Little known to many fans of Gregory Mountain Products in North America, the brand has enjoyed a huge following in Asia for the past 25 years. In particular, Japanese consumers love the quality of the Gregory brand and the lifestyle that it represents. So much so that company founder Wayne Gregory is a minor celebrity in Japan. People recognize him and stop him on the street for autographs. 
Just ask him.
So it was a natural that Gregory’s first brand/flagship store opened in downtown Tokyo last week, on July 4. Located in the Shibuya area of Tokyo, a popular shopping district for younger city residents, the Gregory store is on a pedestrian-only street, which is also home to Patagonia’s top store in Japan, as well as flagship stores for Burton, Oakley, The North Face, Columbia, Millet and Cannondale, to name a few. The area, as you might imagine, is pretty popular among the outdoors set. Continue reading >>
Trails around the country have their contituencies and events, but perhaps the largest trail festival in the world happens this coming weekend in Damascus, VA. Appalachian Trail Days, as the name might suggest, is a celebration of all things AT-related. It attracts an incredibly diverse crowd, from AT through-hikers to trail advocates to the just-plain-curious-looking-for-something-to-do-over-the weekend. The festival draws an estimated 20,000 over the
week.
Trail Days officially kicked off this past weekend, but the big days of the festival happen this coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday, when there’ll be entertainment, food, workshops, and thousands of folks on hand. Damascus is the halfway point on the 2,175-mile Appalachian Trail, and Trail Days happens at a time in the spring when many through-hikers doing the whole trail are in the area, though hikers backtrack both directions to be on hand for the festivities. Damascus is also, incidentally, the only pla
ce on the whole trail where the trail passes through the center of a town. In this case, the AT goes right down one of Damascus’ sidewalks.
As usual, Gregory Packs founder Wayne Gregory will be on hand for Trail Days. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning, he’ll be at the Gregory booth doing field repairs on packs that belong to through hikers as well as helping folks get the right fit in their packs. And mingling, as Wayne’s apt to do. Just look for the signature Hawiian-print shirt.
Gregory will also be giving away a couple of packs at the event, a Z55 and women’s Jade 50. Stop by the booth to register and have a chat with Wayne. 