How long has Active been in business – what’s the quick rundown of its history?
AWS was established in 1982 by our current owner, Warren Freece. Warren founded the company while teaching his friends how to waterski. After companies like Kidder and Centurion approached him, he decided to attend the 1982 Portland Boat Show where he was met with great success. Fast forward over 40 years and Active now sells five of the industry’s top brands in four locations spanning the state of Oregon. If you want to get more of the story and our history in the Pacific Northwest, check out our documentary we made a few years back!
Where can customers find Active these days?
You can find AWS in-store and online. Our flagship store is located in Oregon City where customers can find the Pro-Shop, boat service, Malibu and Axis boats, and Barletta Pontoons. Our Portland location is right across the street from an easy-to-use launch on the Willamette River. There you can also find a Pro-Shop, along with Supra and Moomba boats, and Barletta Pontoons. AWS Portland is also the home of our e-commerce warehouse. Our Canby facility is where you can find state of the art boat storage and boat servicing, along with Nautique boats and Barletta Pontoons. Our newest facility will be opening this summer in Redmond, Oregon. There we will have another full-service Pro-Shop, a service center, storage and Malibu, Axis, Supra, Moomba and Barletta sales. Our website – www.activewatersports.com – is home to all of our pro shop gear and our boat inventory across all locations.
What makes the Active shops such a unique experience for customers, especially as it relates to boating and watersports?
Active’s motto is “We Take Your Fun Seriously.” We make a point to surround ourselves with a staff that understands what that motto means. We host many events throughout the year, from demos to in-store customer appreciation events, it’s always a party at AWS. In the past few years we have also added a “Hassle Free Boating Experience” for our customers. With this service all our customers have to worry about is having fun on the water. Once you are done with your boat for the season we will send a driver to your house, pick up the boat, take it to our Canby facility where we perform annual maintenance before we tuck it into storage for the winter. When you’re ready to have your boat back for the season we will prep and detail it and have it ready for you to go have fun on the water. One of our core values is experience and we try to do everything we can to make boating as easy on you as possible.
The Pacific Northwest is all four seasons, which can mean less time on the water. How passionate are the watersports enthusiasts in the area?
It’s funny, over the years I’ve heard the excuse many times, “Why would I spend that kind of money on a boat if I can only use it for three months?” Those people just don’t get it. The NW watersports enthusiasts understand that when the sun is out and the water is good, it is boating season! Our customers hit the water HARD during the summer months. I guess we just appreciate the time we have that much more than people who live in climates where they can use their boat whenever they want.
