Backcountry stores expand to Bozeman

The new backcountry building in Bozeman, MT. Photo: Whitney Kamman

BOZEMAN, Mont. — On July 13, Park City-based company, Backcountry expanded its retail footprint to Bozeman, Montana. The new store is in the historic Gallatin Laundry Building, which dates back over a hundred years.

“Similar to Park City, Bozeman is known for outdoor recreation with accessibility to world-renowned rivers, hiking, biking, and running trails. Main Street is such a draw with incredible restaurants, local businesses, and a vibrant community. We want to open stores where our customers live and recreate, and Bozeman is no exception to that. When the Gallatin Laundry building hit my radar, I knew we had to move on the opportunity as quickly as possible,” said Senior Vice President of Retail and Customer Experience, Chris Purkey.

The Gallatin Laundry Building is also known for having a lighted sign installed sometime in the 1940s but became inoperable in the 1960s.

“The lighted sign on top of the building is an iconic piece of Bozeman history. The ‘Sanitone’ sign that faces the alleyway hadn’t been on the building in decades. The construction crew found it in storage inside the building, did some restoration on it, and – with help from historical photographs – put it back in the place it originally had hung,” said Purkey.

The new store follows the success of opening its first brick-and-mortar location in 2021 near the company’s headquarters in Park City. There is also a second location across the street from the store called Marty’s Mtn Shop.

The Park City retail store recently had its first anniversary. Purkey highlighted the positive response from the community and the relationships they’ve built in the process. With mountain bike season in full swing, both locations have had success.

“We have a great offering this summer, with full-service bike shops running on a 3-5 day turnaround and a fleet of rental bikes available at Marty’s MTn Shop,” said Purkey.

Backcountry has seven retail locations: Seattle, Chicago, Park City, Boulder, West Valley, and Bozeman.

“We have new stores on the horizon. Next up, you can expect Backcountry locations in Los Angeles, Palo Alto, and Washington DC,” said Purkey.