Our process!

Some may see the work we do and think nothing of it, but every time you go skiing or snowboarding, hop in a Gondola on your way up the mountain, look at the interior and exterior, and then think of all the details within the hardware of the capsule. It adds up to well over 100+ individual work hours for each Gondola we restore and then flip. The workload increases daily as the orders keep coming, but with such a great team of hard-working people who all share the same passion, it creates an abundance of great minds who can accomplish great work.

You are asking yourself how long it takes to restore a gondola and how we do it. Our day-to-day process here at THE GONDOLA SHOP consists of…

• Learning who the customer is, connecting with them to get a true sense of detail they would like to be included in the design.

• Once the customer has established their needs/wants, it’s time to plan everything. Create sketches for any new designs being implemented, what style of Gondola they requested, and figure out the color or shade that is asked for.

• With the necessary steps completed, we now move on to the Gondola itself. Either using one already from the warehouse or ordering a new Gondola that still needs restoration.

• Planning out the whole process for the order, we begin by “stripping” the Gondola of its properties from the inside out, tearing out any old installation, rubber casings, windows, seat covers, anything and everything until the whole interior is practically empty.

• Now it’s time to clean the dusty ski box, remove all rivets within the floorboard, and expose the complete undercarriage where debris and gunk can end up. Then going through with a vacuum, rags, and WD-40 to remove all that nastiness.

• Then we take the old parts that aren’t too damaged and clean them, thoroughly disinfecting any attachments that would be used again. We can restore Plexiglass windows by removing up to 85% of scratches and bringing back old dry rubber moldings black and shiny again, to name a few of our talents. 
• Once everything is cleaned and examined, it’s time to remove the old paint and rust. The carriage is sandblasted and then ready to undergo a new coat of color regarding the customer's specifics. This can extend the deadline by a day or so, as it does take a lot of time for the coats to dry effectively and efficiently.

• Once the parts are disinfected and cleaned, they are inspected for further uses as they may not be the right parts or be too damaged to use. It is slowly coming back to life with a fresh look, new features, and a thoroughly cleaned interior/exterior.

• After the Gondola is fully restored, coated, and fulfilled to the client's requests, we take photos of anything and everything to double-check that we covered all areas of concern for the client.

• Then we prep, package, load up, and ship out the Gondola directly from our warehouse, ensuring safety through our personal delivery. This shipment process also provides a solidified relationship between clients and our business; we strive for personal connections with customers to ensure they are satisfied with our work, all while hoping for future business interactions.
• Depending on the client's location could lead to extra delivery hours or delays, as Colorado is known for crazy weather year around.
• At the end of the process, it's clear that this cannot happen within a single workday. Especially for more oversized orders requiring all hands on deck, it still takes long continuous hours to become somewhat satisfied with our work.

Here at THE GONDOLA SHOP, we strive for a genuine connection with our customers /supporters; no matter where they may be located, we practice with complete satisfaction to create a stable relationship with our clients to guarantee their return.

We have curated this blog page/questionnaire in hopes that it helps everyone understand, whether you’re buying a Gondola or not, who we are, what we do, and what we believe in. From day 1 of the process, we keep a constant monitor with the customers, ensuring all their needs are met with Sunshine Polishing standards, as we only strive for the best with every project we invest our time into. Until the customer is met with their order and fully satisfied.