Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Dumitru.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Nick. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
It all started in 2009, after bringing up an idea that I was circling in my mind for a while. I brought it up to my former business partner at that time, and we planted together what was the seed of this venture. We transformed that idea into the first prototype of Chicago Ski Pro. The idea was to open a service ski shop that specializes in servicing ski and snowboard equipment and also runs ski trips and other activities for its customers & friends.
We started building our website ourselves and did all the labour in a garage, the first couple of seasons. Worked really hard as we had to make everything from scratch.
Our advantage was introducing a new concept idea, borrowed from other fields, to this specific industry. I am referring to providing free pickup and delivery of the equipment within the city, for our customers. That quickly raised awareness in Chicago and surrounding suburbs, secured a customer base and bypassed the need of a physical location. After all, convenience was the key. Combined with quality, of course!
In 2016, I started a new partnership that finally ended in opening a brick and mortar location for our shop and Chicago Ski Pro started to work toward a higher level of performance and towards extending the services it offered.
We added a new tour operating service to complete a year-round activity.
The new service can be checked out at www.transadventuretours.com and pretty much sums up to running a Ski Bus or an Adventure Bus. For example, during the winter, to make it easy to get out skiing or boarding at the nearby resorts, or different other outdoor activities throughout the year. The main idea is to get out of the city, into nature, to have fun and return with a new experience and new skills learnt.
All this in an instant and with no effort.
Also, we replicate this business model for the spring -summer-fall and we plan to run outdoor activities that include hiking, biking, mountain biking, camping, mountaineering for beginners, canoeing, kayaking, karting, paintball, adventure parks, water parks, beach going and so much more. Most of these are 1 day trips and they are suitable for all skills and fitness levels and also age appropriate.
Our customers don’t have to worry about anything like transportation, entertainment, logistics, lodging etc. We take care of all!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Being a business that is only bringing revenue for a couple of months per year, was my main issue during these years, struggling for the first years while we were still building a customer base was always something that needed to be bypassed in order to not give up.
With the opening of the brick and mortar shop and by putting more time into marketing and partnerships, also adding Trans Adventure Tours to our list of services, will increase revenue and bring growth and development to the business.
Please tell us about Chicago Ski Pro and Trans Adventure Tours.
Our mission is to care for the avid skiers and snowboarders of Chicago by providing expert ski and snowboard services. We look to become the most reliable ski service shop in Chicago, with certified members and premium quality services.
“Ski enthusiasts serving skiers and snowboarders in the Chicago area” – pretty much sums up who we are. We initiated this company being inspired by our love for the sport, knowing that serving skiers and snowboarders with our reliable services, is something that we would love to do. This passion and love for the sport enables us to become enthusiastic and friendly, making every client enjoy a comfortable experience with Chicago Ski Pro.
We’re Pioneers of New Ski Tuning Service Concepts, Changing the Ski and Snowboard Community with Enhanced Services.
We’re proud to claim that we have developed and introduced new services and concepts that change the community in Chicago for the better. Some of our unique services include the Ski & Board Boomerang; a free pickup/delivery service, ski & board storage, the Hot Box and many more.
Our Core Values are:
-To treat every client with respect and a friendly demeanour
-To ensure that we deliver what we promise
-To go to all ends and the highest extend of hard work to get the job done right
-To be effective and efficient
-To innovate and develop new service solutions to offer to the community
-To focus on knowledge and expertise while conducting any service
-To change the ski and snowboarding community of Chicago with expert equipment maintenance services
We are proud of what we do and deal with every client in a manner that keeps them fully satisfied. We use our best resources like hard work, knowledge, values, and certifications to ensure that you always receive the highest quality of ski and snowboard tuning and maintenance services.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently? Looking back and weighting in all the setbacks and also, all the satisfaction I experienced from this adventure, no, I would not change anything. However, the chance of being able to redo something, will always bring better results the second time around. But overall I think I did everything the best I could.
Making mistakes, moving forward by trial and error was the reality I confronted. Being motivated to keep going when I was not given a chance, or when I felt let down by myself or by others was the engine that pushed through. But I also think that strength and power without vision and mission will get the train derailed.
Trust and motivation was also an issue. Managing resources, time, partnerships and capital had to be done very carefully.
I would advise all to follow their dreams and pursue what they believe in.
The best and only way to make your dreams come true is to wake up!
That is what worked for me!
THANK YOU!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.chicagoskipro.com and www.transadventuretours.com
- Phone: 312 366 1880 and 773 865 2104
- Email: chicagoskipro@gmail.com / transadventuretours@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chicagoskipro/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chicagoskipro/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/chicagoskipro?lang=en
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/chicago-ski-pro-chicago
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