Celebrating a Decade of 605 Running Company: Our American Dream

By: Greg Koch
​​
When I started at 605 Running Company, a dream was shared with me by The Watley Brothers. They cast a vision that was simply intoxicating. This business connected with me in such a way that it completely changed the trajectory of my career. The vision was as follows.

Support the Community with Compassion and Expertise: We strive to be more than just a retail store; we aim to be a cornerstone of the community in Sioux Falls. Our goal is to provide not only top-quality products but also expert advice, support, and a welcoming environment for every health journey.

Be a Vessel for Philanthropy: Giving back is at the heart of what we do. We are committed to supporting local charities, sponsoring community events, and using our platform to make a positive impact on Sioux Falls.

Create Jobs and Provide Real-Life Experience: We believe in investing in people. By creating job opportunities, especially for young adults, we offer valuable real-world experience that helps shape future careers. Our commitment to staff development ensures our team provides exceptional service and grows within the community.

As we approach our ten-year anniversary on July 14th, we find ourselves at a critical crossroads. This milestone is bittersweet; we celebrate a decade of serving the Sioux Falls community while facing the reality that our business is on the brink. Simply put, if we don’t improve sales, we will not be here.

For years, we’ve been asked how business is going. Here’s the 2024 truth: Our retail business isn't making money. Despite our best efforts, our retail operations are struggling to turn a profit. We’ve strategized, tweaked, evolved, moved, added services, expanded, run promotions, and so much more. You name it, we’ve tried it to make our stores appealing to shoppers in Sioux Falls.

We’ve had highs and lows, but retail has always been a challenge. Our ratings, reviews, and awards speak highly of the service we provide. Our team has attended additional training and coaching in every aspect of our business. We keep products in stock and available so that we can be solution-oriented when a customer walks in the door. Our goal has always been to listen to the needs of our customers and provide them with a solution today. It’s just all very hard. We face tough competition, and Sioux Falls is a saturated market.

The bottom line is that not enough folks are shopping with us. We’re not getting enough foot traffic at either of our locations, especially at our new store The Bridges. Not only are we not hitting our growth goals, but we are down in sales compared to last year when we had just one store. Over the years, we have positioned our business in some of the highest traffic areas in town. Retail has always been a struggle, and it hasn’t mattered if we were on Phillips Avenue, Minnesota Avenue, or Western Avenue—sales have lagged everywhere that we’ve set up shop. We’ve added parking, remodeled, run sales, endured construction projects, put on races, and organized group runs. We’ve done it all. We’ve advertised on billboards, radio, social media, TV, Google, YouTube, magazines, and with posters around town. We’ve donated dollars, invested in others, and tried everything we can to stay afloat. Yet, for every dollar we earn, we spend three.

While our coaching and events have been profitable at times, they haven’t been consistent or generated enough revenue to cover our retail operations. The low retail turn rate and insufficient margins are not enough. One side of the business can’t support itself and the other side of the operation.

Addressing Common Misconceptions

We Are Too Expensive: We don’t set our prices. We follow MAP (Minimum Advertised Pricing), an agreement with our vendors. The price you see at our shop is the same price from brands like Hoka, ON, New Balance, Saucony, Lululemon, and every other brand we carry. We even offer rewards programs and price match any advertised price for the same product. Shopping with us has its advantages, including personalized service and community support.

Our Shop is Hard to Find or Isn’t Open: We have two stores, both with FREE parking. One is located in Downtown Sioux Falls and the other at 57th Street and Western Avenue, one of the busiest intersections in town. You can park right in front of either door. Additionally, both stores are open seven days a week, and we have a robust online presence, allowing you to shop with us 24/7, 365 days a year.

We Don’t Have the Brands, Products, or Sizes You Want: While we might not offer every single brand available on the market, we do have a wide range of options including trail shoes, hydration gear, clothes, super shoes, track spikes, cross country spikes, daily trainers, walking shoes, gym shoes, and more. We have something for every lifestyle. Keeping up with product trends is nearly impossible, but our job is to have a solution that works. It might not be the up-to-the-minute option, but it works and can be bought from us. And when you buy our options, it helps our business. We can special order products and we value that option, but it isn’t as great as selling what we already have.

Discounts and Return Policy: We match any advertised discounts or sales, including those for military, first responders, and medical personnel. Our return policy is excellent. We want you to swap products first to ensure you have the best experience. We also offer store credit and cash returns if needed. We are a service- and experience-oriented business built on relationships. We are here not just for today’s transaction but to support you on your health and wellness journey.

Our Commitment

One thing we’ve always prided ourselves on is recruiting and retaining our staff. Most of our crew have been with us for multiple years. We know our customers by name, and we’ve shared in countless journeys together. We regularly train on our customer service skills and study markets and trends. Additionally, we provide a first job experience for young adults in our community.

As a community leader, I understand the importance of giving young people an opportunity to learn and grow. I studied education and spent eleven years working with youth at the Sioux Falls Family YMCA. Too often, the expectation for young people is unreasonable. We train our team well and provide them with opportunities to figure things out on their own, learning through doing, sometimes even knowing that they might not get everything right. We all make mistakes, but how we learn from them is critical. Showing grace in the workplace is essential for us.

If things don’t change, it is time to imagine a 605 Running Company without a retail presence in Sioux Falls. When you read that, how does it make you feel? Would you miss our stores and the things we provide? That is the reality we are living in right now.

A Personal Note

As the Minority Owner of this business, believe me, this isn't the way I want to celebrate both my birthday and Independence Day. I'm proud to be an American, and I believe we live in a country that fully supports entrepreneurship, hard work, and capitalism. I'm not writing this post to ask for a handout. I take full responsibility for our business decisions. From the outside looking in, most people agree that we have done an admirable job in this community. From the inside looking out, we are drowning and isolated. The reality is we have not been self-seeking, we have not looked out for what is best for us as owners, we have given first when we had nothing to give. Our solutions have included longer working hours and more capital investment. Trust me we are well aware of how unhealthy that sounds. Our dream might not be sustainable long term unless we can change the tide.

A Call to Action

As we celebrate our ten-year anniversary, we’re reaching out to you, our community, to share this struggle and to ask for your support. If you believe in what we’ve been doing, if our presence has made a positive impact on your life or the community, please help us by shopping with us, spreading the word, and showing your support in any way you can. We want to continue serving Sioux Falls, but we need your help to keep going. I’m not asking for marketing tips, financing, or business advice. I just want you to let my team earn your business. The folks that work here are truly exceptional, and I believe in them. Experience what our fit process is all about. Try our products and trust us to journey with you through this adventure we call life. Let’s do it in comfortable athletic shoes and clothes, preferably.

Thank you for being a part of our journey. Let's work together to ensure 605 Running Company remains a vibrant part of our community for years to come.