Staying tuned in Snowmass just got easier
Snowmass Sun
Jill Beathard/Snowmass Sun |
Just in time for ski season, Snowmass Village has a new rental and tuning shop.
Or not really new, since Mark and Linda Chapdelaine have been running Stay Tuned out of Snowmass condominium complexes for the past 10 years, and it existed for another 18 years before they bought it.
But now they have an independent business location, which will open the store to more customers. Located in the Snowmass Center across the hallway from Clark’s Market, Stay Tuned will carry most brands and will offer free delivery for renters staying in the village who get their equipment fitted in store.
Bikes are available to rent now, and the couple hope next year to offer paddleboards, skateboards and even backcountry hiking and camping equipment for summer tourists. In both seasons, the store will carry some retail clothing such as goggles and gloves.
The walls of the space, once just plain white, now have peach boxwood panels on them. Those and all the other materials used in the store were recycled — even the television was donated.
The Chapdelaines are longtime Snowmass Village residents. They won the first lottery for Rodeo Place employee housing, and are now raising their two daughters there.
The entrepreneurs also started Aspen Pops three years ago and plan to sell their homemade popsicles, which in the past have been available through stands at events, in the store.
In growing Stay Tuned, the Chapdelaines are aiming for the feel of a local business but don’t want to focus on expert skiers. They want to make sure that every customer who rents from them gets the right skis or snowboard.
“We really want to focus on being approachable,” Mark Chapdelaine said. “We’re really geared toward making people comfortable.”
Snowmass ski area is scheduled to open on Nov. 27.
