Black Creek Outfitters announced Jan. 30 it will close its Town Center area store after 25 years in business at 10051 Skinner Lake Drive.
A going-out-of-business sale is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. Feb. 3.
The store will be closed until then to prepare.
“It’s certainly been an enjoyable and rewarding journey and a great run with all of you,” said owners Joe and Liz Butler in the email with the subject line: End of an Era.
“This is all set to change,” they wrote.
“Last September we received a satisfactory offer for the sale of our property. After searching the Jacksonville market for an appropriate location to go forward, we have been unable to find a spot that would allow us to continue with the same level of service we have provided for the past 25 years,” they said.
“So we have made the difficult decision that it’s time to close our store and go out of business.”
VDM Orange Retail LLC of Orlando paid $3 million for the property Sept. 28, according to the Duval County Property Appraiser. It bought the 1.17-acre site and 13,910-square-foot building.
VDM’s manager is Frank Silverman, a founder of the Vision Development & Management real estate development and management company.
Black Creek Outfitters plans one “last hurrah” with the sale, the email said.
The store’s entire stock of kayaks, standup paddleboards, car racks, apparel, sportswear, footwear and accessories must be liquidated, it said.
Everything is reduced, with some savings up to 50%.
“Our family cannot thank our staff, our customers and the entire North Florida community for their support the past 39 years,” they wrote.
Black Creek Outfitters said it has put “thousands of people out on Skinner Lake to demo kayaks, paddleboards and foilboards.”
“Along with our passionate experienced staff, we’ve helped improve their skills and start amazing adventures and life-long hobbies.”
The email invited customers to visit blackcreekoutfitters.com for more information. The sale starts Feb. 3 in-store and online.
Demo appointments resume Feb. 15 and can be scheduled online.
The website says Joe Butler Sr. and his wife, Helen, started the family-owned outdoor specialty retailer as Windsurfing Orange Park Inc. in December 1983. It offered sailboard instruction and sales.
It expanded to its Skinner Lake site in 1997 adding gear, apparel, footwear, kayaks, paddleboards and more.
That was eight years before St. Johns Town Center opened nearby and brought in sporting and recreational stores. The Markets at Town Center, where REI - Recreational Equipment Inc. operates, recently added a kayak launch to the lake behind the center.
