Ellicottville native John Rounds, owner of SUPonthefly, an online specialty retailer of outdoor gear, stand up paddle boards and accessories is opening ‘Adventure Bound’ in the location of his parents’ former store of the same name in Ellicottville, thus continuing a story that started half a century ago.
The store at 16 Washington Street is scheduled to open October 10, during Ellicottville’s Fall Festival.
Rounds is the son of Chris and Heidi Rounds, who moved to Ellicottville more than 50 years ago to manage the Holiday Valley Ski Resort and direct its ski school. In 1971, the Rounds’ started summer camps for kids offering backpacking, river trips and cycling trips in the U.S. and Europe.
In conjunction with the camps, they opened a retail store that quickly evolved from products for camping, hiking and ski touring to a complete outdoor winter sports shop with apparel and accessories for men, women and children. Over its 20 year history, Adventure Bound became a well-known landmark on Ellicottville’s main drag.
John Rounds’ early days with Adventure Bound fueled his love for skiing. He ventured to Vail, Colorado at age 13 to attend Vail Mountain School and became a member of Ski Club Vail. At the age of 20, he became the youngest ski rep in Solomon’s history.
Rounds spent nearly a decade working as a manufacturer’s representative for dozens of market-leading outdoor/ski brands before being hired by Camelback as its National Sales Manager. He continued to work in global sales development for manufacturers in the outdoor/ski industry and later became a master distributor for helmet cameras in a region that spanned Argentina to Alaska. He also served as CEO of a U.S. subsidiary of a London-based action-camera company, setting up its customer service center, online sales strategy and sub-distributors throughout the Americas.
Now, nearly 25 years after Adventure Bound closed its doors, Rounds is opening a second generation Adventure Bound in the original location.
To begin the venture, the shop’s emphasis will be on Stand Up Paddle boards and accessories, travel and outdoor gear and a new kids department. Rounds, his wife Christy and their three children will split their time between Eagle, CO and Ellicottville.
Rounds says he and Christy are looking forward to “offering some of the same services that made Adventure Bound famous, including quality merchandise, personalized service and in-depth product knowledge of the gear they offer.”
16 Washington St Ellicottville, NY(716) 217-4047
Adventure Bound on the fly
Ellicottville, NY
