Check out your Company Bowl for anonymous work chats.
A day in the life of one of our in-house Graphic Designers, Kirt White! Early Morning- The day starts off with a bang when you have three kids. Off to school they go! Normal Morning- My drive from Salt Lake to Park City commences. Driving the canyon is a game of roulette at different times of the year. Snow tires are a must! Mid-Day- This has truly become my dream job. The people I work with have become a small family and the designing I get to do is center around my own lifestyle. Mark Twain said, “Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”. Well, he’s right! After Work- We are really spoiled in Utah with wonderful mountains for hikes and biking and rivers and lakes for fishing and swimming. After work I like to get a little exercise and fresh air. We have some really premier fishing rivers 20 minutes from the Backcountry office. Night- To round out the day, I love helping the kids get their homework squared away. Something fun we do in our family is we all work on a little art together. It makes for a great time to talk together and hear about things going on in each of our lives.
Sam Dearden held on to a top three spot in the annual Backcountry Adventure Contest this year and had a great time in the process! Sam raced in the Crusher in the Tuscher in Beaver UT, Unbound in Emporia, KS, and the Dirty Dino in Vernal UT. A busy summer indeed! From Sam: “For the Adventure Contest I have learned that this is a grinder. It’s not a week or a month-long contest but three months long. Thankfully I do road and gravel racing that helped me to stay focused and motivated with my training during the contest.
Three of our Greaheads here at Backcountry, Jono, Sydney and Ian, recently raced in the SBT GRVL! The race is a 142 miles with 9,000 ft of elevation gain through the backroads of Steamboat Springs CO. We are stoked to report that Sydney took 1st place in her age category and both Jono and Sydney had the honor of beating Ian! The camaraderie and competition amongst the Herd runs deep and these three pushed their personal limits and had fun along the way! Check out our recent YouTube video that recounts the race!
Welcome to the Herd! Josh Baker is our newest Talent Acquistion Partner here at Backcountry. So far, he has wooed us with the ability to quickly learn and adapt during his first few weeks! A longtime fan of Backcountry, Josh has married his experience in recruiting with his love for the outdoors, landing himself as a part of the company! In Josh’s words, “Being able to join a company that values the outdoors and started in my hometown is also a point of pride to me- it feels very full circle.”. Josh, welcome to The Herd! We’re grateful to have you on board for this busy season in retail.
A day in the life of our Copy Manager, Alex Moliski! Morning: Alex’s mornings start bright and early. Opening with a cup of coffee and some writing, Alex spends some time jotting ideas for the day, reflections from the prior and generally trying to squash the pre-work writing yipps. He’s written daily for over 10 years! Midmorning: It’s his time to ‘get in the zone’! Alex spends the earlier part of his day writing campaigns, editing and making adjustments with the design team to finalize projects. Today, a project with Crocs! Lunch: Late summer is a busy time of the year for writers so Alex takes lunch his desk. Wasabi peas are the go-to snack—they keep you on your toes! Afternoon: Most afternoons the creative team meets for creative review. It’s an opportunity to present upcoming projects to partners and creative leaders. They let the teams know if they’re hitting the mark or have narrowly missed! After Work: Everyone thinks that if you work at Backcountry you’re skiing, climbing, mountain biking every day. That’s true… most days. When Alex isn't getting into the standard Backcountry activities, he kicks around a soccer ball with a req league in SLC!
It’s with heavy hearts that this week we lost a long-time member of our Herd, Kyle Brown, to ALS. Kyle lived larger than life and was an inspiration to everyone – at work, his friends, and his family. A longtime competitive cyclist – later in life he discovered a love for triathlons. In spring of 2021, feeling the effects of ALS which were ultimately diagnosed that July, Kyle qualified for the World Championship 70.3 Ironman, which he competed in September 2021 after his diagnosis. Kyle married Colleen, the love of his life, the month after his diagnosis, and two of them maintained a full, loving and robust life until he passed away. Kyle was a multiple winner of Goat of the Year, which is now named after him. He loved being a Backcountry Gearhead, and he continued to work and enrich the lives of his customers until last week. We were lucky enough to call Kyle a Gearhead here at Backcountry but he touted many names- son, father, uncle, husband, coach, athlete and friend. He leaves behind many and our thoughts are with Kyle’s family. To learn more about Kyle’s journey, click the links below. https://kylefightsals.org https://www.youtube.com/user/krb76 https://www.competitivecyclist.com/sc/kyle-brown-ironman?cmp_id=EM_CC-2021-Week41-Friday-KyleBrown_M1&utm_medium=email&utm_source=promotional&utm_campaign=CC-2021-Week41-Friday-KyleBrown
Over the past few years, our Owned Brands team has put a lot of work into our sustainability efforts. From working with our factories to become Fair Trade Certified, to utilizing recycled polyester and nylons, to becoming a certified brand to use RDS (Responsible Down Standard) and RWS (Responsible Wool Standard) materials in our products- they’ve made progress in leaps and bounds! We are so proud of the products the Owed Brands team put out for Stoic and Backcountry Gear and Apparel! Stoked to see their true commitment to always putting out a better product and to see what they do in the future! From our Product Development Manager, Maddie Anzovino: “Traceability and transparency is critical in sourcing our materials, from fabrics and insulations to trims, along with knowing that our garments are being made ethically and in safe conditions for the workers. This is vital to our mission of creating products as responsibly as we can.”
We recently celebrated National Sleep Under the Stars Night! Backcountry is nestled in the Wasatch Mountain range in Utah- home to some of the most beautiful hiking, biking, skiing and camping! We feel lucky to have all the things the city provides and equally as lucky to escape the hustle and bustle to pitch our tents and enjoy the night sky! You could say it’s the best of both worlds. Some of our favorites include- Bloods Lake Gaurdsman Pass Twin Lakes Reservoir What's your favorite spot?
Backcountry has opened its doors at The Grove! We are beyond stoked to have The Goat making its debut at this iconic California shopping destination. This is our 3rd new store opening this year and were only 8 months in! It takes a village, and the entirety of Backcountry has been hard at work to transform this space, fill it with all our CA shoppers could want, and open its doors! See you at the Grove! 189 The Grove Dr Space F-1 Los Angeles CA
⭐️ Herd Highlight ⭐️ Jamie Ballard works out of our Virginia Fulfillment Center as one of our many rockstar Merchandise Processors! From Jamie- "In the past year, I have had the privilege of working for Backcountry and have learned so much! I have developed my skill set in non-con packing, returns, receiving, and more. I have been consistently impressed by the Backcountry’s commitment to its employees, and I am excited for what’s to come. Next on my horizon- I hope to move to be a lead manager to help my team and the company grow. I am particularly inspired by the management team, who are always willing to go the extra mile to help their team succeed. They create a truly supportive and collaborative environment, and I feel like I am part of a family here. That’s why I come to work every day with a smile on my face!" Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, hiking, camping, fishing, going to the movies, and playing with my dogs. I am a hard worker, but I also know how to relax and have fun. I am excited to see what the future holds for me at Backcountry!
