Renowned Peoria running store fueled by driven owner and his 'full tank of passion'

PEORIA — Adam White does not just sell running shoes at RC Outfitters. He is selling a lifestyle, one earned from a lifetime of miles and races and reflection and running toward, not away, from inner challenges.

"Life's journey has changed what running means to me," said White, 48. "Running is part of my inner spirit. It calls me to run. In high school and college, I ran to try to accomplish things. I wanted to make a mark. Stand out for something. Part of what drove me was a desire to push my limits. Perception, too, seeking approval from those around me.

"When I ran, I just felt free. That was fine back then. But I found out it's not sustainable. Why I ran needed to change as well. Later I found running to be my time to process, to reflect on where I was and where I am now. Put my best foot forward. ... Running helps me stay in the present."

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Adam White's present includes ownership of RC Outfitters, a renowned business for more than 45 years that has been nestled along the riverfront in Peoria's Warehouse District for a decade.

The running shoes and active lifestyle apparel store was named one of the nation's best running stores by industry authority The Running Event earlier this month.

"It's an honor, a wonderful thing for our team and our community," White said. "The award is for all of us."

Putting his best foot forward

Adam White was born in Peoria and ran for Notre Dame High School, where he finished second in the IHSA Class AA cross country state meet in 1993 and graduated in 1994. He went on to run at Wabash College (Ind.) on a team that placed fourth in the country one year and third the next. He's run in marathons around the world.

In addition to RC Outfitters, he also co-owns ShaZam Racing, a growing race operator/management company that has a major footprint in the sport around central Illinois.

And White's body tells a story, covered with more tattoos than he can count.

"I was 18 when I got my first tattoo: The Hermes winged foot," White said. "I went with some teammates. All of us got that on our right hip, because that's the hip that faces out toward the spectators when you race.

"I am basically one giant tattoo. They are all very special, all have meaning. I have one for my parents, a thunderbird perched on top of a bear. In the belly of the bird is a Hopi Kachina rattle. The Madonna holding Christ is another favorite. There's a lion on my right hand and a lamb on my left hand.

"Those are among my more special ones. All of them have meaning to me, to who I am."

Running Central was his turning point

The original store was named Running Central, founded by Steve Shostrum and Joy Kessler, and Greg White and Janet White (no relation to Adam White) in 1977.

The store was on the corner of Main Street and Sheridan Road for decades, then later in Peoria Heights before Adam White moved it downtown to the former Illinois Antique Center space.

He bought it from the founders after a random conversation in a car changed his life.

"It was 2006, and I was not in the healthiest place physically, mentally, spiritually," Adam White said. "I was lost in many different ways. I was smoking a pack a day and drinking a bottle a day. I was going back through my life. When did things make sense? I came up with: 'It made more sense when I was running.' "

So he called Running Central co-founder Greg White, who had been training post-collegiate runners. Adam White asked the coach to train him for marathon distance running.

"We have work to do," the coach told him.

They began in the spring of 2006. "I wanted to make the Olympic Trials," White said. "That began my journey. Every step I took I was coming home. I needed to be in the sport of running. I just wanted to salvage something. I ended up barely missing the Trials. I was riddled with injuries. I knew surgeries on my feet were coming.

"Then right before a race in Chicago, we were sitting in Greg's car and I just blurted out, 'When you going to sell me your store?'

"He said, 'You gotta make me an offer first.' I was stunned, he wanted to pass the torch. Right about then it was time to get out of the car, and get to the starting line. I ran the race, then ran right to my car and called my brother and said, 'I think we have a chance at something special."

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Greg White and his co-founders agreed to sell Running Central to Adam White in 2007, and his business journey began.

"It absolutely was a crossroads for me," White said. "Without a doubt. Without all those hardships and stumbles along the way. … That Adam has changed a lot. What drove that guy in 2006 is a completely different man than today. I'd never have been able to convince him it would work out with such success."

'A full tank of passion'

Adam White moved the store to Peoria Heights in 2011 and then took it downtown in 2014.

"We always viewed it as a shorter-term spot, we knew we were going to need a larger space that we'd be able to leverage," White said. "We found it downtown (311 SW Water St.), part of the Waterfront Place complex. The whole ground floor is ours."

White re-branded the iconic business to RC Outfitters in 2019, a move he says advisors told him he should not make. His move downtown met with the same cautions, as the location was not typical for the industry.

"It was a 30-year-old business that had matured, and a lot of people said, 'Don't do it,' " White said. "A lot of people told me I was crazy. We have succeeded by the grace of God and with the support of an unwavering team.

"I've made so many mistakes. Reckless ambition maybe. Aggressive at times, less-calculated at times. Shoot for the gut. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. But I got into this with a full tank of passion and a drive to work my tail off."

That passion extended to making a stand during COVID in 2020, when he defied orders from the state of Illinois to close his business because it was deemed non-essential. He stayed open, and later sued the governor.

The joy of a smile

White has diversified to offer active lifestyle apparel alongside RC Outfitters' immense stock of shoes. The store has at least 7,000 pairs of shoes in brands like Birkenstock, Blundstone, Oboz and Hey Dude. White can offer 10,000 apparel units from his own RC Outfitters brand, and national brands like Lululemon and Vuori.

The move in part has led to what White says is a 500% increase in revenue for the store during his 17 years of ownership.

"Running is not about a race,' White said. "Not about a marathon, or logging certain miles. It's about a lifestyle. Fitting people for shoes, it's an opportunity to bring people into our tribe. We've been building this one step at a time.

"Maybe it's an athlete who wants to win a state title. Maybe it's someone who wants to lose weight. Maybe it's someone with rheumatoid arthritis who wants to get to the mailbox. RC Outfitters is made for people who want comfortable shoes regardless of use. It's for comfortable quality."

The average shoe is $120-$160 per pair, and White says they always have shoes on sale. The store's apparel is targeted for those who want anything from shorts for the gym to quality business casual wear.

And then there's the kids who remind White why he's in this journey.

"We get children who have two different sized feet or are wearing a brace of some kind that requires two different size shoes," White said. "They are accustomed to having to buy the larger size. And that leaves the smaller foot swimming with space.

"When a child is accustomed to having to settle, it's heartbreaking. But when they come into our place and find out they can get two different sizes, one for each foot, and they only get charged for one pair — the smile on their face is priceless. It's a moment we take great joy in doing."

Distance running has helped shape Adam White's life, whether it be on the road, or a track or in his store. He's grown from it, been changed by it, and he yearns to pass that spark along to everyone who walks through his doors.

"It's been a wild rollercoaster ride," White said. "I've been on that ride a few times. It's been anything but a smooth ride for sure. But every time the ride ends, I run back in line and say, 'Let's go again.' "

Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or [email protected]. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Passion for running: How Adam White and RC Outfitters became a perfect match