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Best of both worlds – Many Montanans find it surprisingly easy to combine work, leisure – Moose Creek Mercantile – 10,000 Waves – Rich Ranch

Many times in tourism, you will find people who have turned a passion into a business, says Norma Nickerson, the institute’s director. Tourism allows for the woman who loves rafting to become a guide, or the guy who can’t get enough of fishing to own his own fly-fishing shop. These often are people who love what they do for a living, Nickerson says.

By Jill FitzSimmons

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This is just one of the stories from the spring 2004 issue of Western Montana InBusiness, the Missoulian’s quarterly business publication. The spring issue examines how tourism has affected western Montana’s economy. For information about subscribing to InBusiness, call Anssi DuMontier at 523-5337.

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“I don’t know a whole lot of industries that open that door,” she says.

We found three such area businesses – businesses being run by people who turned their hobby or interest into a successful career in the tourism industry. All the business owners say they see a bright future for tourism in Montana.

Moose Creek Mercantile

Businesswoman Jeannette Ross says attracting tourists’ dollars wasn’t on her mind when she opened her Montana-themed shop eight years ago. But she’s learned to really appreciate the visitors to downtown Missoula.

“If we didn’t have tourism, I wouldn’t have nearly the business I have,” she says.

Jeannette Ross, owner of the Moose Creek Mercantile in downtown Missoula, turned her hobby of collecting Montana-themed products into a thriving business, thanks in large part to a steady stream of tourists to the city. “ If we didn’t have tourism, I wouldn’t have nearly the business I have,” she says.
Tourism has a tendency to grow entrepreneurship in a community, says the director of the Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research.

For many of the tourists who flock downtown every year, if they want to bring home a piece of Montana, they’ll find it at Ross’ Moose Creek Mercantile. The gift shop and home accessory store has that cozy cabin feel. There are candles made from Montana birch, playful black bear and moose figurines, and even log furniture and quilts in the back. Montana-made items line the shop’s shelves.

Ross, who previously worked in real estate, opened the store in part because she was frustrated. She was building a new home and couldn’t find anything to decorate it. She wanted something that said Montana, something with that Montana look. She remembers telling her friends that Missoula has a niche that needs to be filled. So, she opened her shop.

“I went out and bought what I loved and it just blew my mind that other people loved it, too,” she says. “The tourism has been a delight and a great surprise.”

Almost immediately Ross saw the excitement her store caused for tourists, and she’s been amazed by the number of repeat customers she sees. Almost daily she talks to someone who’s been in the store before.

Ross has learned something from the tourists and their tastes. Many come in wanting to know if she has anything that says Montana on it. So, she’s added some merchandise with Missoula or Montana written on it. She’s always looking for more Montana-made products.

“I have definitely evolved to the tourists,” she says.

What she and her employees always have done is make the tourist feel like a friend, Ross says. She asks visitors where they are from and what brought them to Missoula. Her success isn’t just about having a fun product, but also about offering a friendship to visitors, she says.

“They really judge Montana by the people they meet,” she says.

Next for Ross is the development of a Web site and selling her Montana-themed products to people across the globe. Montana products are in demand everywhere, she says. With the Web site, she will offer more furniture, bedding and other home accessories. Her Web site, http://www.moosecreekmercantile.com, will be running soon.

“I think the Montana appeal is going to grow because the more populated areas become, the more areas like here are more appealing,” Ross says.

10,000 Waves

Patricia Aboussie
Missoula-born Deb Moravec took advantage of her kayaking knowledge and the attraction of Montana’s rivers to create her own business, 10,000 Waves.
Missoula-born and a rafter since she was young, Deb Moravec was looking to find a way to stay in her hometown when the company she was working for offered her a position out of state. Already running the kayaking program at the University of Montana, Moravec decided it was time to turn her passion into a career.

It wasn’t hard to see what kind of opportunity there was for her in Missoula, Moravec says.

The Alberton Gorge and the Blackfoot, Bitterroot and Clark Fork rivers all are in Missoula’s back yard, and they are attractive to out-of-state visitors as well as residents. Many tourists come to western Montana with white-water rafting on their minds. An Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research study shows that 28 percent of visitors to Missoula are attracted to the rivers.

So Moravec opened 10,000 Waves Raft & Kayak Adventures in 1990. Today, her business (http://www.10000-waves.com) is one of the oldest white-water rafting companies in the area. Business has grown 100 percent over the last 14 years, she says. It seems every year she and her guides are taking more people down the river, she says.

But it hasn’t been all easy, Moravec says. The early years in any new business can be trying. You have to be dedicated to making a tourism-related business work, as well as have the capital to get you through the rough beginning, she says.

“It takes a long time to get established and to get your name out there,” Moravec says.

Many people in the white-water rafting business have come and gone over the years in western Montana. Those who left often were overwhelmed by the intensity of the business and the long hours put in during the rafting season, Moravec says. From June through the August, seven days a week, Moravec is up at 5:30 a.m. and finishes work at 11 p.m.

Like many new business owners, Moravec also held a part-time job for two years before concentrating full-time on her business. While running the business is a year-round job for Moravec, many of the jobs in white-water rafting are seasonal. And because of this, people rarely are able to make a living from it, as Moravec has, she says.

One drawback to running her own business is that Moravec doesn’t get as much river time in as she once did. More time spent kayaking and rafting is what promoted her to start a business in the first place.

“It seems like as the business has grown, I get stuck in the office more,” Moravec says. “I’d rather be out on the river.”

Ranchers, outfitters and guest ranch-owners, the Rich family for five generations has made its living from Montana’s natural resources.

Rich Ranch

The family loves the outdoors and sharing it with visitors, says Jack Rich. His father opened a guest ranch on the Stillwater River at the end of World War II. Later, when looking to grow the business, the family opened a guest ranch in the Blackfoot/Clearwater Valley. The family also has had an outfitter permit since 1958 and guides people in the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

Interest in dude ranches surged in the 1930s and 1940s, says Belinda Rich, Jack’s wife. When that interest wavered, the Rich family closed its guest ranch. However, Jack and Belinda returned to the guest-ranch business about 10 years ago as a way to diversify their outfitting business.

Once again, they are seeing a growing interest in guest ranches. Jack Rich speculates that aging baby boomers who remember family vacations spent at guest ranches are returning for the memories.

At the Rich Ranch in Seeley Lake (www.richranch.com), people experience the family home as well as the Montana outdoors. In the summer, there’s horseback riding, wildlife viewing and wilderness hiking. In the winter, the snowmobilers come. Adding the guest ranch has allowed the Rich family to diversify their outfitting business and turn it from a seasonal to a year-round job, Rich says.

He sees a bright future for tourism and recreation. People have less time to spend outdoors, he says, so when they do go out, they want a quality experience that a guest ranch provides.

However, starting a business like his can be difficult because of the venture capital needed, he says. You have to develop a good relationship with a banker who understands your business, he says.

Another key to his success has been networking with other outfitters, says Rich, who is active at the local, regional and state levels. He is involved in not only local organizations such as the chamber of commerce but also was appointed by Gov. Judy Martz to a state council on private lands and public lands. He also has served as vice president of a national outfitter association.

“Outfitters who (are uninvolved) tend to become dinosaurs, and I believe it’s that way in any business,” Rich says. “You will find yourself out of the loop.”

Copyright 2004
Missoulian.com

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