I went to Dick’s Sporting Goods in Legacy Village yesterday to look for a swimsuit. Some of you may remember it as Galyan’s.
I’m always nostalgic when I go back to that place. You see, I used to work there. It was one of the most memorable and fun times in my life. It was like an extension of college.
Galyan’s in Legacy Village grand opened in October of 2003. I graduated from IU in May of 2003. Many of the other employees had also just graduated from college and were home seeking transitional employment. It was a great place to make some decent money and save while living under our parents’s roofs.
I can still remember the Outdoor Apparel manager’s phone extension…
The Outdoor Apparel crew consisted of (and if I leave anyone out, I apologize): Kate, Kate, Jeff, Josh, Ellen, Liam, Char, Jimbo our manager, and myself. I really feel like I’m forgetting someone so if a former Legacy Village Galyan is reading this and remembers who I’m missing (if anyone) post in the comments box!
Anyways, we had fun. We used to hang out at Calladagh after work, party it up at Kate’s house, hang out at Felt, and get ourselves into many shenanigans down in Coventry. I remember one particular time during pre-grand opening week that we were hanging at Kate’s house and having a grand old time. I left at some odd hour of the evening to go home and sleep. But a few of our group decided to sleep over since we were only going through training. So I show up at work at whatever time we were supposed to be there, probably 8 or so. Training starts… and the rest of the group isn’t there… and doesn’t show up… And then all of a sudden, in stumbles Kate, Kate and Liam. And my god do they reek like booze. Holy bejesus. Our manager was piiiisssed! Of course after our rep left, they were reamed out. Apparently in their drunken stupor, they either didn’t set an alarm or just slept right through it. Good times.
I miss those days. I miss the days of being a complete idiot and really having no responsibility whatsoever. I miss my Galyan’s friends and I miss my Galyan’s customers. The customers were incredible. We worked on commission and it was common to have one customer who really valued your opinion and your help, and when that person came in shopping, they usually let you take credit for all of the items in their shopping cart. It was fantastic. I remember one customer in particular. Her name was also Rachel. She let me outfit her entire family in Obermeyer ski gear. And she truly valued my opinion. It was a great feeling. And because she liked me, anytime she came into the store after that, she actively sought me out to get my commission sticker for her items.
When Dick’s Sporting Goods bought Galyan’s, it was a travesty. Things went downhill fast. Veteran Galyan’s employees started dropping like flies. We noticed a rapid transition of the quality of merchandise we were receiving in. Even the customers changed. I stuck around for a while but like everyone else, I eventually left as well. I knew a few others had managed to stick it out for a while but I thought by now most had probably moved on to greener pastures.
So when I went to Dick’s Sporting Goods on Sunday, I ran into the last remaining Galyan’s store 434 employee. We reminisced about the old times and caught each other up on gossip of those who we’ve seen or heard from in the last couple of years. It was good seeing him and catching up with an old friend.
I’ll always look back fondly at the time I worked at Galyan’s and the friends I made in my years there.
Who would have thought that a sporting goods store could leave such a lasting impression…?
