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It’s been more than a year of will-they-or-won’t-they suspense over the fate of Next Adventure, but it looks like the independent Portland outdoor retailer is here to stay after all.
Founders Deek Heykamp and Bryan Knudsen announced June 29 that they have decided to retain ownership of the store they opened in 1997. The flagship store is at the corner of Southeast Stark Street and Grand Avenue and sells a variety of new and used outdoor gear, including in its bargain basement.
The back-and-forth has gone like this: In May 2025, Heykamp and Knudsen announced they were retiring and closing all four Next Adventure locations. There was a liquidation sale. Then, a small investment group came forward to buy Next Adventure and keep it open. That deal has since fallen through, according to Heykamp, and the duo has had a change of heart, he said in a press release.
“During this process, Bryan and I realized how important it is to keep Next Adventure going for the outdoor community, our staff and our city.”
Next Adventure’s footprint is down to the flagship store and a location in Sandy, Ore. (The business’s Southeast Portland paddle store is closed, and its paddle store in Scappoose is under new ownership and called the Paddle Shack.) Heykamp tells WW that the company owns the building in Sandy “and we are ready to activate it when the snow comes.” The building is currently for sale, though, so that plan could change if a buyer steps forward.
Right-sizing the business has already felt like progress, he says.
“We got too big, and to be honest, we spent more time doing things that weren’t fun,” Heykamp says. “By shrinking down to the Grand store and potentially a seasonal store in Sandy, we’re immediately having more fun. And that feels good.”
