Pole Position: The Yardsale Story
Yardsale Co-Founder Cristina Ashbaugh on reinventing ski poles to be stylish and easy to carry, landing a Shark Tank deal, and her approach to product innovation.
Yardsale designs gear to make your day on the mountain seamless, designed and tested by lifelong skiers. Known for their highly acclaimed magnetic ski poles, they are now expanding into new categories, recently secured a Shark Tank deal, and have a lot on the horizon. Excited to share their story with you!
An interview with Yardsale Co-Founder Cristina Ashbaugh.
What first inspired you to reimagine ski poles and create Yardsale?
Cristina: I’ve skied my whole life but after college, all of my friends were avid skiers, and I realized I needed better gear. I went to a specialty shop ready to invest, but while I got fitted for skis and boots, the shop owner pointed me to a pile of poles in the corner and said to “pick any.” I ended up buying the cheapest pair, and they were way too short.
At the time, I was working in B2B tech content marketing, which wasn’t overly fulfilling. I wanted to work with consumer brands, so I started exploring product ideas related to skiing. When I asked friends about their ski poles, no one had strong opinions—they either had hand-me-downs or cheap options, except for a few serious skiers with lightweight carbon poles.
Lacking experience in physical product design, I shared my idea with my friend Kelly, now my co-founder. Initially, he thought it wasn’t worth pursuing, but I saw potential, and by March 2023, we decided to bring it to life.
Can you tell us about the Yardsale team – it's just you and Kelly, correct?
Cristina: Yes. Kelly, my co-founder and friend from college, was a product design engineer at Apple. His design and manufacturing background was essential for us, especially since I’m from a marketing background. We're a small team: just us and an operations associate who joined recently to help with order fulfillment and social media.
How does product development work at Yardsale, and how did Kelly’s background in industrial design at Apple play into this?
Cristina: The initial idea was for a magnetic ski pole, with magnetic handles and baskets to improve functionality. We began experimenting with various poles at home, adding magnets to see how it could work practically. After extensive research, I connected with a factory that produces most of the world’s ski poles, which has been invaluable.
I thought adding magnets would be simple, but it was significantly more challenging than expected. Magnets degrade in water and interfere with metal tools in injection molding, making assembly complex. That’s where Kelly’s industrial design expertise was crucial.
To ensure the highest quality, we partnered with Stellar Design, an industrial design firm in the Bay Area that Kelly had worked with previously. As a small team, we needed strong partners. We started initial development around March, raised a friends-and-family funding round by May, and had until November to finalize the design, complete manufacturing, and get the product shipped to the U.S.—a very tight timeline. This process also involved several trips to China to work directly with our manufacturer, which was invaluable. Collaborating closely with them on our P1 Poles and future products has been incredible.
This hands-on experience with manufacturing was eye-opening. The factory team became true partners, offering their production expertise as we pushed for high quality. Our approach is to create ski products that no one else has perfected yet. Investors have suggested expanding into items like goggles and helmets, but we feel that brands like Smith already do those exceptionally well. Instead of creating products just for the sake of expanding our line, we want to bring something truly new and better to the market.
What was the process like to incorporate the magnet feature, and how did that impact the design overall?
Cristina: When I first thought about poles, I wondered, 'Why are they all so unattractive?’ It seemed obvious that someone could make a pole with colors people actually like. So initially, it was all about aesthetics for me. But then I thought about the practical experience—carrying everything from the car to the mountain in the cold, often while trying to manage unwieldy poles. Is it a life-changing problem? No. But I realized that if we could make subtle improvements to poles, we could make a ski day a little more effortless.
One simple but impactful idea was to have the poles stick together, so you could hold them in one hand without them constantly crossing over or falling. This seemed obvious, yet after researching, I found no one had done it before. So, we started gluing and taping magnets to our own poles and testing these rough prototypes throughout spring 2023. Once we were convinced it worked, we moved on to integrating the magnets seamlessly into the handles.
That’s where Kelly’s experience at Apple really made a difference. He applied Apple’s design principles—like minimizing unnecessary elements and creating a sleek, cohesive look. Kelly had worked with magnets before in Apple’s iPad cases and packaging, so he understood how magnets interact with other components. This led us to an innovative approach called high-frequency welding. This technique allows the plastic to mold around the magnets without heat damage, resulting in a durable, sleek finish.
People sometimes ask if we’re worried about others copying our design. We have patents in place, so that’s covered. But honestly, I’d like to see anyone try because it’s so complex and difficult!
You recently landed a deal with Kendra Scott on Shark Tank! What was that experience like, and what does her investment mean for Yardsale?
Cristina: In February, Shark Tank reached out after their executive producer saw Yardsale on TikTok. After talking with some past participants who encouraged us, we decided to go for it— felt like an easy yes. The process was intense; they remind you that you can be dropped at any moment and that filming doesn’t guarantee airing. We filmed in June, and the entire hour-long pitch was eventually condensed into eight minutes. We didn’t even get to preview it, so we watched the broadcast live with everyone else.
Our guest shark was Kendra Scott, and initially, we weren’t sure she'd connect with a ski brand. But then we found out she’s a skier, and our excitement grew. We made the deal on the show, and after a diligence process, we finalized it in August. Kendra has been incredibly accessible and supportive. One of her biggest contributions has been guiding us into wholesale, something she’s passionate about. It fits well with our growth plans, as we aim for an 80/20 D2C-to-wholesale split this year and possibly 60/40 next year. Wholesale brings stability through purchase orders, crucial for us as a small business not seeking more capital. Thanks to Kendra’s guidance, we’ve secured an expansion into REI, marking a major milestone for us, and we’re very excited for the road ahead.
You also recently signed distribution deals with REI, Vail Resorts, and Backcountry.com – will skiers be able to find Yardsale in those places this winter?
Cristina: Yes, our distribution is expanding! Beyond our website, Yardsale products are now available at REI, Vail Resorts, Backcountry.com in the U.S., and Decathlon in Europe. We’re excited to reach more skiers and introduce them to a higher standard of pole design.
Do you see Yardsale expanding to other gear or accessories with this design-first approach?
Cristina: We’re strategic about expansion. Our approach is to address gaps in the market rather than just produce new items. Customers requested powder baskets, adjustable poles, and kids' products, which we recently launched. We’re also releasing a day bag in the next couple of weeks, designed for ski days but versatile enough for everyday use, with compartments for helmets and goggles. We worked with a design firm that developed the Patagonia Black Hole bags and Yeti coolers, and we're thrilled with the results. We're also considering base layers, aiming to offer stylish yet functional options that don't currently exist.
What’s next on the horizon for Yardsale? Any upcoming features or products you’re excited to share?
Cristina: We initially fulfilled orders from Kelly’s garage but quickly moved to a logistics center, which couldn’t meet our quality standards for custom products. So, we brought fulfillment back to a warehouse in Hayes Valley, San Francisco, which now doubles as a storefront. To generate off-season revenue, we plan to open a coffee shop called Double Black in the front, serving cold brew. We’re aiming for a January opening, pending a health permit. Fingers crossed!
Next week, we’re excited about our New York City pop-up in Nolita (details below), where customers can experience our products firsthand, and we have exciting brands collaborating with us, like Hikerkind.
On the product side, we recently launched a magnetic strap with FIDLOCK for our P2 Poles, which makes it easy to click in and out without threading a glove through—great for comfort and convenience.
Finally, after Shark Tank, we’ve had a lot of people reach out asking us to make trekking poles. We’d considered this before, but the demand has been overwhelming—Decathlon alone sells 500,000 trekking poles annually in Europe. So, we’re looking at introducing trekking poles next summer, which would help us balance seasonality and expand our offerings. It’s ambitious, but we’re excited!
Yardsale is giving Slopeside readers $15 off – use code ‘SLOPESIDE’ at checkout 💌
Love this interview! What a great story of seeing white space and going after it. I am going to need to gift that bag.