The Boardroom Q&A
The Boardroom Q&A
Interview with: Spencer Timkey, Director of Stoke
6113 Route 219
716-699-5620
Instagram: @boardroomeville
FB: The Boardroom Snowboard Shop
Twitter: @Boardroomeville
eNOW: What’s new this season at The Boardroom?
TIMKEY: After last season's meteoric rise in participation numbers for both ski and snowboard, we feel like we're on the cusp of something special with snowsports. We're going to continue to get people standing sideways on the industry's best products, whether it be a full retail setup or a seasonal rental. There's a heavy emphasis on Boardroom and Ellicottville branded product, including hoodies, crews, beanies and a really cool Ellicottville topographic map apparel piece. This season, we added Vans boots to our lineup, which complements an already dynamite hardgoods selection. The return of print snowboard magazines has been really cool, and we're an official Paper Trail partner - meaning you can come in and grab a copy for free.
eNOW: What do you have coming for this season?
TIMKEY: Fortunately, a lot of our product has shipped and landed in-store, meaning we're not dealing with the container ship backup quite as badly as other industries. Hardgoods from Burton, Lib Tech, Jones, Salomon, DC and Vans; outerwear from Burton (including key pieces from the [AK] line), Under Armour, Oakley, 686, Nikita, Roxy, Quiksilver; helmets/goggles from Anon, Oakley, Giro and Smith; branded apparel, Airblaster Ninja Suits and a lot more.
eNOW: Any winter products you’re excited about specifically?
TIMKEY: Imagine a binding without straps. What we're insanely excited about - and this has been the case for the past few seasons - is Burton Step On. No longer do you need to bend over to strap in, and you're not sacrificing performance. We've got the Photon, Ruler and Swath for men and the Felix for women. Burton also incorporated the HammockBack from its in-line Genesis binding into a brand new Genesis Step On. We are the area's largest Step On dealer, and inventory is extremely limited yet again. We're selling Step On in-store only this season.
eNOW: How about your seasonal rental program?
TIMKEY: Seasonal rental is such a dynamite way to get into skiing and snowboarding. For adults, it's an affordable way to try something different that you might not have tried before. For families with growing kids, it's a REALLY affordable way to get kids on good equipment that's sized correctly without throwing down for a full setup every season. Our rental program - new and used, adult and junior, ski and snowboard - starts at $49.99. We offer free tune-ups all year long and free size exchanges throughout the season. The sooner folks get in, the better - we have lots of stuff available, but it does get pretty picked over.
eNOW: You didn't run the Boardroom Banked last season, but it's back this year.
TIMKEY: Last year was so difficult for everyone, right? It was such a bummer we couldn't run the event, especially after the success of Year 3. But it was the right move, and gave us more time to plan strategically for this season. The layout will be similar - a banked slalom hand-built by us on Champagne at Holiday Valley on Sunday, March 6, 2022. There are four divisions: Men's Open, Women's Open, Grom and OG (35+). Winners get handmade trophies, and we're working with Colorado-based Phunkshun facemasks to make our custom facemask bibs. And this year, the beneficiary will be P.U.N.T. Pediatric Cancer Collaborative, a Buffalo-based nonprofit helping families dealing with pediatric cancer. The signup link for the Banked will be live soon.
eNOW: There's a little different flair to your social media this season.
TIMKEY: We're sick and tired of scrolling through the Gram and seeing ad after ad. Social media can be a real downer sometimes, but we want to use it to keep creating a sense of community amongst our customers and fellow snowboarders (and skiers, we're not judgey). We're going to highlight some great things we have in-store, but we're also going to make it fun and engaging. We recently called out the host of The Bomb Hole podcast, Chris Grenier, who's a New Englander. If the Bills win on Monday Night Football on December 6th, Grendy has to wear a Bills shirt during the filming of an episode. If the Pats win, we have to wear Patriots sherseys during Christmas week. It's just thinking differently and having some fun with it. We're running way more giveaways this year on our social channels, so mash that follow button.
eNOW: Where is your go-to apres spot?
TIMKEY: We're open every day, so our typical apres spot is our repair room after the doors close. But when push comes to shove, we're hitting The Depot for the best pizza and wings in town, Villaggio for the family vibe, West Rose for that Grange burger or Madigan's because it's impossible to not have fun while you're there.
eNOW: What is your favorite weekday activity?
TIMKEY: Ripping corduroy at HV or HoliMont.