About Outdoor Gear Exchange
We are Outdoor Gear Exchange (OGE), located on Church Street in beautiful Burlington, Vermont. Smart buying and over 25 years in the outdoor industry allows us to offer the best deals possible on a fabulous selection of gear for camping, hiking, backpacking, rock climbing, ice climbing, mountaineering, telemark skiing, alpine touring (AT skiing), nordic skiing, biking, kayaking, canoeing, adventure travel and yoga. We also have a fantastic selection of footwear and apparel from casual to technical. If you find yourself in town make sure to stop by for a visit.
Our Mission
To empower outdoor activity, adventure, and exploration of all kinds by cultivating community and encouraging knowledge sharing, while outfitting all people with gear that best meets their needs.
Our Vision
A world where everyone feels welcome and is able to experience the wonder, well-being, and adventure of the outdoors in the most fulfilling way possible.
Our Core Values
Outdoor gear should be accessible to everyone: We provide a variety and choice of price, fit, and function of products for our customers. OGE stocks the best deals we can find as well as the newest innovations and used options. Product selection is considered in every department to meet all users’ needs and budgets.
Our customers feel empowered, educated, and inspired: We work to exceed expectations, provide a superlative experience, and educate, inspire, and empower customers by providing gear and knowledge for outdoor recreation and related activities. We accomplish this through employee training and employing staff with diverse backgrounds who can share relevant and relatable first-hand experience and knowledge with OGE customers.
Our coworkers are our greatest asset: We value a collaborative and respectful work environment where everyone can feel supported and valued. We invest in career and personal growth through hands-on learning, demo days, clinics, training, coaching, mentorship, and other education.
Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion (JEDI): We view our mission, vision, and values through lenses that respect and seek the perspectives, experiences, and realities of all communities interested in being or becoming outdoor participants. We actively seek to serve all user groups, including historically excluded ones, and view all people as part of our community. This is an initiative that underpins all of our core values.
Everyone deserves to experience the outdoors: We strive to reduce barriers to outdoor spaces and to enable all people – not just our customers – to be able to recreate in the outdoors inclusively, respectfully, equitably, and responsibly. We foster stewardship and respect for the outdoor places we love and enjoy. We collaborate with and support local and national organizations that help advance this goal.
Building community: We work to cultivate, deepen and grow community relationships with local organizations that share our values.
Environmentalism: We are dedicated to protecting outdoor spaces in Vermont and throughout North America. It is imperative that wild places and nature are protected for recreation, wildlife, habitat, and the associated ecosystem benefits. Conservation is core to ensuring there is the ability to have a healthy future.
Sustainability: Developing an outdoor ethos creates awareness and an environmental connection that pervades and influences our staff and customers’ lives. Recycling, upcycling, composting, repair, reuse, and buying responsibly are all best practices we live by. From inception, OGE has invited customers to consign quality used gear, minimizing environmental impacts and giving clothing and gear a second life. We’re always looking to improve and do better too.
Resilience: Work to ensure that OGE is around for the future by keeping our business strong and profitable. We work with like-minded vendors and industry partners to amplify our impact.