NFIB

Waxing Enthusiastic
03/ 25/ 2002

by Kathleen Landis

Nat Brown has a slick job. His customers agree.

Brown waxes and tunes cross-country skis. But not just any skis. And not with just any equipment. These skis are owned predominantly by biathletes and Olympians, the equipment is big and expensive, and Brown's touch can influence a competition's outcome.

Nordic Ultratune does business from Brown's garage in Edmonds, Wash. Brown's specialized process begins at a behemoth, $40,000 stone grinder that removes a layer of each ski's base. Next, he uses the one-ton machine to polish each ski base. This leaves a texture compatible with anticipated snow conditions. Finally comes the wax. Once ground, polished and waxed the skis are snow and competition ready.

Brown's standard price to tune and wax a pair of skis is $50. An additional $35 gets customers extra waxing, which takes an hour. A "super deluxe detailing job" runs $115. Brown estimates he spends 90 minutes working on each pair of skis. During the 1999 ski season that amounted to 1,066 pairs.

The biggest challenges for this one-man operation? Keeping abreast of cross-country trends, developing new techniques and, "staying awake on Thursday nights when I'm trying to finish a pair of skis."

---

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2001 issue of MyBusiness Magazine, NFIB's member magazine.

Small Business Sound Off
Does this story hit home?  Share your story with us