Revelstoke Profiles: Steven Cross of Revy Outdoors

The Revelstoke Mountaineer’s new Revelstoke Profiles series highlights leaders from across the community. If you’re interested in participating in the series, or know someone who should be featured, please email us at [email protected].

We chatted to Steven Cross, managing partner of Revy Outdoors. He and his wife Carolyn Gibson make a formidable pair. Together they own The Pines Consulting and The Pines B&B. They also work for Queen’s University (the campus is in Kingston, Ontario), from which they are both graduates, as advisors on the MBA programs plus they do teaching work for Okanagan College.

RM: Tell us about your company and your role?

SC: Revy Outdoors is a specialty outdoor retailer covering a lot of areas but with a keen emphasis on gear and accessories for camping, hiking, backpacking, and travel, as well as clothing and outerwear for the outdoors, traveling and skiing.

As managing partner, I oversee day to day customer service, operations and buying — some of which I do myself and some of which I delegate to our very capable and wonderful full time staff Sarah and Maryjoy (MJ) who have been with us since the beginning.

The Pines B&B is our award winning bed and breakfast and The Pines Consulting is our joint agency offering business improvement and strategy to those businesses and not-for-profit organizations who seek our help.

RM: What are your favourite leisure activities to wind down and why?

SC: I love my work enough that I don’t feel the need to wind down per se but my energy and my soul likes to recharge from nature, family, and friends whenever I can.

Skiing, hiking, and camping top my list for sure. Anytime in the mountains with my wife and son does it for me! I get a lot from hockey too — the camaraderie, the competitiveness — for me that is important and has not diminished with the years. I also love literature, film, music, and good food, and I am always excited by history and learning more.

Managing partner of Revy Outdoors Steven Cross can indulge his passion for skiing, hiking, and camping with the gear he sells in his store. Photo: Emily Kemp/Revelstoke Mountaineer

Do you have a life motto or a mindset that you try to live your life by or utilize in difficult situations?

SC: My personal philosophy for a happy life is pretty simple; first, do no harm; second, do good if you can; and third, have fun!

I love philosophy and quotes/mottos that have great meaning. Some of my favourites are:

• “Happiness is not getting what you want but wanting what you’ve got.”
• “If I had more time I would write you a shorter letter.” (Mark Twain)
• “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.” (William Yeats)
• “Managers do things right; Leaders do the right thing.” (John Kotter)

I see these as enduring truths that I try to live myself every day.

RM: What’s your favourite thing about living in Revelstoke?

SC: Almost impossible to pick one favourite! But perhaps one things sums it up and that is the town itself — a rare gem that makes everyone who lives here, or visits, feel good from its look and feel, from its proximity to nature and outdoor activities, from its people, a great variety who all share so much, plus the sheer ease of conducting one’s everyday life.

If you could change something for the better in Revelstoke, what would it be?

SC: Nothing serious that I can think of but, tongue-in-cheek, how about our town being 1,000 feet higher? (I like the cooler weather at elevation.)

Revy Outdoors’ Steven Cross explains his recommendation for a cooker on hiking trips. Photo: Emily Kemp/Revelstoke Mountaineer

How do you (if you have the time) give back to the community?

SC: I try to help as much as I can when an opportunity arises, whether that is a conversation with an individual, or something bigger.

My current “big” commitments are managing my hockey team, participating in the Retail Leaders Group, and serving as a member on the Poverty Reduction Working Group (although my contribution is truly minor compared to everyone else).

What are you passionate about?

SC: My family, being one with nature, cooking a great dinner, playing a great hockey game, learning something new, doing things well and making a difference.

If you could achieve one thing in your field, what would that be?

SC: Just that anyone and everyone who interacts with me walks away thinking our interaction was a good one. That is true for our store, our B&B, and our consulting/advising/teaching.

Tons of gear and equipment for a hiker’s heaven. Photo: Emily Kemp/Revelstoke Mountaineer

Where would you like to see your business in a few years from now?

SC: Still doing what we do today — great service, solid advice, and great value — but even busier with higher sales and a bit less time from me (start ups are never easy and it take years).

Who inspires you in your field of work?

SC: My grandmother, whose unconditional love I knew for certain, and whose voice I can still hear in my head, telling me to “take the world on by walking straight and tall and looking it in the eye, for that is the way to make a difference.”

What do you think are important practice/habits in the workplace?

SC: Keep your knowledge current. Treat people right. Do everything you do with the intent to do it nicer and better, even if that is a display that is easier to use, opening a door, or going the extra mile to help. Always have fun.

Get ready for the summer hiking season. Photo: Emily Kemp/Revelstoke Mountaineer

How does your business impact the community?

SC: Jobs, community giving, and economic activity are the easy answers while caring and participation are the less obvious ones.

But the biggest impact is just making people feel good about their intersection with us because ultimately everything else flows from that.

How can people connect to you or your organization online?

SC: For our store, go to our Facebook page, or email me personally at [email protected]. For our B&B, go to our website, and for our consulting/advising, email me.

We could probably benefit from a having a web store but I am not keen on the workload. My team and I would rather have longer conversations with our customers and more time outside than more work at a computer.

Anything else you would like to get across?

SC: We have lived in some great places and we have traveled to many others, but for me, my wife and our son coming to Revelstoke three years ago was when we truly found home for the first time.

This town is special and we all need to do what we can to protect and nurture that.