The Buyer's Perspective | Foster Outdoor

Lifestyle is a quickly growing market in the outdoor industry. There are customers looking for high-quality, functional products from brands they trust for use in everyday life. By taking some of the learnings from our technical packs, Osprey has redesigned and expanded the Arcane line to create high-quality, sustainable lifestyle packs.

Foster Outdoor is one of our retail partners that has brought in the new Arcane line for Spring 20. We check in with Mike Turner (owner) on how they approach the lifestyle side of the business, why it’s important, and their reason for stocking Osprey’s Arcane line.

What sort of buying patterns are you noticing from customers in your shop these days?

Foster Outdoor carries a wide-range of options when it comes to price. We sell new brand names, second tier price-point brands and also offer second-hand consignment items. Throughout our first year of business, we've noticed customers are increasingly demanding products that will stand the test of time rather than price point items. I feel consumers are beginning to make more thoughtful decisions, weary of options that may be less expensive but don't posess the longevity of higher priced, quality items. 

What made you choose Osprey Arcane Packs to add to your pack wall?

I was first attracted to the Arcane line due to the sleek look and color ways. I had never seen Osprey create a pack with this asthetic. After taking a closer look, I feel Osprey nailed the feature sets by offering multiple designs to accomodate the diverse needs of everyday life, without looking like the pack was out of place in an urban setting - not everyone wants to look like they just came off the trail.

Have you seen a lot of growth coming from the Lifestyle categories?

Absolutely. Many of the products we sell are worn or used right here in our neighborhood as opposed to only on the trail. Folks want to have fun, and they want to look good while doing so. The lifestyle categories usually offer fun prints, colors and designs that usually provoke your brunch friends to say, "I love that new bag you got. Where'd you get it?" Lifestyle customers are also more likely to come back every season for the new colorway once they've landed on their new favorite bag, shoes or shirt, whereas once you purchase that technical piece of gear, you're most-likely set for a few years.

What’s the most frequently asked question about lifestyle packs that your receive from customers and how do you address it?

"Does it have a place for my laptop?" or "is it waterproof?" (We're in Oregon). I use this an opportunity to educate the customer on design and construction by walking through the feature-sets of the various options and explain the difference between waterproof materials and waterproof construction. This is also the perfect time to sell a pack cover. We don't think of it as an upsell, rather, we are building trust with our customers. When they jump on their bike at 7am in the rain, they are going to think, "thank goodness those folks at Foster Outdoor cared enough about my experience to recommend the right gear."

What, if any, strategies are you using to bring new customers into your store?

I knew I'd be neck deep in business operations throughout our first year, struggling to find time to get everything done. So, one of the first decisions we made prior to opening was to hire a content manager to create our social channels. We use Facebook to drive events and Instagram to drive culture. Our posts are divided into three categories - product, outdoor imagery and community. Our content manager was surprised to see how well the community engages in the product posts. More often than not, our product posts translate into direct sales that same week. We also use in-store presentations and clinics to drive seasonal business. Being a music lover, there's no time these days to go out and catch a show, so we bring the music to us. Once a quarter, we book a local artist to come place music in-store, advertise some discounts, throw in some beers and have a great time. These events pay for themselves and always lead to a great sales day.

Are there any other Osprey products besides Arcane that are seeing success in your shop?

We've seen early success with the Hikelite 26. At $100 price-point, with a rain fly and all the features most recreators are asking for, I think it's a helluva pack.

Any upcoming or past trips that you’re particularly stoked about?

Our happy place these days are quick gettaways to the Oregon Coast. We built out a 1989 F350 4x4 Deisel Ambulance and turned it into our "let's get to the coast this weekend" rig. No need to think about loading up - it's already in there. Our 4 year-old thinks it's the coolest rig in the world. Just the other day she said, "Can we take the Ambo to Hebo Lake again this year." I love her.