A unique partnership between Wilderness Exchange and Black Diamond mountaineering equipment will soon transform one of Denver’s best-known independent outdoor retailers, adding a full-service Black Diamond brand store within the used gear and consignment shop that has been an institution on Platte Street for more than two decades.
The first step in the transformation process comes Labor Day weekend with a “renovation sale” intended to liquidate inventory and make space for Black Diamond to move in. The store will be closed in November and December for renovation, with the goal of reopening the first week of January. It will be Black Diamond’s first “partner-run” mountain gear shop in North America.
When the renovation is completed, Black Diamond will occupy the main floor. The store’s traditional sales of used gear, factory closeouts, brand discounts and consignment sales will be housed on the lower floor with expanded inventory. Wilderness Exchange will manage and staff the Black Diamond operation.
“We’re going to be a store within a store,” said Don Bushey, who founded Wilderness Exchange in 2000. “They (Black Diamond) are trying to tap into our expertise at running a local mountain gear shop in Denver because we’ve been doing it for so long, but they also want to make themselves more relevant to the Rockies, the Colorado customer. We’re transforming the climbing/backcountry ski shop into an extension of the Black Diamond brand. We’re building it out like a branded mountain gear shop.”
Bushey noted that many brand shops sell branded gear focused on apparel, but they aren’t full-service mountain gear shops. Black Diamond and Bushey want the new venture at Wilderness Exchange to be that sort of shop, carrying skis, climbing gear and other equipment necessary for backcountry adventure.
“When you think about a brand store on Pearl Street in Boulder, there’s Patagonia, Arc’teryx, prAna, La Sportiva, Black Diamond, and they’re all using their brand store to tell that brand’s story,” Bushey said in an interview. “None of these are what I think of as a mountain shop. They attract brand super fans. They shop there, but if you were going to do an overnight trip and climb a peak, you’re not going to be able to complete your kit. That’s why you go to mountain shops, where a climber or skier can get outfitted.”
The Black Diamond store at Wilderness Exchange will sell ski mountaineering gear, trekking poles, climbing gear and other mountaineering equipment.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with Don Bushey to bring together the best of Wilderness Exchange and Black Diamond in a modern format that is true to the rich heritage of both brands,” said Neil Fiske, brand president for Black Diamond Equipment, in a news release. “Don has long been a pioneer in the industry, and we believe this next evolution of retail will prove as innovative and groundbreaking as his original concept.”
Bushey said the vision is to make the Black Diamond space into a complete, full-service mountain shop.
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“There will be a Black Diamond climbing shoe next to a La Sportiva climbing shoe,” Bushey said. “There will be some complementary brands, sleeping bags for instance. Black Diamond doesn’t manufacture sleeping bags, but you need a sleeping bag if you’re going into the mountains on a climbing trip.”
During the two-month renovation closure, Wilderness Exchange will remain open for online sales and next-day pickup.
Wilderness Exchange is located half a block from the REI Flagship store in the Platte Street shopping district.
“The more outdoor businesses on Platte Street, the better we all do,” Bushey said. “We’re hoping this ushers in even more brand stores and interest in our street. This has been an outdoor shopping mecca for Denver, and I think this is going to strengthen that for everybody.”