To: Ski and Snowboard Stores
Subject: Newport Ski Swap

Thank you for participation in the Newport High School PTSA Ski Swap. Together, we had over $335,000 in gross sales (with tax) last year and the goal for this year is $400,000. I have stepped up advertising to help with that.  Our customer survey showed that we had an increase of 27 zip codes from the survey last year.  We are now getting customers from Vancouver BC to Olympia and the Islands to Cle Elum.

The big change this year is that we are unable to have a swap on Friday night for various reasons so the sale is on Saturday and Sunday.

We will be open for check-in Friday 4-6 and Sale Saturday 8-6 and Sunday 9-3.  On Saturday, I hope to open by promptly at 8:00 or a little sooner to avoid the mad rush and then get sale going.  Sunday, again we will try to open by 8:45 and get all customers out by 3:45.  Friday is a school day so we will not be all setup till around 4:00. We are closing the books Sunday evening and doing individual checkout on Sunday 5:30-7:30.  Ski/Snowboard Stores will receive a check within 4-5 days of the sale to allow for a double audit of the accounting.

The goals of the Ski Swap are:

1. To provide income for the Newport High School Parent Teacher Student Association. This money is used for textbooks and other learning aids. The Newport Ski Swap has earned almost $275,000 for the PTSA over the last 15 years. Last year the swap earned over $45,000.
2. To reduce the cost of the riding/skiing experience for the students (and parents) of the community surrounding Newport High School.
3. To provide an opportunity for students (and parents) to sell skis, snowboards or accessories which they have grown out of physically or through increased skill level.
4. To provide interested students an opportunity to learn about setting up and running a small business.

The Newport PTSA has a long tradition of providing a needed service to our snow sports community and of providing the teachers with additional funds for items which are beyond the state provided budget. This is the 32st year for the swap with 23 years at Newport High and 9 years at Tyee Middle Schools.

Related information:

1. Registration - This is a long runnng swap.  We prefer local ski and snowboard shops that provide service after the swap.
   I do sometimes add a supplier that has specialized goods. 
   Filling out the registration does not guarantee entry into the swap.
   This must be filled out and returned at least 2 weeks prior to the swap to participate in the Swap.
2. Directions for preparing your inventory for the swap.

Thank you in advance for your participation. It is a great service to our community and critical to getting people started in a fabulous sport. We are looking forward to a positive and profitable relationship with you and your business.

I also am a snowboard instructor and trainer. It is hard to describe what we see in first year students when they begin to understand the exhilaration and balance of the "in control/out of control feeling" which exemplifies our sport. Many of students have also never really been in the mountains which is such a big part of living in the Puget Sound region.

Please contact me if you have any questions.

Email at: don@skiswap.info

Thank you,
Don Meyer,
Newport PTSA Swap Chair