This past winter, SnoPlanks co-founder James Nicol pulled an NBD.

 It’s probably not what you expect—instead of closing shop or selling his 10-year-old Bend, OR-based snowboard brand, he donated it to Oregon State University-Cascades.

 There was no one major reason for SnoPlanks’s change of direction, Nicol explains: “You see two paths diverging, and it’s either you need to fully go all in and scale or go another direction.”  

Nicol was just ready for a change. 

It so happens that SnoPlanks’ small but mighty manufacturing shop is located right in the ever-expanding backyard of OSU-Cascades, which is also conveniently located right on the road to Mt. Bachelor. 

Nicol and SnoPlanks cofounder Ryan Holmes had been speakers in OSU Business Instructor Todd Laurence’s business classes over the years, so Nicol reached out with a proposal to donate the company or, in his words, “continue growing within the folds of this amazing university.”

 They made a not-so-straightforward deal, which involved structuring a business donation, a far cry from previous monetary donations to the college. Despite the complexities, the cool news is that now there’s a precedent for these kinds of donations, which alone has implications for future brands looking to become involved in experiential education. 

Subscribe for access to this article plus the entire archive of The Snowboarder’s Journal content—and receive a discount on all products.