Telluride isn’t a shopping mecca, but the town and Mountain Village definitely have a good variety of shops to keep a shop-a-holic entertained for a few hours. And compared to other ski areas in SW Colorado, Telluride is a huge step up in the glamour stakes!
Telluride Ski Shops - Mountain Village
The Telluride Mountain Village has several ski and snowboard shops. The behemoth Telluride Sports shops have a large range of retail and rental gear, but if you need any assistance the service may not be great (as with their shop in Main Street), and on one occasion I was greeted with complete disdain!
Neve Sports isn’t exclusively dedicated to ski clothing, but the gear they have is very unique. Some of the clothing is very stylish and European in design, and some of it’s so lairy that you’d have to be feeling incredibly confident to wear it. The village also has a Christie’s ski shop.
The best ski and snowboard shop is
Boot Doctors, located on the north side of the Heritage Plaza near the base of the gondola station. Boot Doctors first established a reputation for expert fitting of ski boots, but now their proficiency has expanded to all aspects of skiing and snowboarding. The service is second to none. They feature a large range of skis and snowboards and sell used demo equipment. And if you’re in the market for a new jacket or pants, this shop is absolutely dreamy with a great selection of outerwear from brands such as Spyder, Kjus, and Nils. Boot Doctors also sell backcountry gear and accessories.
Telluride Ski Shops and Outdoor Gear - Town
The town of Telluride has several ski and outdoor shops. The largest shop is Telluride Sports in Main St that has three floors of fun. Outerwear brands include Obermeyer, Spyder, and a little bit of Kjus, so it’s reasonably stylish. We’ve been there a few times and our experience of the service at the shop was far from impressive, with very limited staff knowledge about their products.
The Paragon Ski Shop in Main Street has more of a focus on functional gear. Patagonia clothing is featured upstairs, and they have a large range of skis (including fat skis), kids skis, boots, backcountry gear and X-country skis downstairs. This shop is now owned by the Boot Doctors.
Boot Doctors also have a shop on Oak Street opposite the gondola. This shop has a huge range of hardware.
Telluride town also has a large Patagonia shop with a good range of outdoor clothing.
Wagner Custom Skis
If you can’t find a pair of skis that suits all your needs, check out
Wagner Custom skis. Telluride is home to Wagner Custom Skis so you can drop into the factory and showroom that’s located in mountain village, or alternatively you can undertake the whole process of ski analysis on-line.
The skis are fully customized so you can get exactly what you’re after. Pete Wagner is a classically clever computer geek who has put his talents to his passion of skiing. Pete and his team use computerised diagnostic and design tools that prescribe a ski shape and flex pattern to match your “skier DNA”. They even have a “spy machine” that analyses other skis regarding the flex patterns and other characteristics, so if there are elements of a ski that you like (and others that you don’t), they can copy the good components. The team pay a lot of attention to detail and each pair of skis are precision crafted.
The design is also customized. They have different wood veneers or solid color options, and can incorporate various design features to make the skis very sexy looking. They can even put your name on your skis if you like! But beyond the looks, these skis are very durable with super dooper edges that won’t blow out on the first rock you ski over. Durability is further enhanced with extra thick base materials.
Souvenir Shopping
There are various shops selling Telluride souvenirs, but there are a couple of stand-outs. A small shop near the Mountain Village gondola station specialises in Telluride ski resort logo wear and knick-knacks. It’s amazing how much variety they can pack into one little shop.
Shirtworks of Telluride (126 W. Colorado Ave Telluride) sells general Telluride souvenirs and t-shirts galore. You’re guaranteed to be able to find a “ToHellURide” t-shirt in this shop!
General Shopping Telluride
Telluride has lots of unique shops and over a dozen art galleries. Speciality stores also include a pet store, home furnishings shops, clothing boutiques, antiques and jewellery stores.
All sorts of goodies can be found at Down to Earth, an eco-friendly shop with handmade gifts, jewellery and clothing.
Grocery Shopping
The Village Market in town is located on S. Fir Street next to Baked in Telluride (a very yummy bakery). This is a medium sized supermarket with groceries and fresh produce such as fruit, vegies and meat. You’re not allowed to wear your ski boots inside the grocery store which is all rather inconvenient if you want to buy something on the way home from the slopes.
The town also has Clark’s market opposite the school, and a few liquor stores.
Or there is The Market at Mountain Village (455 Mountain Village Blvd) which is located adjacent to the Free Intercept Gondola.