Wetspot Watersports are closing so is Windsurfing gear.
Sad to see shops related to our sport going. Is on line the only future. Personally Id be saddened I like the buzz in a shop, and the personal touch and professional advice.

Not great, but it is happening with physical retail outlets everywhere in all sectors

I suspect things will only get worse in retail generally in the coming years.

A lot are probably just holding on, delaying the inevitable.

Clarence

Theres something more enticing about walking into a shop and touching/seeing a new board or sail in the flesh.

It would appear though, that online is fast becoming the only way to go. Windsurf shops i think are doing it tougher and tougher as each year goes by.

Where were these shops located? Unfortunately due to a few reasons I can't go windsurfing so am not in the market for windsurfing gear. I miss windsurfing and buying windsurfing gear.

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Mobydisc said..
Where were these shops located? Unfortunately due to a few reasons I can't go windsurfing so am not in the market for windsurfing gear. I miss windsurfing and buying windsurfing gear.

One was in QLD not sure for the other.

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peterowensbabs said..

Mobydisc said..
Where were these shops located? Unfortunately due to a few reasons I can't go windsurfing so am not in the market for windsurfing gear. I miss windsurfing and buying windsurfing gear.

One was in QLD not sure for the other.

Wetspot water sports - Canberra

Its sad for the business owners for sure. But seriously, the writing has been on the wall for years, and businesses need to adapt. You either get better at online or you go bust I think. I think there will be a place for bricks and mortar, but location will be critical. The other thing is the popularity of the sport. I think the market is shrinking and can't sustain so many stores.

My advice, get better at selling online. Windsurfing gear is not something you need to see before buying it. I usually can't be bothered getting out of my chair when shopping for a sail. Have bought probably 6 brand new sails in the last 6 years, only one from a bricks and mortar store.

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Subsonic said..
Theres something more enticing about walking into a shop and touching/seeing a new board or sail in the flesh.

It would appear though, that online is fast becoming the only way to go. Windsurf shops i think are doing it tougher and tougher as each year goes by.

Either the market is getting smaller, so less shops needed. Or some sellers are getting a bigger share of the market by selling in a way more buyers want. If buyers want to buy online, then your business needs to sell that way. I agree, I love walking in a shop sometimes. But I actually prefer doing my research and buying largely online.

wasnt windsurfing gear an online store?

Damn! Wetspot was actually a huge shop with an awesome range of gear. Not just windsurfing, they had all Watersports covered - surfing, kayak, sup, kite, foiling, windsurfing, cats and hobie fishing and pedalling stuff. Probably even much more.

Scott is a good guy, hope he is getting out with enough cash to enjoy life. Someone once said that running a windsurfing business is not about the money, more a lifestyle choice! Guess it was pretty hard to make enough to keep it open.

online may be ok and you may save a few bucks but visiting a bricks and mortar store, checking out the latest and greatest (and even a few old classics) in person, being able to touch and check out the lines and curves, Rail's and rocker close up and having a chat with the guru in the shop is half the fun.

Always bought something when I visit these guys if they had the time to chat and share their knowledge.

A sad sign of the times, those who exclusively buy online are really missing out and helping shrink the market even more. Without bricks and mortar stores, buyers and those contemplating getting into the sport have no where to go for those first tentative steps into a new sport.

anyway, best of luck to the guys who have called it quits, I can understand why you did it and at this time of year it must start to get really tough for you.

Windsurfnsnow is still trading after a major setback (fire) and hoping to get back into premises asap.

Not to mention- how about as a community we support shops/ businesses in Australia. The overseas online thing may be appealing but will lead to no industry here. This in our hands!

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snorkel692 said..
Not to mention- how about as a community we support shops/ businesses in Australia. The overseas online thing may be appealing but will lead to no industry here. This in our hands!

I buy online in Australia, so I'm supporting our Australian businesses. In fact, rather than buy a foil from an overseas store, I waited and bought one here from a bricks and mortar store so I had the confidence of after sale service.

On the whole, it's Just much easier for me to get a sail, a boom, a harness, a mast, or most anything else online. There's no reason you can't do both (bricks & mortar and online) well. In fact, the bricks and mortar store I buy from has lost thousands in sales from me because their online store is terrible. I've honestly been ready to buy sails from them, the online store just doesn't work, and I've bought from interstate stores whose online works well.

It's entirely about how the customer wants to buy. I get the sentimentality of bricks and mortar, but sentimentality is not enough to run a successful retail business these days.

Damn. I was in Wetspot a few weeks ago and I heard that board sales were well down. It wasn't so much the online market, but the move by major cut-price chains like Anaconda and BCF to sell cut-price SUPs and similar kit.

Best of luck to Scotty and staff.

How do you make your living Sputnik?

Let's hope your UJ isn't shot next time the wind blows, or your downhaul snaps, or your harness line craps itself.. etc

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JEZ said..
How do you make your living Sputnik?

Let's hope your UJ isn't shot next time the wind blows, or your downhaul snaps, or your harness line craps itself.. etc

With the demise of brick and mortar stores I'm now forced to have spares of UJs, rope, harness lines, etc in my garage. Plus I now have 2 of my most used mast. Just in case. Maybe online stores are cheaper on a per item basis, but the overall dollars I'm spending has increased.

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slalomfreak said..
wasnt windsurfing gear an online store?

Yes it was a online store but did have a small shop in a small population.
On line shopping is great however when you break some gear try to get a warranty or replacement next day.

Most shops have on line purchasing in Australia.

Most shops support the industry with lessons, clubs and events.

Support your local shop or you will not have one and this great sport will slowly decrease as we all get to old to sail.

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Cocky2
Support your local shop or you will not have one and this great sport will slowly decrease as we all get to old to sail.

"As we all get too old to sail." Good point.
WE SHOULD ALL BE TRYING TO ADDICT ANYONE WE MEET TO THE WINDSURF BUZZ.
If we dont itll definately die.
Ive still got a learners setup n take the time to teach n addict anyone with the windsurf way of life.
Once hooked youll never look at a palm tree or flag blowin in the wind the same way, EVER AGAIN. .

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JEZ said..
How do you make your living Sputnik?

Let's hope your UJ isn't shot next time the wind blows, or your downhaul snaps, or your harness line craps itself.. etc

Are you saying you can't trust online retailers?

My point is that you can do both, and realistically, you need to do both. Bricks & mortar as well as really good online.

I am yet to get anything online that's not as good as in store. Any good retailer knows brand and reputation is everything. You get a reputation as a dodgy seller, you're dead. Trust arrives on a turtle and leaves on a hare. A good bricks and mortar store should be able to translate brand and reputation into a good online store as well.

Not sure how I make a living is relevant here, maybe I'm missing something.

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philn said..

JEZ said..
How do you make your living Sputnik?

Let's hope your UJ isn't shot next time the wind blows, or your downhaul snaps, or your harness line craps itself.. etc

With the demise of brick and mortar stores I'm now forced to have spares of UJs, rope, harness lines, etc in my garage. Plus I now have 2 of my most used mast. Just in case. Maybe online stores are cheaper on a per item basis, but the overall dollars I'm spending has increased.

I don't shop online for cheap, I shop online because its convenient. In fact, often I pay more due to shipping costs, but the convenience I rate. I don't equate online shopping with cheap goods. Is a NP sail purchased online and better or worse than one bought in a shop?

^^^^^ Your a lazy mofo,
Sad they closed, but, its business that all boils down to cost and demand, if costs are waaaaay higher than demand you have no hope.
General Business Study's 101 UNA
Good luck to the owners on their next adventure in life. Don't be down and think of it as a failure, its only the sport that slowed,but as embracing the future and the start of a new endeavor. Happy days.

Scotty and his team always gave me straight well informed advice. Reliable ordering when not in stock. At reasonable prices.

Windsurfing became a small part of the shop floor area. WS in Canberra declined. While SUP and Kayaking grew in popularity. Probably no cause and effect. Just the way it happened. I have no insights into the SUP-kayaking markets.

One feature of WS in Canberra is the variable water quality of our lakes. Like other inland water ways. The local government is moving to improve water quality. But that will take time. The main lake is Federal government owned. And I don't know what plans they have.

Meanwhile the cost of doing business in Canberra rose. Including the local government tax system on real estate. With such costs flowing through to business tenants. Can not say if that is a factor for Wetspot. But other small business owners have found that to be the case.

For myself gear purchasing has been a mix of local purchasing. And on-line where the product is not sold locally. Life will become more difficult. As some items really are best bought with touch and feel. Like wetsuits and harnesses. Or sizing up the lines of a WS board.

All the best to Scotty and his team in their futures.

Always wonder if LAKE George was full of water how wind sports in Canberra would be? Probably would of been more than 1 or 2 shops!

If it was full of water then the tourism market would maybe support local businesses who could utilise the lake.

Others know more about Lake G. than I do. My sailing there was many years ago in a dingy. I recall steep chop. And shallow troughs. You need to know where the fence posts and wires happen to be. Otherwise v. good in the easterly sea breezes.

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AusMoz said..
Always wonder if LAKE George was full of water how wind sports in Canberra would be? Probably would of been more than 1 or 2 shops!

If it was full of water then the tourism market would maybe support local businesses who could utilise the lake.

I went down the federal highway about a month ago and Lake George looked great, if you're a sheep or a cow. Knee high grass and not a drop of water to be seen. I think it's been quite a while since it was full.

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Longlines said..
Others know more about Lake G. than I do. My sailing there was many years ago in a dingy. I recall steep chop. And shallow troughs. You need to know where the fence posts and wires happen to be. Otherwise v. good in the easterly sea breezes.

Sea breezes rarely, if ever, reach 90km inland. Living on the escarpment of the lower Blue Mountains, sea breezes do not even travel 60km from Manly.

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Wollemi said..

Sea breezes rarely, if ever, reach 90km inland. Living on the escarpment of the lower Blue Mountains, sea breezes do not even travel 60km from Manly.

Sea breezes are common here in Canberra. Yesterday afternoon,, as a case in point, 16 knots, gusting to 22, and it blew for 2 hours.

I think the terrain on the leeward side of your location has a big bearing on whether or not the sea breeze will push in.

And, back on topic, a dreadful shame that Wetspot is closing. Super shop, super staff, super attitude to customers.

Yep, Canberra's sea breezes are damn nice considering how far inland they are; surprisingly close in strength and consistency to the ones you get around Dobroyd in Sydney which is only a few ks from the Harbour Bridge.

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Chris 249 said..
Yep, Canberra's sea breezes are damn nice considering how far inland they are; surprisingly close in strength and consistency to the ones you get around Dobroyd in Sydney which is only a few ks from the Harbour Bridge.

www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6036171/tim-the-yowie-man-summer-saviour/

" Fact File

It's all in a name: According to Simon Louis, a meteorologist with the Bureau of Meteorology, our cooling summer breeze is officially referred to as 'The Canberra Easterly'. "We might be lacking in imagination," admits Louis, adding, "we could probably adopt one of its nicknames, I especially like the Braidwood Bliss."

What causes it? While not technically a sea breeze, according to Louis, "The Canberra Easterly' is a gravity wave caused by cooler sea air building up against the eastern slopes rushing in underneath a hot inland air mass."

How far inland does it extend? "As it can be self-perpetuating, a really strong Canberra Easterly can extend as far inland as Wagga Wagga, bringing residents of the Riverina town relief from the heat as late as midnight," explains Louis.

What about the salt? There may be science to Helm's theory after all. According to Louis "it's a maritime air mass that triggers it, so it's completely plausible it also carries salt."


No it's not technically a sea breeze. A sea breeze comes in at 45 degrees to the left as you look out to sea in the southern hemisphere. And swings a little further left later in the afternoon due to the Coriolis effect. On the NSW coast it's a noreaster. The Canberra Easterly is more often associated with a southerly down on the coast.

Miss those Canberra easterlies. Especially when Scotty packed the esky.

Did these shops provide lessons?