Backcountry.com
 | |
| Type | Private company 81% owned by Liberty Media |
|---|---|
| Industry | E-tail, Outdoor Industry |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Headquarters | West Valley City and Park City, Utah |
| Key people | CEO Jill Layfield, COO Kevin Samuelson |
| Products | Outdoor gear |
| Employees | 700+ |
| Website | backcountry.com |
backcountry.com is an online retailer that sells outdoor recreation gear for hiking, camping, cycling, rock climbing, snow sports, and more.
History
backcountry.com was founded in 1996 with a $2,000 out-of-pocket investment by lifetime friends Jim Holland and John Bresee. The two started an online business in a garage in Heber City, Utah under the domain names bcstore.com and backcountrystore.com.[1] The store's first sale, an avalanche beacon, happened five weeks later.[2] The company purchased the domain name backcountry.com for $75,000 in 2004.[3]
backcountry.com soon expanded its product line and became less focused, a move it later regretted.[4] In an attempt to regain focus and target bargain-seekers, the company added niche websites such as SteepandCheap.com and outlets such as the now-defunct BackcountryOutlet.com (see Other Sites below).
On May 7, 2007, it was announced that a controlling stake in Backcountry.com was sold to Liberty Media Corporation, which also controls QVC and other e-commerce companies.[5] This transferred effective ownership of the company to billionaire John C. Malone.
Other Sites
backcountry.com currently operates Dogfunk.com (snowboard gear), CompetitiveCyclist.com (road and mountain cycling), DepartmentOfGoods.com (multi sport closeout), and several "one deal at a time" sites:
- Steepandcheap.com (outdoor gear and ski gear)
- WhiskeyMilitia.com, (surf and skate and snowboard gear)
- Chainlove.com, (bicycle gear)
- GearTrade.com (used gear, backcountry returns and individuals)
Former backcountry sites:
- Tramdock.com (Rolled into SteepAndCheap.com January 2011)
- BonkTown.com (Rolled into ChainLove.com)
- Brociety.com (Rolled into WhiskeyMilitia.com)
- BackcountryOutlet.com (Rolled into DepartmentOfGoods.com)
HuckNroll.com (mountain biking) was discontinued in October of 2012 and was rolled into CompetitiveCyclist.com.[6] RealCyclist.com was discontinued in March of 2013 and was rolled into CompetitiveCyclist.com.[7]
backcountry athlete sponsorship
backcountry.com launched a non-traditional athlete sponsorship program in 2008, which requires that the athletes promote themselves and the brand they represent through social media.[8][9] Backcountry.com-sponsored athletes are responsible for actively driving traffic to Backcountry.com through YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, and blogs.
In an interview on Climbing.com, backcountry.com's pro team manager, Jon Atencio, said: "Athletes will have new motivation to participate in community, write product reviews, and make their presence known however they can — and we plan to do everything we can to leverage their community action."[8]
The program is actually an affiliate marketing program in which backcountry.com provides athletes with tools to track and measure their online impact and athletes get a percentage return on each sale that is referred through their community presence.[8]
Sickbird Award
backcountry.com recognizes standout athletes in the area of big mountain free-skiing by sponsoring Mountain Sports International's Freeskiing World Tour sick-bird award.
References
- ↑ Peters, Kurt. The Age of Innovation, December 2005, Internet Retailer
- ↑ The Retailers, Outside Magazine, March 2009, page 61
- ↑ Press Release, 2004,
- ↑ Internet Retailer, 2005,
- ↑ Press Release, May 2007,
- ↑ http://www.bicycleretailer.com/north-america/2012/10/16/backcountrycom-shuts-hucknrollcom#.UKUmN4eH0Z4
- ↑ http://www.bicycleretailer.com/retail-news/2013/03/25/backcountry-shutters-realcyclistcom#.UVB61Exwp8E
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Backcountry.com team athletes get after it...on the Interweb, April 28, 2008, Climbing Magazine
- ↑ Backcountry.com Adds More Rippers to Line-up, March 31, 2008, Transworld Business
External links
| |||||