Meet Moshe: Entrepreneur, Adventurer, Vegan.
“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost inspired the name of this local funky and friendly store that has become a destination for outdoor adventure fans, serious mountain climbers and families with kids (and dogs) in tow. Yellow Wood, on Silver Spring Drive in Whitefish Bay, sells everything from backpacks to boots, water bottles to windbreakers. Otis, the shop dog/store mascot, might be the biggest draw for neighborhood kids and other K9 companions, but the three words on the front window: “Gear, Passion, Purpose” define Yellow Wood and its owner, Moshe Katz.
Moshe opened the store four years ago on his 25th wedding anniversary to his wife, Debra. “I’m just an idiot,” he says. “What was I thinking doing those on the same day?” Despite
the challenging retail climate in tandem with a busy career as the owner of Atid Properties and the major role he plays as a leader/teacher/mentor in Milwaukee’s Jewish community, Moshe had a dream: to fill a void in the gear market.
At an age when some people might think about slowing down, Moshe did the opposite, “Age-wise and time-in-life wise, I probably shouldn’t have opened the store. But I was frustrated by not being able to walk into stores and buy really beautiful, high end, not necessarily expensive but great quality products.”
Moshe took that frustration and drafted former Erewhon gear pro, Marty Stilling, to join him. Together they ran with it, “We opened a store that looked different, smelled different, when you walk in you don’t see the same things, the same brands, so you have a different conversation than you would have had otherwise. We created an entity that’s socially responsible, community minded and offers products that otherwise aren’t available,” Moshe explains.
Moshe’s daughter Cydney (Cyd), who serves as store manager, buyer and dog mom to Otis, relishes her role as one of Yellow Wood’s pro-testers, “Everything that I wear, everything I’m bringing on the trip (their recent expedition to Mt. Kilimanjaro) is something we sell,” Cyd adds. Growing up, Cyd, her brother Gabe and mom Debra shared a family love of the outdoors. “My entire life (Moshe) has been trying to find, not necessarily the best of everything, but stuff that fulfills every need for all the activities, sports and gadgets he loves,” Cyd explains.
One of Cyd and Moshe’s favorite brands is Hanwag, a Bavarian boot company that has enabled the pair to trek comfortably in terrain all over the world, “Not only are they spectacular boots, we’ve gone probably close to 1,000 miles each on our boots; we sent them back to the factory and they resoled them. These boots have been to Colorado multiple times, to base camp Everest in Nepal, to Utah, Arizona, Portland, the Ozarks in Missouri and they’ve seen a lot of Wisconsin,” Moshe explains.
Growing up in Milwaukee, a “hiatus in Israel” ignited Moshe’s passion for exploration. “As a young kid in Israel, you took field trips to beautiful spaces a lot. I always loved it. My dad bought land in Tucson, Arizona when I was four years old. I’ve been hiking all my life… I lucked out and Cydney decided to go to school at the University of Colorado-Boulder. That was freaking awesome,” Moshe adds.
There’s a literal, visual display of Moshe’s love for his community: the original sign from his favorite restaurant, Wolf Peach, and a sign from the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center each hold a prominent place on the Yellow Wood shop walls. “Wolf Peach was my go-to, and nothing can take the place of Wolf Peach,” Moshe admits. His love for Wolf Peach, the award winning restaurant that closed in 2018, aligns with Moshe’s passion for food. Moshe says, “I’ve been vegan longer than the word existed… since the 1980’s. Originally I did it for health reasons, but the longer I do it, the more I love the social and environmental side as well.”
Friday nights regularly mean a traditional Shabbat (Jewish Sabbath) dinner for family and friends at the Katz household, where vegan food co-exists next to a traditional, albeit vegan, loaf of challah bread. Moshe’s chosen diet in no way means sacrificing quality or quantity, “Deb’s soups and stews are just delicious, her peanut butter tomato soup is unbelievable. We make vegan paella, grilled vegetables and we eat lots and lots of fresh fruit, seeds and nuts. I’m a voracious vegan eater,” he explains.
Maintaining his vegan focus on their recent trek to Mt. Kilimanjaro reinforced Moshe’s commitment, “I was amazed at how accommodating the cook was, making vegan food every day. After enjoying a one-day safari and marveling at the ‘exotic’ animals we saw, my pride in being a vegan was even stronger. I love the softer imprint I leave behind… I actually like the idea that if a tiger was chasing me, I would turn to the tiger and say, ‘I’m a vegan’ and he would eat someone else instead.”
Moshe opened the store with the purest of intentions, “I’m okay with breaking even if it means I get to employ people, have a positive impact on the non-for-profit world and share my passion for the outdoors with Milwaukee.” Yellow Wood has become a vital player in the North Shore area and hosts events including S’more Mondays, a visit from owls at the Schlitz Audubon, a fundraiser for the Guest House and an annual Hanukkah Menorah lighting.
That initial dream to fill the void in the local outdoor gear market? It came true, at least for a pair of recent customers. Moshe says, “Just recently we had circumstances that describe exactly why we’re open. A man was climbing both Mt. Shasta and Mt. Rainier and was completely outfitted by us for both summits. We had a mom come in with a kid who was going to school at Washington University and doing their Outdoor Ed program. After 30 minutes of shopping with us he turned to his mom and asked, ‘Is this what retail used to be?’”
Yellow Wood
401 E Silver Spring Drive
Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin 53217
