New England town.
The Mountain Goat co-owners, Ann and Ron Houser first spotted the charming town of Manchester, VT, on a bike ride to Canada. It left such an impression on the adventurous Virginia natives that they returned, this time to make their dream of opening an outdoor shop a reality. That was in 1987. The store has since become a town staple, offering the finest in outdoor clothing and gear for serious adventurers to casual wanderers alike.
Appealing to and servicing a broad spectrum of customers is a key to the store’s success. “Our merchandise managers do a great job of creating two worlds within the store,” says Elliott Couch, manager and footwear buyer. “Customers are seeking answers, and we take pride in listening and then making sure they walk out with products that suit their specific needs.”
The shop’s mix spans hikers from Lowa, Oboz and Scarpa, trail runners by On and Hoka, and everyday styles from Birkenstock, OluKai, Ugg, and Blundstone, among others. Ron serves as the Mountain Goat’s in-house pedorthist. In addition to foot and leg evaluations, the Amfit custom imaging and milling machine provides digital foot scans for creating custom orthotics in about an hour.
Couch believes the topnotch selection and expert service enables The Mountain Goat to rise above the competition. “We curate a very specific collection of quality brands, and we provide a customized experience with highly trained employees,” he says. “We pride ourselves on a customer-centric approach to make sure that we’re gaining a loyal local following and, for those passing through town, that they leave happy with what they bought.”
What are your top-selling footwear brands? On, Hoka, and Oboz for traditional-fitting shoes. And Topo Athletic for wide-toe boxes. It’s the best new brand we’ve added recently. Over the last few years, a lot of people have come in looking for a wider, more natural motion forefoot construction.
Any staples? Oboz for durable and supportive hiking and everyday shoes that do well with locals. In addition, Blundstone and Birkenstock.
What is your fastest-growing segment? Trail running for the last five to 10 years. We have quite a collection of men’s and women’s styles. People also wear those shoes for a range of outdoor activities.
Anything unique about the Manchester, VT, customer? This is a resort town; a lot of customers come in from urban centers in the Northeast. They generally want a more outdoorsy-looking shoe in neutral/safe colors instead of an eclectic color mix seen typically on European trail running shoes. We also sell a lot of hiking boots, because it’s a big activity for visitors. Plus, Manchester is an official stop on the Appalachian Trail, and a lot of thru-hikers come in looking for max-cushioned trail running shoes.
How does fit, brand, style, and price rank in order of importance? Fit, style, brand, price.
Is the footwear segment growing? It’s slowly growing year by year and now totals about 30 percent of overall sales. But our space is limited, so we don’t have plans to grow the selection too much. We plan, though, to constantly improve on it by curating the brands and styles we carry.
footwear buyer
How’s business so far this year? It’s right on track with last year, so business is great. We saw a big jump in business during Covid for outdoor recreation, which has cooled off slightly. But we still see positive outcomes for our business as we move forward. Folks in Southern Vermont and visitors are still really interested in outdoor recreation and come to us for their product needs.
The bad news is… Especially over the last four or five years, it’s the lack of investment by some brands in specific styles that are selling well. It seems like there’s this constant need to reinvent footwear, but that doesn’t always align with our customers’ wants. So some people are buying two or three pairs of the same style because they’re nervous it will change. That happens often, especially with trail running shoes.
What is the smartest business decision you’ve made this past year? Bringing in Tread Labs, which makes very supportive sandals. You can wear them even on hikes and still feel good. We also added their insoles and orthotics. Both have increased our sales in those categories.
What are your goals for the rest of 2025? Gearing up for a big summer with our thru-hikers to get them fitted properly, testing some new footwear styles, continuing to offer personalized experience, and being adequately staffed.
How is the trade war impacting business? It could force brands to raise prices, and as a small, locally owned shop, we have much thinner margins versus a large brand or online retailer. We’ll have to raise prices if brands do. We’re also debating whether we pivot to price-friendlier brands?
Where do you envision The Mountain Goat in five years? More of the same: helping customers and supporting local nonprofits that protect our trails, forests, and ski hills. For example, this winter we held an outdoors-themed filmfest at our local theater. We had a raffle and a nonprofit partner raised awareness about its mission to protect the local environment. And this summer we’re staging trail races at a nearby forestry farm that’s a 501c3 with the goal of getting people exercising outside.
What do you love most about being a retailer? We work with really great brands from around the world that make terrific products. Anyone can walk into our shop and get prepared for any outdoor adventure. That’s a pretty special feeling.
