sports owner Todd Vogel’s take on the state of inventory challenges at this point in the pandemic, nearly eight months in.

“If there’s a delay, you pivot. Delay, pivot,” said Vogel, whose shop is based in Bishop, California. “That strategy has kept us going. It’s all about flexibility.”

It’s no secret that sellers of outdoor goods have been scrambling this year, trying to keep pace with a retail landscape strained by聽supply chain disruptions, rapid shutdowns, unpredictable demand, and other hardships. Still, one way or another, many retailers are finding ways to keep their shelves stocked鈥攖o some degree鈥攁nd customers happy.

To figure out what retailers are seeing on the ground level, and how they’re coping, we got in touch with several shop owners and buyers to ask about what’s going right, what’s going wrong, and how everyone is bracing for the upcoming season.

What’s Causing Problems

To start things off, we wanted to know about specific pain points. In some sense, we were looking for a pattern, but that exercise quickly proved futile. After speaking with shop owners in several different states, the moral of the story seems to be that there’s no rhyme or reason to what goods or which brands are causing inventory problems on a consistent basis. All the retailers we spoke with say they’re trying their best to prepare for anything.

“Our biggest vendor overall is Patagonia,” said Sam Barg, a buyer at Ute Mountaineer in Aspen, Colorado. “Those orders have come in anywhere from 20 to 50 percent complete.聽They can鈥檛 promise anything. But then other stuff trickles in that we didn鈥檛 expect. Our reps have no idea what’s happening either. Week to week, we have to reassess and chase what we can.”

Barg says Ute Mountaineer has seen cancellations from at least half a dozen vendors that are critical to the shop’s core inventory: Patagonia, Kuhl, Columbia, prAna, Hoka One One, Black Diamond, and Sorrell.

“Those are the big brands a lot of people have had trouble with,” he said.

Marinna Merkel, co-owner of Round House Ski and Sports Center in Bozeman, Montana, says she’s also had a lot of trouble with Patagonia and The North Face.

“Patagonia’s Powder Bowl Pant always does great for our store, and I can鈥檛 get them, none. That鈥檚 a staple piece for Patagonia, so it says something about where they’re at,” Merkel said. She also says the company expects not to see the bulk of its winter order from The North Face come through until late November鈥攁 huge problem for getting product out the door before ski season starts.

Across the state in Missoula, Todd Frank, owner of The Trail Head, says he’s experienced similar cuts from Patagonia.

“Patagonia is our biggest vendor. They cut about 40 percent of our pre-season order, but customer demand also dropped, so it evened out,” Frank said. “This year, we’re making a lot of concessions with product鈥攁ccepting different colors than we wanted, things like that鈥攂ut we’ve found that people are less picky about color and other small details these days. They’re willing to support us, even if they can’t get the exact product they want.”

Down in Flagstaff, Arizona, Steve Chatinsky says he’s had a lot of trouble with survival items his shop, Peace Surplus.

“I ran out of Reliance water containers for two weeks. We鈥檝e had three or four shipments of those since the summer, and we usually do one per year,” Chatinsky said. “We鈥檝e been a little slow on freeze dried food, too. We went seven or eight days without any at one time. But we鈥檝e been chasing it between multiple vendors.”

Perhaps Vogel, at Eastside Sports, summed it up best. “It’s hard to find a pattern,” he said. “Lots of things are in short supply, but it’s hard to predict. Tents have been hard to get your hands on; backpacking stoves and Black Diamond cams have been problematic. Bikes and car racks have been tough. Even bear canisters have been strangely difficult to get. What do all those things have in common?”

Answer: nothing. Inventory is simply tough right now across the board.

Areas of Success

It’s not all doom and gloom, however, these retailers were quick to point out.

“For us, footwear has done well鈥攖hough it’s hit or miss by brand,” Vogel said. “Other than Merrell, which basically ran out of shoes, we鈥檝e done pretty well. La Sportiva and Topo Athletic are two that have been outstanding in terms of getting us product.”

Merkel says that while inventory hasn’t been easy in any category this year, there have been areas with fewer challenges. Round House has most of the downhill skis it ordered for the season, as well as a healthy selection of Nordic hardgoods. Some of that, she noted, is carryover product from last year, but that hasn’t posed a problem; there’s more of an appetite for older gear this season.

“There鈥檚 something to be says for reminding consumers that we do have carryover product from last year,” Merkel said. “Brands are cutting back expansion of their lines, so there鈥檚 probably going to be a lot more carryover for the next few years as well. It’s good to get customers used to that now.”

At The Trail Head in Missoula, Franks says he was pleasantly surprised by the performance of the vendors he uses for his watersports categories.

“All of our boat vendors did a really excellent job,” he said. “We struggled with kayaks and paddles and accessories a little, but not as much as you might have imagined.”

Softgoods vs. Hardgoods

Slicing things a different way, there’s no clear trend in supply differences聽between softgoods and hardgoods, according to the retailers we spoke with. Here, though, there’s at least some pattern in demand difference.

“Apparel is down by double digits this year,” Frank said of overall sales at The Trail Head. “The more casual it is, the more people don’t want it.”

Franks says that technical clothing has done well and hardgoods are flying off the shelves. He attributes the demand change to one simple factor: caution. Customers don鈥檛 want to try things on unless it’s something they absolutely need, like a raincoat, or something they feel safe trying on, like a ski boot.

“On the hardgoods side, we鈥檙e up 100 percentage points on uphill gear,” said Barg of his sales in Aspen. “Brands like Dynafit, Blizzard, and Technica are flying out the door. And surprisingly the inventory from those guys has been pretty good thus far.”

Again, though, there’s no clear pattern from a supply perspective, taking into account an experience like Merkel’s. She noted that, even though Round House has most of its pre-season ski orders filled by now, special orders are another story entirely.

“Our story with hardgoods is shipping delays,” sayidMerkel. “Companies are short-staffed, they don鈥檛 have the manpower to get special orders out, and that causes a trickle-down effect. We’ve been turning people away on the hardgoods side for special requests, just telling customers we’re sorry, but we can’t get them what they need.”

Add to that a massive fire this fall that burned down the main ski factory for Fischer, one of Merkel’s big vendors at Round House. Hardgoods have been wildly unpredictable, even with some modest success at getting orders filled, she says.

Solution: Sourcing from Multiple Vendors and Leaning on Relationships

One workaround many retailers have pursued is quick pivots to different vendors.

“We鈥檝e been able to keep things going because we have three or four vendors for each of the items in camping, which is a big category for us,” Chatinsky said of Ute Mountaineer. “For instance, in the past we’ve ordered solar showers from Tech Sport, Coghlan鈥檚, and Reliance. Those channels are all open, so if one of them closes, we lean more heavily on the other two.”

Chatinsky says that, in his view, that communication and multiple channels to source product are key to managing inventory chaos as the pandemic progresses.

“Of course, that’s just another way of saying it’s all about relationships,” he said. “When it comes down to crunch time, relationships will sink you or keep you afloat. When you call a vendor and get a friend on the other end of the line, that’s when things get done for you. Pay attention to who you do business with and why. It鈥檚 not all about price.”

Vogel echoed the sentiment, and says that another important factor is nimbleness.

“You have to be quick on your feet,” he said. “You have to anticipate shortages and either stock up ahead of time鈥攍ike we did with fuel canisters this summer鈥攐r pivot quickly and look for smaller quantities of similar items from different vendors.”

Of course, pivoting to new vendors and maintaining relationships are two strategies that don’t always play well together. Frank, at The Trail Head, says he chose not to introduce uncertainty for his vendors out of respect for their business. They rely on him just as much as he relies on them, after all.

“We talked about pivoting to new suppliers, but we wanted to stick with the people we鈥檝e always been working with,” Frank said. “We鈥檝e had some new vendors reaching out. I got an email yesterday from a big brand鈥擨 won’t say who鈥攖hat started as a direct-to-consumer operation and now wants to get into wholesale. We鈥檒l probably take a hard pass on that. We want to support people who have supported us in the past. That’s just how it works.”

For Merkel, the courtesy of sticking with your old partners has another benefit鈥攊t gives you room to ask for flexibility when needed. That give-and-take might include discounts, shipping assistance, or changes to invoice dating.

“The willingness to flex is different for each company,” Merkel said. “When we go and ask our vendors to ship additional product or cover freight, we know they鈥檙e in a hard spot too. But that doesn’t mean we haven’t done it. One area we鈥檝e succeeded in is asking our vendors to pay for expedited freight. We tell them we need such-and-such product, we can鈥檛 wait weeks, so we need you to ship it overnight and cover that cost. And most of the time they’re willing. Yes it’s a big ask, but ultimately it’s to support sell-through, which benefits them too.”

Frank says that his big ask always comes down to invoice dating. He doesn’t push his vendors too hard to ship product faster, but he does insist on keeping the timeline for payment at its agreed-upon length if an order arrives late.

“My standard approach is, if you ship something 30 days late, I鈥檓 adding 30 days to the dating for payment. I鈥檓 going to call up and ask for more time, because we had less time to sell it,” he said. “To me, that just makes sense.”

How Are Customers Handling It?

In the end, all these retailers seemed to agree that customer flexibility is a big factor鈥攑erhaps the biggest鈥攊n dealing with inventory challenges during the pandemic. If customers are willing to wait a little longer for their gear, reserve pickiness about color and other details, and occasionally shop around for carryover product from last season, much of the inventory chaos can be buffered enough to keep retailers and brands going until things even out again.

“Thankfully, there鈥檚 a push this year to shop local,” Merkel said. “People know that shipping is backed up, and they’re sympathetic. Many consumers still want to buy things locally. Even if we can’t guarantee special orders or promise to have every single new product in stock, the forgiveness of our customers can get us through. And we won’t forget that when things get back to normal.”

The post The Puzzle of Inventory During the Pandemic appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Full disclosure: gear is a wicked subjective thing. Always has been, always will be. To curate this list, our team of hardcore鈥攁nd highly opinionated鈥攇earheads pored over hundreds of new product launches, reading the specs and sifting through the marketing promises. We zoomed in on photos and watched embargoed video clips. And we debated. We culled the massive list down once, then made another pass until we had our 50 most coveted products. Then we voted to determine the rankings (we are a democracy, after all). In order of how badly we want to try it, here is Part One of our list of the 50 most exciting product launches for Fall 2019.

1. The North Face FutureLight

THE PROMISE It seeks to solve the waterproof/breathable problem and dethrone Gore-Tex as the gold standard.

THE DEETS聽An industrial process known as nanospinning sprays polymers through up to 220,000 tiny nozzles to create a waterproof yet highly porous mesh-like membrane. Nanoholes allow air to pass through and moisture vapor to escape, keeping users dry and comfortable, not clammy and cold.

THE STOKE Next-level breathability, waterproofness, and sustainability in the shell category. Bring it on.

2. PrimaLoft Biodegradable Fabric

THE PROMISE It will degrade quicker than any other fabric if you bury it in your backyard.

THE DEETS A shell and now a fabric are infused with a food source that attracts microbes at a faster rate when in a landfill. What’s left after the bacteria breaks down the fibers is simply water, carbon dioxide, methane, and natural organic matter鈥攍ike compost. But the biodegradable polyester doesn’t compromise durability.

THE STOKE A fuzzy fabric that vanishes instead of clogging up landfills and polluting oceans? Be still our hearts.

3. Ombraz Armless Sunglasses [$160]

THE PROMISE Cordage, baby: that鈥檚 the future of sunglasses.

THE DEETS The adjustable polyester cord running between the temples and around the back of your head keeps the glasses snug to your face and ditches the possibility of broken glasses arms and head-squeezing pressure. Plus, acting like built-in eyewear retainers, they鈥檙e harder to lose and either hang around your neck when you take them off or function like a headband.

THE STOKE These things look crazy (like a fox), but after an early test, we fell in love. 鈥淣o pinching, no pressure, and steazy AF: Yes, please,鈥� said one tester.

4. Black Diamond Vision Down Parka [$399]

THE PROMISE A puffy tough enough for tree skiing.

THE DEETS According to BD, this burly fabric initially stumped designers because it was so difficult to cut. A polymer weave crisscrossing the 20-denier face fabric adds a lot of durability without penalizing weight. This 800-fill hydrophobic down toaster comes in at an airy one pound, four ounces.

THE STOKE Say goodbye to duct-tape patch jobs on your warmest layer: This one looks rugged enough to dance on in crampons. It could be a revolution in lightweight durability.

5. Outdoor Research Tundra Aerogel Booties [$69-$89]

THE PROMISE With NASA-designed Aerogel underfoot in these synthetic camp booties, cold doesn鈥檛 stand a chance.

THE DEETS Solid Aerogel won鈥檛 compress like typical insulation, so it鈥檒l keep your feet warm even while you鈥檙e standing on it. Plus, a grippy outsole steadies you on the icy trail to the outhouse. Also available in a low-cut slip-on version.

THE STOKE Aerogel has been popping up more and more in outdoor gear, but its lack of breathability has held it back. The bottom of a camp bootie seems like the ideal application.

6. Marmot West Rib Parka [$600]

THE PROMISE The West Rib features unique gridded down baffles to boost warmth in the extreme cold.

THE DEETS Marmot packed 800-fill down into cube-shaped baffles around the chest of this deep-winter puffy to trap warmth around your body. Synthetic insulation layered between the down and the Pertex Quantum shell material adds weather protection and durability.

THE STOKE We鈥檙e curious about the cubist baffles and layered use of synthetic fill. This thing sounds like a serious volcano.

7. Dahu E鈥檆orce 01 Boot [$TBD]

THE PROMISE It looks and operates like no other ski boot on the market.

THE DEETS The Grilamid shell has cutouts to eliminate pressure points and the liner is beefy enough to walk around in. The unique entry system has hinges at the front and back of the boot, creating a giant opening.

THE STOKE Comfort. Ease of use. Versatility. Boom.

8. Sweet Protection Interstellar Goggle [$220]

THE PROMISE The lens won鈥檛 fog. Period.

DEETS The Gore membrane increases moisture and air transfer, equalizing air pressure and preventing condensation. Retina Illumination Grading increases contrast and enhances vision in low-light conditions, and the carbon-reinforced frame creates a rigid structure for the lens.

THE STOKE Gore-Tex in a goggle? Just plain fascinating.

9. Six Moon Haven DCF Tent [$400]

THE PROMISE This is the ultimate featherweight shelter for fastpacking duos.

THE DEETS The Haven DCF is a shaped, supported tarp made of Dyneema Composite Fabric, which offers extreme durability at a paltry 12-ounce weight. With two doors, a peak height of 45 inches, and 51 square feet of interior space, it can also be paired with the Haven Net Tent to create a fully enclosed double-wall shelter at just one pound, four ounces.

THE STOKE Dyneema tents are the new standard in ultra-ultralight, and this one sets the bar high… er, low.

10. Patagonia Black Hole Collection [starting at $29]

THE PROMISE Every Black Hole pack, duffel, tote, and waist pack gives plastic bottles and factory scraps another life.

THE DEETS It鈥檚 still burly, thanks to 90-denier poly ripstop with a TPU laminate and a DWR finish, but it now uses 100 percent recycled fabric, lining, and webbing.

THE STOKE Tally this up as yet another reason to love our favorite duffel.

11. Black Diamond Equipment JetForce Pro [$1,399]

THE PROMISE It鈥檚 the most advanced avalanche air bag pack out there.

THE DEETS This new version of BD鈥檚 award-winning JetForce series is still rechargeable and travel friendly. But the Pro is modular, letting you zip on and off a 10-, 25-, 35-, or 25-liter splitboard booster pack, making it super-versatile.

THE STOKE The modular design sets rippers up to stay safe on any day.

12. Tecnica Forge Winter [$300]

THE PROMISE Get a customized fit in a ready-for-winter hiker.

THE DEETS Like its three-season counterpart, the Forge Winter features in-store custom shaping for a perfect fit. It also adds Vibram鈥檚 Arctic Grip outsole and a Gore-Tex insulated comfort lining for waterproof/breathable insulation.

THE STOKE We fell in love with the original Forge, so a warm, winterized version is a no-brainer.

13. Rab Verglas Jacket [$375]

THE PROMISE It combines the best features of a parka and a shell鈥攚ithout turning you into a hot mess.

THE DEETS The Verglas is packed with 750-fill hydrophobic down for warmth, and Gore-Tex Shakedry over the 20-denier Pertex Quantum makes it waterproof while keeping it lightweight and mega-breathable.

THE STOKE For cold days with precip, this puffy looks like a winner if Shakedry can hold up to abuse.

14. Fischer Urban Cross-Country Ski Boot [$189]

THE PROMISE This is the first Nordic ski boot designed to take you from home to trail to apr茅s.

THE DEETS With a sneaker-like sole and chukka-style upper, you鈥檇 never know this was a cross-country ski boot. Designed for skiers less focused on racing and performance and more on casual exercise, it鈥檚 compatible with Fischer Turnamics and any NNN compatible binding.

THE STOKE Nordic boots have never looked so good.

15. Julbo Reactiv Performance Lenses [Starting at $210]

THE PROMISE Ski from dawn to dusk on bright bluebirds or during storm sessions.

THE DEETS The lenses鈥攁vailable in both shades and goggles鈥攎agically transition from clear (87 percent visible light transmission) to dark (12 percent VLT) in record time: roughly 20 seconds.

THE STOKE These just might be the one-quiver shades and goggles we鈥檝e been looking for.

16. Holden Outerwear Corkshell Summit Bib [$600]

THE PROMISE Cork is the insulation of the future.

THE DEETS These bibs (and their matching jacket) incorporate Schoeller鈥檚 recycled cork content to add heat retention without the bulk of traditional lofted insulation.

THE STOKE We鈥檙e always intrigued when brands find new ways to recycle materials, and companies have been chasing warmth without bulk for ages. Could this be the one that actually delivers?

17. G3 FindR Skis [$869-$919]

THE PROMISE Leave the ski straps at home. Magnets hold these skis together.

THE DEETS Updated for 2019, the powder-cruising FINDr series now features magnetic contact points, making bootpack transitions quick and easy, and eliminating the need for straps when shouldering your skis.

THE STOKE Pick 鈥榚m up, stick 鈥榚m together, walk away. Sounds pretty slick.

18. Blizzard Zero G 95 [$840]

THE PROMISE It鈥檚 typically either/or: lightweight or stiffness. These are your new no-compromise skis.

THE DEETS The Zero G 95 touring ski strikes the ideal balance between uphill comfort and downhill charging, thanks to a carbon fiber frame that鈥檚 integrated over the wood core to reduce weight for speed on the skin track while still delivering a high level of stiffness for downhill performance.

THE STOKE Light feet on the uphill and stiff shred-ability on the down? 鈥楴uf said.

19. Smartwool Intraknit 200 Base Layers [starting at $120]

THE PROMISE It鈥檚 the ultimate in body mapping.

THE DEETS Intraknit technology is a first-in-industry 3D knitting technique that can marry different weights of fabric into a single garment, without the use of seams. (The company already uses the technology in its socks.)

THE STOKE This sounds very much like the FuseForm tech that (sister company) The North Face introduced in shells a few years back. The concept makes even more sense in baselayers, where multiple seams can make body-mapped baselayers chafe in all the wrong places.

20. GoLite ReFill Eco 100 Jacket [$250]

THE PROMISE Keep warm and divert green plastic bottles from the landfill.

THE DEETS At a Taiwanese recycling plant, volunteers collect and sort bottles, and GoLite snags the ones nobody else wants鈥攖he green ones鈥攁nd turns them into dye-free clothing, like this PrimaLoft Silver Eco-filled puffy.

THE STOKE Recycled products are nothing new, but we dig how GoLite found a way to use the bottles that stump other apparel makers.

21. Mammut Meron IN [$449]

THE PROMISE It鈥檚 as warm as you can get, without the bulk.

THE DEETS Premium 900-fill down is shelled with a lightweight, water-repellent Toray ripstop nylon and lined with an equally light, semi-transparent lining that traps the down.

THE STOKE It鈥檚 hard to make a puffy this warm not look like a Michelin man. This one does it through the magic of smart patterning.

22. Salomon S/Pro Boot Collection [$800]

THE PROMISE Get a custom-like fit, without all the hassle and expense.

THE DEETS Salomon digitally scanned more than 4,000 feet to identify a shell that鈥檚 compatible with 70 percent of the European/North American market without needing any significant modification.

THE STOKE Any respectable skier knows that custom-molding your boots is mandatory. Our apologies to all the boot-fitters out there, but this could be good.

23. Atomic Savor [$1,545]

THE PROMISE It鈥檚 the ultimate starter kit.

THE DEETS In an effort to combat exhaustion, soreness, and complicated equipment, Savor includes painless-entry boots, easy-to-handle skis, and a comfortable helmet designed specifically for rookies.

THE STOKE Want to get your SO on the slopes with you? This package might be your ticket to paradise.

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