BACKSHOP
Tune
That
Name
eight years, he’s tuned the skis of junior racers, academy teams, masters racers, various university teams and Swedish, U.S., and Norwegian
ski team members.
What aspect of your background do you feel has given you the
ability to create success as a small business?
Graham Lonetto: I think the No. 1 reason I’ve been successful is my
passion for the sport. I just love it, and it motivates me to stay involved at
all levels of the sport, and to constantly try to improve the service that we
provide. I’m always trying to figure out better ways of making skis faster,
and I love the challenge of that. Also, as an employee at other race
shops when I was younger, I learned the factors that went into creating a
good customer experience. I’ve tried to incorporate those elements and
build on them to create an experience at the next level. I can’t forget to
mention Mila, my wife, and her MBA and organizational skills, which are
a big part of our success.
You’re running a successful super-niche business within an al-
ready tiny industry — what’s your value proposition to your
customers that is creating success?
We have a unique product, its quality is consistently excellent, and we
put huge stock in the importance of taking care of our clients. Everyone
who works at Edgewise is involved in ski racing at some level, so we
can provide great information. Additionally, our race-focused retail business and our consignment program for race skis work in conjunction
with our main business of providing race service to create a full-service
race shop.
What motivates you to face a wall of skis in need of tuning,
day-in and day-out?
It’s a good question. I just love doing it. I love working on skis. It just
doesn’t get old.
How much time do you spend on every pair of skis that comes
through your shop?
As much time as it takes to get them perfect.
How are you and your staff staying current?
We work with elite athletes, and we have some of the most demanding
national team technicians bringing skis to us to get them ground. We
have former and current World Cup athletes working in the shop and
bringing their experiences back to us.
What do you think is the most exciting trend or technology in
ski tuning?
When people come in to our store, I am most excited to show them our
Wintersteiger Discovery. It’s incredibly precise and allows me to create
the grinds that World Cup athletes are requesting, which the older style
manual machines are not capable of. I can see the grinds on a monitor
before I produce them, so clients can see what they are getting before
they choose.
If you could share anything about being a ski tuner, what would
it be?
I can’t do this alone. We couldn’t provide a high-level service to so many
if I were a one-man show. From our conscientious service manager, An-
drew Ginnelly, to the support we get from our sales reps, this shop is a
real team effort.
edgewiseskiservice.com
World Cup Service Center
Though probably best known for being the Atomic ski tech for Bill Johnson during his ‘84 gold-medal season, Blake Lewis has provided many
years of racer services to the national ski teams of Austria and Canada
and to the U.S. Ski Team; he has also serviced the boards for several
world speed skiing records. Today, racers will find Lewis at World Cup
Service Center in Bellevue, Wash., where he also conducts tuning clinics for local race teams and academies.
What aspect of your background do you feel has given you the
ability to create success as a small business?
The fact that I have been merging my passion for the outdoors and busi-
ness for over 30 years allows me to present a balanced and diverse
perspective in our business. My international background, foreign lan-
SkiRacing.com MARCH 17, 2011 | 53
