Changing of the Guard at Longtime Tahoe Businesses
Don’t worry: The arcades at Zano’s aren’t going anywhere. The new owners of Truckee’s most kid-friendly pizzeria want to keep the place as welcoming as it’s always been to families and the local community. “Zano’s has always had a down-home mountain vibe. It’s unpretentious with authentic people and food. We’re not going to change that,” said Austin Reid, who, along with his wife, Logan, recently bought Zano’s from longtime owners Tim and Dianna Brown. The Reids took over operations of Zano’s on Oct. 1.
The Reids, who moved to the Truckee area full time in 2019 after spending many summers here, were looking at buying a local business when they saw a listing for sale of the beloved Truckee pizza joint. Austin Reid, who has a long history in the service industry and whose grandmother came to the U.S. from Italy, felt like it was meant to be. The Browns had owned Zano’s since 2004, when they fully renovated the restaurant, which was previously called Pizza Junction.
So, what, if any, changes can you expect to see at Zano’s under the new ownership? Not many, for now. Maybe some fresh paint, new music playlists, and offerings like family movie nights. “We don’t plan on changing the heart and soul of the restaurant, but we do have a vision of bringing in a renewed sense of vibrance,” Austin said.
Zano’s isn’t the only revered local business to change hands recently. Several flagship businesses around the area have made dramatic changes, either by bringing in new owners or closing the doors entirely.
Dave Steps Away from Tahoe Dave’s to Make Room for New Owners
If you ask Dave Wilderotter, the sale of his iconic business, Tahoe Dave’s Skis & Boards, was finalized on the dance floor on a Tuesday night over the summer at a Bluesdays concert in the Village at Palisades. That’s when he decided that his friends, John and Autumn Lincoln, would make great new owners of the business Wilderotter started in 1977.
“I just really liked them. They’d been asking to buy the business for years. But I had no intention of selling,” Wilderotter said. “The ski business is really fun. It was doing well, I liked it. But I finally said, ‘This makes sense.’” Wilderotter, who’s 72, officially sold the business to the Lincolns in August. That included six locations of his well-known ski and snowboard shops across Tahoe City, Truckee, and Kings Beach.
Wilderotter opened his first ski shop in Tahoe City in 1977, after working as a ski tuner at a nearby rental shop. Though originally called North Shore Sports, everybody just referred to it as Dave’s, and so Wilderotter changed the name to Dave’s Ski Shop. It specialized in ski rentals and wintertime gear essentials. A decade later, when a graphic designer friend made him a sign, it said Tahoe Dave’s because he thought that would sell more T-shirts, and Wilderotter rolled with it. As the business grew, he opened the additional locations one by one to serve more of the community. These days, Tahoe Dave’s is frequented by locals and visitors alike, offering services like ski tuning and rentals of everything from skis to jackets.
The Lincolns, who have strong ties to the Lake Tahoe area, recently sold a healthcare company they had started in Philadelphia and moved back to Truckee last spring. They were looking for a way to ground themselves in the local community. “We know how special Dave is and what he has built here,” John Lincoln said. “We want to be a part of that, to pick up the footsteps that Dave has laid down in the community and continue to make an impact.”
Under the new ownership, those in the know will still be able to get the discounts they’ve come to love. At checkout, if you sing the University of Michigan fight song from Wilderotter’s alma mater or say, “Dave’s mom is a babe,” you can get 10% off. (And apparently, if you have Tahoe Dave’s tattooed on your body, you’ll be provided a free lifetime supply of ChapStick.)
Wilderotter, who’s still active in many community organizations, workforce housing, and live music initiatives, may be officially retired, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be seeing him around. “I’m still going to hang out in the stores, because it’s fun,” he said. “I sold a pair of skis the other day because I was just sitting there.”
Tree House Children’s Boutique Says Goodbye 45 Years Later
The sign on the window at Tree House Children’s Clothing and Gift in historic downtown Truckee said: “It has been my honor and joy to have served you and your families. In retirement, I am looking forward to enjoying the wonderful place I’ve lived in for over 50 years and also seeing new places around the world.” The note was written by Tree House’s one and only owner, Lindy Kramer, who opened her children’s boutique in Truckee back in 1979. The store closed its doors for the final time in late September.
In the ’70s, Kramer was a flight attendant with United Airlines who sewed baby blankets on the side to sell to children’s shops. She wondered, “Why not open my own store?” and so she did. Kramer ran it while continuing to fly around the world with United until 2000, when she gave up her world traveling job to focus on her shop.
“We can’t compete with Target’s pricing, but we were always known for quality merchandise at a fair price and excellent customer service.”
~ Lindy Kramer, Former Tree House owner
Staying in business all of those years brought its challenges — from finding employees to competing with big-name stores and the rise of online shopping. “We can’t compete with Target’s pricing,” Kramer said. “But we were always known for quality merchandise at a fair price and excellent customer service.” The shop, which sold children’s clothes, shoes, and toys, was a go-to spot for families looking for unique and everyday items and individual gift-wrapping services.
When Kramer turned 78 this year, she decided it was time to step away. Instead of selling the business, she chose to liquidate her inventory through sales and close up shop entirely. “If you sell a store, you have an obligation to help the new owners, but I knew I just wanted to be done,” she said.
Though most of the shop’s inventory sold in its final months, Kremer still has about 100 pairs of kids’ shoes stacked up in her garage that she’ll be selling at a discount on Tree House’s website as long as supplies last. Her plans for the future: Enjoying some down time and getting back to traveling. “I’m going to sit here and enjoy not having to go to work,” she said. “And I’m planning a trip out of the country for next spring.”
The space Tree House occupied for 4 decades will now be the home of a new fine art gallery that’s a partnership between Piper Johnson of Truckee’s Piper J Gallery and Douglas DeVore from Alpenglow Gallery.
New Proprietor at the Pour House, Former Owners Stay on
The best thing about the Pour House, the locals’ favorite wine and cheese shop in a historic green building on Jibboom Street in Truckee, is that you don’t need to know a thing about wine to feel welcomed here. Husband-and-wife duo Dean Schaecher and Christa Finn opened the Pour House in 2005 after years of working in local restaurants since they felt like Truckee needed its own wine shop.
“Wine can have a real snob factor, but it shouldn’t be that way,” Finn said. “We’ve always tried to make wine an everyday pleasure for anyone who wants to enjoy it.” Schaecher is the sommelier and wine buyer who can tell you everything you ever wanted to know about what’s in the bottle.
“I love the Pour House — it’s my third child. It can be hard to let go of something, but I’m so happy to see Linda taking over.”
~ christa finn, Former pour House owner
When they first opened the business, the couple had a 2-year-old daughter, and their son was born just a month after their opening day. Now, 19 years later, both of their kids are out of the house, and they were ready to pass their business along to new hands. They posted the Pour House for sale via a business broker, and that’s how they found Linda Baumgardner, a Truckee resident who previously worked for herself as a college and career counselor for young adults. Schaecher and Finn sold their business to Baumgardner in April, with part of their sale agreement being that the original owners stay on as staff through the transition and beyond.
“I’d been looking for my next thing for a long time,” Baumgardner said. “We all had a meeting and it just felt like we were all on the same page. They built this business from nothing, and they have so much wine knowledge. It’s the best possible outcome to have them both still so involved.”
Schaecher and Finn work 2 days a week at the shop, a perfect fit for them as well. “You don’t want to put 20 years into something and just walk away,” Finn said. “I love the Pour House — it’s my third child. It can be hard to let go of something, but I’m so happy to see Linda taking over. It’s really working out well for all of us.”
The variety of wines and the familiar faces you’re used to seeing at the Pour House won’t change, but there are a few updates that have taken place since Baumgardner took over the helm. You can buy a hunk of cheese or a bottle of wine via Apple Pay, which was not possible with the old purchasing system, and the website has been updated to include online ordering for in-store pickup, a current inventory of wine, and the ability to join the wine club online, which was all pen and paper beforehand. Baumgardner has also added more regular wine tasting events and created a new Instagram account for the business.
“I want people to know, you can still get your $10 bottles, and the quality of the wine will still be highly scrutinized by Dean,” Baumgardner said.
And it’s still a family affair. Baumgardner’s daughter is 2, the same age Schaecher’s and Finn’s daughter was when they started the business. “Knowing that they did this with very young kids makes me think, I can do this, too,” Baumgardner added.
Willard’s Sport Shop in Tahoe City Closes After 43 Years
In Tahoe City, Willard’s Sport Shop, a family-owned local business since 1978, closed its doors for good in late October. Willard’s, which was run by Chris and Dennis Willard and their two sons, Dax and Pique, started with a ski shop at the base of Palisades Tahoe back in the late ’70s, followed by the addition of the Tahoe City shop in the early 1980s.
The slopeside Olympic Valley location was legendary for its boot-fitting and ski-tuning services, a go-to spot for pro athletes,
Mighty Mites families, and
local ski bums. The lakeside Tahoe City spot serviced more summertime outdoor gear needs for both locals and visitors to North Lake Tahoe, including bike and paddleboard rentals.
The Willards closed the Olympic Valley shop in 2012, after 34 years in business, when the ski resort came under new ownership.
“It’s hard to close your doors when it’s been your life forever. It was a hard decision, but with the economy and my parents getting older, it just got too difficult.”
~ dax willard, Former willard’s owner
But the Tahoe City location remained a stalwart local business for year-round outdoor gear and sporting goods. “It was a sad day in the valley when the original location closed up, but we were glad we had the Tahoe City location to fall back on,” said Dax Willard, 46, the general manager.
But over the last couple of years, it became a real struggle to keep the Tahoe City location open. “We saw a lot of business over big weekends and holidays, but the rest of the time, Tahoe City just hasn’t been thriving,” Dax said. “It was hard to find employees and running the business became overwhelming. My parents were getting older, and it was time to make a decision.”
Chris and Dennis are 76 and 80, respectively, and were still involved in day-to-day operations at the shop. They were waiting for developments like the Tahoe City Lodge, which was slated to be built across the street, for a much-needed boost to their business.
“It’s something we’ve been talking about for a long time, an ongoing conversation for years,” said Dax, who moved to Ashland, Oregon, and now runs his own café. “It’s hard to close your doors when it’s been your life forever. It was a hard decision, but with the economy and my parents getting older, it just got too difficult.”
The Willards sold and gave away their remaining inventory this fall and closed up shop on Oct. 27. The building at the Y in Tahoe City, where the shop had been housed for over 40 years and which was owned by the Willards, sold in early November. The new owner is currently looking to lease the space to a new tenant.
“We appreciate the local community and all the people who’ve supported us over the years,” Dax said. “It was a great run, and we are grateful for the opportunity to provide a local service to this community.”
