Happy trails

WASILLA — A longtime and popular retailer is saying a slow goodbye to the Mat-Su Valley.

Outdoors and More Sporting Goods, having catered to the adventurous Alaska spirit of locals for 23 years, is liquidating its inventory in preparation of closing its doors forever. Owner Jerry Holbrook has been preparing for the close since April, but many customers were still shocked when they heard the news this past week.

“Tears came to my eyes,” said Butte resident Sid McCausland about learning Outdoors and More would be no more. “These guys can’t go. This is one of the last great, old places to go in the Valley.”

McCausland said he has been shopping at Outdoors and More for more than 20 years, and even when he ventures to the Lower 48, he can’t find a sporting goods store that tops Outdoors and More.

Some have speculated Holbrook’s decision to close stems from the entry of Sportsman’s Warehouse into the local sporting goods market. Holbrook put that rumor to rest.

“The only thing it did was help me fill the need for my customers and employees,” he said.

Holbrook cares about his employees so much that he’s been working diligently to find each one of them a job. In fact, he even met with a representative from Sportsman’s Warehouse to help one employee secure a job when the chain store opens in Wasilla in early November. Employees are important to the owner, but Holbrook also wants to thank his customers.

“The people of the Valley have supported this store so much that it’s humbling,” Holbrook said. To show his appreciation, the store has cut prices by 10 percent to 75 percent, Holbrook.

“I want the people to know how grateful I am,” he said. “I just want to say thanks.”

Holbrook has been with Outdoors and More for more than 16 years and has owned the business for the last four, he said. Even though he bought the business with plans to sell. He’s going to miss all the loyal customers that come to shop at the landmark retailer.

“I have mixed emotions,” he said of the impending closing, which will basically be whenever he runs out of inventory. “I love the people, so it makes me sad that I’m not going to see them everyday. But it makes me ecstatic that I can pour my time into my wife and children.”

As a businessman, father and husband, Holbrook plans to spend plenty of time with his family, but he’s not leaving the business world completely. The Outdoors and More booth will still be at the Alaska State Fair offering most of the same great products that are available at the store. Holbrook also has his hands in the world of Internet business with an affiliate marketing program found at www.alaska.wwdb.biz — a business similar to amazon.com.

“The real reason I’m doing this is because that’s were I see the future of business going,” he said of the Internet venture.

Although his future is headed in a new direction, both Holbrook and his customers are happy with what he has accomplished in the past.

“I would like to thank them for serving the community so well,” said Dana Hills, a Willow resident. “It’s sad to see them close because they represent what Alaskans are all about.”

McCausland said he’s going to miss the store, and he finds it difficult to watch close a business he frequented for so many years. “We don’t want them to go. We’re going to block the doors and organize a sit-in.”

Contact Chris Gillow at 352-2284 or chris.gillow@frontiersman.com.