About Total Hockey

Total Hockey is a privately held hockey equipment retailer that is dedicated to providing the latest in hockey equipment, superior quality merchandise and excellent customer service. Founded in 1998, Total Hockey has embarked on a broad-scale expansion in specialty hockey operations and now has nine retail stores in the greater St. Louis, Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul areas, as well as an e-commerce facility at www.totalhockey.com.

A few words that describe Total Hockey:

Modern
High quality
Integrity
Reliability
Commitment
Customer service

Total Hockey is not buried with closeout merchandise nobody else wanted to buy. All of our merchandise is the latest top-of-the-line hockey equipment from quality brands. You may see a handful of products from a prior season, but these will be duly marked and discounted. Our stores are clean, neatly organized and well maintained. You will not dig through boxes or wipe dust off the counter at checkout. Our internet business takes pride in shipping orders quickly, efficiently and well packaged in a Total Hockey branded box. Total Hockey believes you deserve choice in your hockey shopping experience. You may see new brands you have yet to try. Total Hockey is constantly testing new brands providing you with an opportunity to see them first. Bottom line, we have owned and operated a successful hockey equipment retail business for over a decade. You don’t get there if you don’t deliver. You don’t last if you don’t care.

Guiding Philosophy

From its inception, Total Hockey’s business is guided by several basic principles:

1) Maintain Focus

Though there is certainly a place for hockey in general sporting goods stores, if for nothing else than to increase exposure to hockey for children and adults that play other sports, our belief is that in a sport as refined and technical as hockey, the participant will only achieve optimality in a specialty retail environment. While other hockey retailers have clouded their operations with entry into lacrosse, baseball, cycling, etc., Total Hockey was conceived and maintains its commitment to an exclusive hockey orientation. In our stores, you will find only hockey and hockey-related equipment and apparel; supported by the staff knowledge necessary to make it work for the customer.

2) Guard Our Reputation

The retail hockey store is a complex environment in which there are many constituencies to serve. At any given moment training, housekeeping, merchandising, finance, and technology issues may head a list of hundreds of business matters needing attention. Total Hockey keeps the priorities ordered with a single guiding light—the welfare of the customer. Our contention is that aiming for a well-served customer will cast the panoply of other business obligations in their proper illumination. It is our responsibility to insure that customers become allies in the efforts of Total Hockey to manage a challenging business.

3) Do the Right Thing

Each customer represents a unique opportunity to succeed or fail. Hockey is a very demanding and technical game; as beautiful as running, but less natural; as artistic as dance, but more dangerous; as cerebral as chess, but faster. Customers present themselves with an enormous range of size, skills, experience and desires. Our mission must be to understand their point of view, their world and do the right thing for them. Sometimes this will mean managing them to a proper skate fitting. Sometimes this will mean educating them about the safety advantages of a different product. Sometimes this will mean redirecting their choices or even, on occasion, refusing to do what they request. Whether an approach is in the short-run interest of Total Hockey, doing the right thing will insure the long-run success of the sport and Total Hockey.

4) Seek Innovation

The game of hockey has evolved enormously over its century plus of life, but hockey retail has not kept pace. Total Hockey’s aim is to lift hockey retail out of this malaise through continuous innovation. We believe that improving hockey retail is a critical element in raising the profile of the game. Total Hockey maintains a regimen of experimentation that carries across product mix, inventory control, training, merchandising, advertising, website management, and event sponsorship. From a complex intranet application where employees share ideas to hotly debated, topical monthly managers meetings to a formal product testing and evaluation process, Total Hockey solicits, explores, and measures new approaches and new opportunities constantly.

5) Grow the Game

Total Hockey has a deep and abiding commitment to growing the game of hockey. Though many of our initiatives do not have a direct or immediate return, each person that takes up, stays with, or supports the game becomes a potential customer. We are involved in a wide range of supportive endeavors including: An Official Sponsor of the USA Hockey Grow the Game Program; Total Hockey’s own charitable program, called Hockey Heroes, designed to grow the game where upon checkout customers have the opportunity to donate $1 to support charitable organizations selected in part with USA Hockey where Total Hockey also matches each dollar donation; platinum sponsorship of Missouri high school hockey; the only national online retailer supporting the sled hockey community; proud supporter of the Make A Wish Foundation helping make one special hockey wish come true in 2008 and 2009; Grow the Game Award providing a $2,500 gift card to Total Hockey for the local association that best helps grow the game of hockey; Founding Sponsor of growthegame.com a national program to grow the game of hockey across the U.S. Founded by the Youth Sports Coalition and many more.

History

1998 Total Hockey spin off in St. Louis, MO
1999 Store opens in St. Charles, MO
2000 Store opens in Chesterfield, MO (St. Louis)
2001 Store opens in Kirkwood, MO (St. Louis)
2002 Web store launches - www.totalhockey.net
2004 Web operation expands to new facility
2005 First rink pro-shop opens (St. Louis)
2006 Web operation expands to second facility
2006 Store opens in Downers Grove, IL (Chicago)
2007 Store opens in Schaumburg, IL (Chicago)
2008 2nd pro-shop opens (Chicago)
2009 Acquires domain rights to www.totalhockey.com

Recent Achievements

2008 honored as USA Hockey Official Ice Hockey Equipment Retailer
2008 named to Inc. Magazine's list of Fastest Growing Companies - nationally ranked 2,862
2009 named USA Hockey Exclusive Ice Hockey Equipment Retailer
2009 named to Inc. Magazine's list of Fastest Growing Companies - nationally ranked 2,138

USA Hockey

As The Exclusive Ice Hockey Equipment Retailer of USA Hockey, Total Hockey works to provide the best equipment at the best prices. This partnership is also in an effort to help grow the game of hockey and expose and involve the youth of America to this great game.

Thank You

Total Hockey appreciates your business. If you have any questions or concerns, let us know. Send us an e-mail at info@totalhockey.com or call us toll-free at 866.929.6699.