OR Blog

Just another outdoorsy picture...

Chad on the Grand by TO

This is one of those images (taken by Timmy O'Neill) worth a thousand words; something resonates about this image overlooking the Jackson 'Hole', taken from the summit of the Grand, Sept. 11, 2012. It's Chad Jukes, friend of the Outdoor Industry, Paradox Sports and the world. He's apparently hindered somehow by being a lower leg amputee, but I don't see much evidence of that here.  Doesn't affect his trumpeting either, I can attest. But it does deepen the meaning and resonance of the image for outdoor professionals and for Americans that he lost it serving our country in Iraq.  It's the ultimate expression of personal freedom, blowing his trumpet triumphantly from that lofty mountaintop perch. 
It's way after the 11th anniversary of 9/11, but this shot is truly timeless. What does it mean to you?

 

Kenji

 

Summer 12 coverage

Some interesting links following the Summer Market 2012 show in SLC. The best attended and largest OR show to date. This will be updated and enlarged as more content flows from the industry...

 

AUG 10 UPDATE -

SNEWS take on the political tussle over public lands and the implication for OR

Gear Junkie 'Gear of the Show' awards - there was no shortage of truly innovative products at Summer OR.  http://gearjunkie.com/best-in-show-outdoor-retailer-2012

 

AUG 9 UPDATE - This interesting article is well written, however our current contractwith SLC is through 2014 (not 2013 as is stated twice in the article). 

http://www.firsttracksonline.com/2012/08/06/outdoor-retailer-summer-markets-a-wrap

 

Live From OR videos front and center on the OR home page http://www.outdoorretailer.com/summer-market/

Quick video treatment from H2O Overdrive of the Open Air Demo featuring a wrap by Billy Currington (country music superstar)

The Bike Culture at #ORShow... alive and thriving!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/devakiananda/

From Abe Burmeister, design mind at Outlier

http://www.core77.com/blog/events/outdoor_retailer_summer_market_2012_recap_by_abe_burmeister_23129.asp

A somewhat off-kilter read on the politics of dancing with the show in SLC...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/outdoor-retailers-trade-show-gives-utah-governor-ultimatum-_-support-environment-or-lose-expo/2012/08/01/gJQA5Uy1PX_allComments.html#comments

we'll add more as posts from around the world show up! Check back often...

It's 5 O'clock Somewhere

First, thanks to all for the valuable feedback on our decision to push serving time back from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. during the show. I just got back from Friedrichshafen (The OutDoor Europe show), in the heart of the German countryside on Lake Constanz.  In this legendary country of brewing and imbibing, where young children are practically nursed on Hefeweizen or Spaten Boch, you would never guess what their industry show serving time is... yup, 5 p.m.  Wouldn't kid you.
 

This is a topic that we have received more and more feedback on as the show has seen the expansion from a few booths serving beer in the 90s to well over 50 booths serving beer on any given day, or hour,  of the show today. The celebration atmosphere of OR is both fun and functional, serving to rejuvenate and grease the wheels of networking for thousands of hard working industry business people toward the end of their work day on the show floor. I am, as show director of OR, no stranger to the celebration scene of the show... in fact, at my very first show attending as a retailer (before there was a Winter OR, in 1988), I quickly earned the nickname 'Mr. Vegas' for the pure zeal I put into that aspect of my work.  Different story I can tell you, maybe over a beer...

OR has developed a reputation as a show that gets business done, but has a great 'vibe' at the same time. We know that the party scene each day of the show (and well into the evening, of course) is part of the cultural fabric of the industry, and we would not think to eliminate it or take the show into the 'dry' zone.  Perish the thought.  But as the celebration scene has, like order deadlines, crept earlier and earlier, exhibitors’ and retailers' voices have gotten louder and more frequent, telling tales of disrupted and rushed 3:30 meetings due to the change in focus brought on with tapping the keg and turning up the tunes.  A few years ago we put in place a decibel ceiling of 85dB, which we know takes time and coaching to implement since most booth designers do not include a decibel-meter.  Exhibitors understand this disruption and have started to book softer, 'unplugged' type music that is more respectful of neighbors wrapping up business meetings.  In response to continued (and widespread) feedback, this year we did make the move to push serving time to 5 p.m. from 4 p.m.

Before the pitchforks and torches come out, keep in mind this is only for free alcohol pouring from booths on the show floor.  You can get a frosty cup of beer anytime from any concession stand, and at the New Exhibitor Pavilion – there is a new beer garden for those intrepid attendees getting their thirst on.  At Open Air Demo we will also have beer gardens – yes, count them, two.  That beer will be pouring earlier for sure, matching the more informal atmosphere of OAD leading into the main event. 

Although the overwhelming feedback on this move has been positive, we know this doesn't make everyone happy; we've therefore pushed the 'hard close' of the Salt Palace to 6:45 p.m. to extend party time in the booths... the dogs won't get let loose until 7 p.m.

We are always actively looking for ways to improve the show experience for everyone involved in the business, so please keep those comments coming through all the feedback vehicles we have at our disposal: Twitter (#ORShow, @outdoorretailer); Facebook (Outdoor Retailer); comment on this blog post; put something up in the Collective Voice, email us, or send an old-school letter to show director Kenji Haroutunian at the address below.  We'll take you seriously.

Seriously.  Look forward to celebrating with you in SLC in just a few days!

Kenji

[email protected]                            

Outdoor Retailer
31910 Del Obispo #200
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675


(er, if you send a bottle, give me a heads up... thanks)

UPDATED Friday 13th; Quick Links for WM12

In case the navigation on our site isn't as intuitive for you as we'd like, this blog will serve as an FAQ link lineup for those planning their OR Winter 12 experience and those who just want to know all that is happening in SLC in the outdoor biz the week of Jan. 16 (also MLK Holiday!).  BTW for you way-ahead planners, next year (2013) MLK bumps to Jan. 21, and our show continues to stage just afterwards Jan. 23 (AMDemo) thru 27. 

More future dates (and show hours)

Registration (badges/credentials to attend)

Download the Winter '12 Mobile App

Your show planner login - (registered attendees and exhibitors only)  (password is your badge # or customer #, or auto login from prior emails  you've received from us) 

All Mountain Demo at Solitude - (Jan. 18, Wed, before show)

Business Ed./Seminars - schedule

Exhibitor List/Floorplan - over 1000 exhibitors!  Plan well...

Entertainment/Party 'OR ROCKS!' Schedule -

Fashion Show info/schedule -

Student Design Competition 'Project OR' -

and... for good measure, a good basic short article on buying at a tradeshow... we know you already know, but basic reminders always help before entering the fray. 

See you in the aisles! 

KH

 

 

 

 

 

 

UPDATED Aftermath Summer OR 2011 & Review Link lineup

How about just a stream of consciousness phrase-fest of bytes I heard while in SLC this past week?  That's about all my addled brain can put forth at the moment, and I'll follow with links that can tell the story more in-depth.  Guess I'm still in 'space-efficiency' mode. 

#hyperlocal BestORShowever #notallfunandgames - O.R.D. - OutsideBestOfShow #ProjectOR Bucking the economic Trend #consolidation #rebooting Lots of Newness #allstarjam Making Things In America #novelconcept Eco-Index rising, Influencers/Thought Leaders/Top Talent #showgoeson After Hours, Sierra Nevada beer, 'Granola Disneyland', belly laughing, outdoorretailerhub.com, SLC tight fit, SLC hospitality, OPE Photo Expo, Sustainable Business, Sustainable Living Roadshow, Sustainable everything, Gear Junkie #bestinshow, Diversity initiatives (or not), OIA, OIBIZ, #outdooruniversity, See you at Rendezvous, Epic Brewery, Missed seeing you at OR, No Reported Thefts?, Reunion breakfast, Paddlesports Advisory Council, orders written, Recess is Back, #thisisntanorderwritingshow, launch successful, Guinness Book record, #SUPZilla, #actionsportsatOR, Growth strategy, #ecotone, Pavilion exhibitors - NEPV, #BSAatOR, IMBA #cyclingatOR, Uncle Archie, where's Beckey?, #fishingatOR Hey Laird, Hey Conrad, Climb Smart, TEDx-style, GearThatDoesn'tSuck Awards, New Product Preview, putthatcameradown!, Letmeshowyouthis, #justtakeasecond, Red Iguana, #Bombara, Park Cafe, Blisters On My Fingers, Curleigh-fried, No Bouldering Comp? #TimmyONeill, #Sharma, OR Daily online

SNEWS recap, with links to many OR Daily articles

http://www.snewsnet.com/cgi-bin/snews/Outdoor_Retailer_Summer_Market_2011_recap_081011.html

Get the full social media suite experience here(still jamming like the show is still on!)

http://www.netvibes.com/outdoorretailer#Outdoor_Retailer_Social_Media

And for levity...

 http://www.trailsedge.com/blog/how-to-drop-your-outdoorsiness-into-any-conversation/

 from the bike industry http://www.bicycleretailer.com/news/newsDetail/5801.html

from the Action Sports industry http://business.transworld.net/70332/features/outdoor-retailer-summer-market-day-1/

from the Fly Fishing viewpoint http://www.anglingtrade.com/2011/08/12/lively-discussions-follow-fly-retailers-visits-to-outdoor-retailer/

we'll keep updating as reviews, blogposts, image galleries and video keep rolling out to reveal the heart and soul of our industry today.  Keep up the energy, and spread it to our customers! 

Community Zones at Summer OR; the 'welcome center' for pros in Paddle, Running, Climbing, Design and Travel

I've been camping on this video for some time now (well about 10 months), and I've managed to get over the goofiness Michael exudes (certainly NOT moi, merci!)... also, I've made an even worse one recently, so suddenly this one doesn't seem nearly as bad anymore.  It's a good expose on the various community Zones at the OR Show, what the purpose is (never mind the beer) and it's got a few tech tips too for attendees.

 
In case our ramblings aren't super clear, here's a short list to prep for the show;

1) download a QR reader BEFORE you hit the show floor... many products, including ALL of the featured New Products in the EZ (Endurance Sports Zone) and the PZ (Paddlesports Zone) will use the QR technology to capture key product and contact info in your smartphone.
2) Download the ORShow mobile app, once it is released from the Apple store next week (July 11, hopefully).
3) Use the online show planner at http://www.outdoorretailer.com to see the live floorplan (including the must-see NEW EXHIBITOR PAVILION)m, plan your meetings in close clusters and avoid the cross-court hiking.
4) use the planner to incorporate the business ed. seminars you want to attend into your show planner. If you are registered, you have only to click the auto-link provided to you in a number of emails from us. Even if you didn't save them, just click 'forgot password' and follow the easy prompts to get in. See suggested products, brands, build your show plan and no spam or irrelevant messages.
5) Check the http://www.outdoorretailer.com site often as showtime approaches... many late-breaking elements will be announced in the coming weeks and the last thing you want is to get there and say "I had no idea that was going on!".

KH

SXSW and the future of events

UPDATE 4-19 - Here is an article that has some concrete takeaways from the SXSW experience... and yes SXSW was, as all good events need to be, an Experience. http://bit.ly/dTkhRV

and another review of the SXSW event.

 http://www.slideshare.net/christophercarfi/an-ants-eye-view-of-sxsw-2011-7274593

 

(original article below)

With Coachella staging now in SoCal, and South By Southwest (SXSW) just concluded in Austin, TX, the question lingers 'what are these events about?' and 'why do they draw so powerfully from the consumer base? 

Both events draw hundreds of thousands of people and major attention over the web as well, with live streaming content in the form of music concerts, parties, and other festival happenings.

What could OR learn from these consumer events functioning as quasi-b2b venues?  Is the culture of the outdoor industry in play at OR, and should it be?  Does it take from the strictly business attitude we foster?

My first time attending SXSW was this year, and my eyes were popped by the throngs of iPad-toting  twenty-somethings staffing booths and appearing to network like the gaming fiends they were in a previous life.  Brands like Gowalla and Blogworld were launched at prior versions of SXSW, and Coachella is following step as the 'arts gathering' to replace the failed Woodstock revival.   I wonder what really happened there (besides arson)...

Chime in.

KH

UPDATED 2/8 Linkfest featuring in-depth coverage of the OR Winter '11

 Well you can google search the crap out of 'Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 2011' or you can peruse the following links to see what influencers are saying about the show... there's a lot, and there could be more if you post up a reply with your favorite review on the hottest topic of the season, Outdoor Retailer (if I say so myself).  Dig in! 

Link to OR Show Dailies hot off the digi-press! http://bit.ly/gdeEsu 

These are great gear and show reviews from across the landscape of media verts, from core product junkies to the action sports edge. 

http://gearjunkie.com/outdoor-retailer-innovation-awards-winter-2011

http://labelnetworks.com/stories.php?id=755

http://vimeo.com/19271000 (vids from Outside Magazine coverage)

http://business.transworld.net/55935/features/retail-recon-outdoor-retailer-2011-winter-marketplace/

Just added Live video spots with Timmy O from the OR Show http://www.outdoorretailer.com/info/live-from-or 

 The effervescent Grace Potter (interviewed by Backpacker Mag)

http://www.backpacker.com/outdoor_retailer_grace_potter/blogs/daily_dirt/1960

http://www.venturethere.com/blogs/detail/Winter-2011-Outdoor-Retailer-Show/451.html

http://www.outdoorinformer.com/index.php/Table/GearPosts-Blog/ 

I'll keep adding but want to post this before jetting from the office today...

kh

And the Show goes on

Well the whirlwind of the OR Summer show 2010 has subsided, except for those of you road-tripping on to points N/S/E/W.  I didn't find any road trippers from the South, but certainly from every other direction and I bet there were a few willing to take highway and byway to SLC last week.
I know it's important to say, so I'll say it now that attendance at the show was up in all measured categories of buyers, stores, exhibitors, media, advocacy groups and overall attendance.  This bucks the trend in the trade show industry for sure... But is that really important, or just a sound byte for the data-starved b2b media market?   Is the show, after all, a quality play, or quantity play?  Is it a numbers game at the end of it all?

I'll let you answer that... likely a different answer depending on what your goals were going into the show.  Those numbers are important enough that I will be engaged in show stat analysis like never before in the next month (while planning Winter 11) to test Nielsen's new audience development technology called Alterian (who comes up with these names anyway?).  Store demographics, geographic profiles, attendance history patterns, success/failure with prospecting, and detailed survey results will all be part of the wrap up effort on the show.  As video, images, stories, reviews and commentary on the show stream onto YouTube/Facebook/Wordpress/Blogger/Twitter/LinkedIn over the coming weeks, can we really even say the show is over?

So instead of a post-mortem on SM10, I'll post up some of the highlights in pic form (pictures worth 1000 words each), and keep adding to it as the pieces of the overall puzzle flow into the public domain.

Kayak Polo at OAD!

Laird Hamilton at OAD mixing it up with the kayaks and canoes

Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar (in cap), White House Lead Counsel on Environment Nancy Sutley along with the entourage...

Wayne Gregory!   
 
 

Park n' Pedal program providing propulsion to purveyors who paddle and peddle proactively, previewing products for procurement

  

Introducing OR2010, our new Mobile App for Smartphones

Well after much research, many meetings, passaround sessions, and revising and refining, the OR2010 Mobile App is now a reality... Whew!

Get this on your phone now, and use it in planning, navigating, and getting the most out of your show experience.  This is the base version, usable on Droid, iPhone and Blackberry, and we will be upgrading the elements each show from here on out.

It's ready to download! Go to this page http://www.outdoorretailer.com/summer-market/show/mobile to download the OR 2010 smartphone app for web-based phones.

See the full press release here http://bit.ly/a7NomK