1/25/2006 12:10:00 PM Shop owners take their cyberstore on the road
Janie and David Amdal display the travel trailer that will house their mobile retail store specializing in equipment for miniature horses. They intend to operate their online business as they travel around the country, using satellite technology to keep in touch with their customers over the Internet. – Photo by Kasia Pierzga
After running a saddle and horse supply shop in Chimacum for 11 years, Janie and David Amdal are taking their business on the road.
They’ve sold their retail store, along with their home and five-acre mini-ranch, and by late February will be selling horse equipment out of the back of a 38-foot travel trailer and connecting with their customers through the Internet.
For the Amdals, it will be kind of like being retired. They’ll be traveling around the country, visiting friends and relatives and checking out the sights. But while they’re at it, they plan to keep their business going, stopping in to see longtime customers and following the miniature-horse show circuit, where they will open the doors to their rolling showroom.
They plan to hang onto the Chimacum Tack Shack name because it’s become well known in the business.
“We worked hard to develop that reputation,” David Amdal said.
On the road
Since they launched an online retail store nearly 10 years ago, business conducted over the Internet has come to account for as much as half their annual sales, Amdal said. Maintaining the site will help them continue to build the business they built from scratch.
High-tech communications equipment will allow the Amdals to continue operating their online retail store, www.horsedriver.com, no matter where they decide to roam, Amdal said.
“We just got the satellite system installed last Friday on the roof of the fifth wheel that we’re going to live in,” he said. “We can be in Disneyland or Disney World or Pike’s Peak or wherever, and our customers won’t know the difference.”
Their online store will be a much smaller version of the existing business.
The Amdals will haul about $40,000 worth of miniature-horse equipment along with them, taking orders and shipping items right from their rolling tack shop.
Orders for draft-horse equipment will also be handled through their onboard computer, but their daughter in Minneapolis will maintain inventory and shipping for that portion of the business.
New owners
As for the tack shop in Chimacum, it’s been purchased by Marrowstone Island residents Bruce and Bethel Moore, and is renamed Chimacum Saddlery and Tack.
As equine enthusiasts who enjoy team penning and trail riding, the Moores are longtime customers of the shop. Their 4-year-old daughter, Cassi Ann, takes part in junior rodeo. Their stable includes a collection of quarter horses, Arabians and Welsh ponies.
And while this is their first venture into the world of retail, the Moores are no strangers to running a small business. For the past two years, they have had a company called BB&C Excavating.
Bethel Moore said the opportunity to buy the tack shop came as a bit of a surprise. When a deal to sell the shop fell through a few months ago, Janie Amdal approached the Moores and suggested they consider taking it over.
Since they agreed to take the reins, the Moores have spent a lot of time learning the equestrian supply business. Bethel, a western-style riding enthusiast, said she plans to take some English-style riding lessons so she can learn more about the equipment and techniques.
“I’ve been going to the shop as often as possible to pick Janie’s brain,” she said. “If I could just download it all into a computer, it would be great.”
The Moores expect to be the official owners of the shop as of the first week of February. Their plans include bringing in a wider range of boots and clothing, including some children’s items, Moore said.
“I’m looking forward to providing a place where customers can come and feel like they’re at home,” she said. “We’ll always have the coffee pot on, cookies at the ready and time for horse talk.”
Janie Amdal said she is looking forward to the cross-country adventure with her husband.
“We’re excited about launching into a new phase of our lives, seeing places we’ve never been before and meeting many people face to face that we’ve been doing business with over the Web,” she said.
With their departure fast approaching, the Amdals are looking forward to sharing a potluck farewell party with customers and friends. The party is set for 6-9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11 at the Beaver Valley Lodge, 2924 Beaver Valley Road, Port Ludlow.
David Amdal said life on the road will take some getting used to.
“It’s a little frightening, with everything going into storage and all,” he said. “It will be the first time since 1967 that I have not owned soil.”
David Amdal said he and Janie plan to return to Jefferson County to check in with their friends.
“Janie is really excited to come back in six months and see how the new people are doing things,” he said.
(Contact Kasia Pierzga at kpierzga@ptleader.com or call 385-5100, ext. 102.)
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