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Business Happenings - September 2019

GearHeads Outdoor Store: A Moab Destination
By Linda Schmidt


"Where are you headed? Moab? You have to see GearHeads!” This was advice given to a couple at a shared campfire in Yellowstone Park. They listened and visited GearHeads Outdoor Store when they came to Moab. Smart move! Have you seen it? It is astonishing. Wandering through aisle after aisle of seemingly endless, fascinating merchandise, I gasped to see yet more products hanging from the ceiling. Observing me, one of the friendly staff laughed and said “When you think you’ve seen it all, look up!”

Packed into 5000 square feet (that is merely the floor space) in an orderly, comprehensible flow, are over 100,000 different items. The intensity of labor required to choose, test, stock, sell, and restock this inventory is just about beyond imagination. It is perhaps the entire Southwest’s premiere source for quality outdoor technical equipment and apparel for camping, climbing, hiking, backpacking, biking, RV-ing, and boating. It has the largest offering of technical climbing gear in the US. If you need it, GearHeads most likely has it.

In addition to providing all this gear, the Outdoor Store offers free filtered water. This is a thoughtful service here in the high desert, where water is life. And if you need a container for the water, you are in the right place!

Steve Kennedy, one of the three brothers who operates this very successful business, attributes this success to their serious commitment to excellent customer service. Gearheads carries all the high-performance gear, clothing and footwear you will need for most any outdoor adventure. There is always a great selection of items on sale in almost every department. The GearHeads sales philosophy is finding solutions for needs, so the loyal staff is thoroughly educated on all products (and where each can be found!). Steve calls these employees the best talent that can be found. Alert eyes are always on every customer, freely offering friendly help, and fully able to advise.

GearHeads Outdoor Store was opened on March 13, 1998, when Greg Kennedy was joined in Moab by his brother Doug. Greg’s coffee stand outside Poison Spider bike shop could not support them both, and recognizing the need for a camping store, they plunged in. Their original store space was 1000 square feet; it expanded to its present size in their current location as different businesses in the same building moved on. Steve joined the operation in 2009. Perhaps growing up in an atmosphere of science and technology gave them a taste for high-quality gear; their father was a rocket scientist. These men worked very hard and carefully to create this remarkable business, and appear to be working harder than ever as it continues to grow.

The next chapter in the Outdoor Store’s life will be a move from its current location to a 5000 square foot building that will be constructed on the same lot as the present building. Gearheads will not close during the transition. What an overwhelming prospect, moving their massive inventory into a new building and remaining open for business! But the brothers are taking it in stride. Real commitment and hard work—this is evidenced in every aspect of GearHeads’ successful operation.

Coming to Moab? You must see Arches, Canyonlands, and GearHeads, but not necessarily in that order! You will find GearHeads Outdoor Store at 471 South Main Street #1, next to City Market. Open 7 days a week, 8 am to 9 pm. And right now, you can check out their great website at www.moabgear.com.

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