Bass delays plans for store

Despite entry into the northern Nevada sporting goods market by major retailers such as Cabela's, Orvis and Scheels All Sports, Bass Pro Shops still plans to open a store at the junction of Mount Rose Highway and U.S. 395.

Just don't expect the store to open anytime soon.

Construction plans have been pushed back until 2009 or even 2010, says Larry Whiteley, manager of corporate public relations and outdoor education for the privately held company based in Springfield, Mo. The softening national economy is a factor, but Whiteley says the primary decision for the delay is the fact that the company is already scheduled to roll out 10 additional stores in 2008 and beyond.

"We've got so many other new stores that we are just trying to fit (Reno) into our schedule," Whiteley says. "But as of right now we are still moving forward."

Bass Pro Shops has 47 stores opened across the United States. Just six are located west of Texas: Mesa, Ariz., Denver, Las Vegas and Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. are already opened, while a store is under construction in Bakersfield and another is planned for Manteca, Calif.

Whiteley says the stiff retail competition in northern Nevada has little impact on Bass Pro Shops' outlook for this market. Despite the early success of the new Cabela's at Boomtown and the '08 opening of a massive Scheels at the Sparks Marina the store measures nearly 250,000 square feet Bass Pro Shops is not concerned about market saturation.

"We don't worry about either one of those folks," Whiteley says. "We are ranked the No. 1 outdoor retailer in America, we do our own thing, we do it very well, and we feel like we do it better than everyone else. There is no other retailer like us."

Landing a Bass Pro Shops store is as much a coup for a city as is securing a Cabela's, Scheels or Dicks Sporting Goods. Whiteley says the large number of northern Nevadans visiting other store locations, using the company's Web site and its mail-order catalogue make Reno a safe bet.

"We look at it as a great outdoor market," he says. "We have lot of customers from that area, so we know we have a built-in customer base."