Columbia Sportswear
With the cold weather here my mind has been wandering toward winter sports. In particular a planed spring ski trip to the heart of the Colorado Rockies. I decided this year it was time for some new ski gear and started looking for a new Jacket and ski pants to keep me warm this spring. My problem is I’m a gear junkie. I love gear and I love getting new gear. The other problem is I’m broke and with a new baby in the house all the extra funds seem to be earmarked for baby gear. Not exactly the kind of gear I look forward to buying. So this winter I decided to try my luck with ebay auctions and happen to score a nice 3 in 1 Columbia Jacket for under $30.00 (retail is $200+). It worked out so well I went back to the auction block and bid on a pair of Columbia ski pants (Retail $80+) and won them for $22.60.
What I find most interesting is that there are a lot of top name brands up for bid. Brands like The North Face, Marmot, Patagonia and the like. All of the auctions featuring these brands tend to close at much higher prices. Columbia, however, doesn’t seem to retain as much resell value. This works out well for me as I have trusted Columbia in a number of my outdoor ventures for many years. But it begs the questions why? Does Columbia Sportswear not hold the same level of prestige as some of these other brands. Am I a fool for trusting my warmth and well being to Columbia Sportswear products. I don’t think so.
So much of the outdoor clothing market has become too fashion oriented. With half my daughters school wearing North Face Jackets I have all but dismissed them as a viable outdoor gear company. I guess I just prefer something a little less trendy.
I just placed the winning bid on a Columbia Fleece Jacket for $12.45.