Why hasn’t your company adopted the Higg Index to evaluate your supply chain? Perhaps you’re not sure how to get buy-in from your executive team to invest in the tool. Maybe you think you lack the internal human and budgetary resources. Or you’re afraid the tool’s built-in score sharing could expose internal business practices to competitors or could reflect poorly on your brand. Or maybe you think the various tools you’ve been using to internally audit your supply chain are sufficient. The people you’re about to hear from faced these same questions and challenges before they began using the Higg. But they and their companies recognized the value and the imperative of an industry-wide, standardized tool for measuring and benchmarking corporate responsibility. They are among the early adopters and biggest proponents of the Higg Index. Over the next hour, they explain why. If this doesn’t convince you, consider this: For a limited time, Outdoor Industry Association is subsidizing the cost of registration for all OIA brand members under $500 million annual revenue. Contact us at nhodgson@outdoorindustry.org for details on how to sign up and be a part of the industry’s sustainable business movement.
Episode guests:
As the retail landscape shifts and as consumer behavior shifts, it’s important that your in-store brick-and-mortar merchandising and display strategy shift with it. B&M stores have a lot of advantages over online retailers, and there are ways to leverage those when presenting your inventory to shoppers. This episode will first address high level merchandising strategy then delve deeper into specific topics: what outdoor specialty retailers can learn and apply from other retail categories and how to link in-store merchandise to digital channels, even without e-commerce.
Episode guests:
Robin Enright Salcido from Merchandising Matters - http://merchandisingmattersnow.com/
Judy Bell from Energetic Retail - http://www.energetic-retail.com/
Jill Nickels from Gensler - http://www.gensler.com/
Links from episode:
Under Armour Brand House case study - https://outdoorindustry.org/article/a-sure-fire-way-to-boost-holiday-sales/#articles,case-studies,marketing,retail
Shop Association - http://www.shopassociation.org/
OR Winter Market education sessions - https://outdoorindustry.org/events/outdoor-retailer/2017-winter-education-agenda/
This is the first in a series of quarterly updates from OIA's Executive Director, Amy Roberts. Amy speaks to our members about OIA's 3 pillars (policy, participation, sustainable business), how the election results will impact the industry, a change in trade show cycle, and the transforming retail environment.
“The outdoor recreation industry enjoys bipartisan support and OIA excels at working with both parties. Republicans and Democrats alike recognize the power and longevity of the outdoor recreation economy. We look forward to working with President Trump and his team to communicate that message and get to work on the many issues facing our industry.” —Amy Roberts, Executive Director of Outdoor Industry Association
In this episode, we speak with Alex Boian, Cailin O'Brien-Feeney, Rich Harper, and Jessica Wahl from OIA's Government Affairs team. How will a Trump presidency impact the outdoor rec economy, our public lands, and international trade? What newly elected members of congress are champions of the outdoor industry? What state- and local-level policy has us most excited? Listen to our 2016 Election Analysis to find out.
Outdoor specialty retailers are very unique among retail operations because they do so much more than sell products. They offer education and community events, they support recreational programs at local schools and parks, they often interface with local government on issues related to outdoor recreation, and they are general hubs of engagement for outdoorists in a town/city. Community engagement is a huge part of developing a strong reputation and loyal customer base.
This episode focuses on best practices for:
Show guests
Darren Josey, North American marketing manager at Polartec, sits down with Audio Outdoorist at Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 2016. In this interview, Darren discusses how Polartec works with brand clients to produce fabric in the locations where the customer cuts and sews. This reduces shipping costs, shipping times, and currency risk. We also talk to Darren about the "Made in America" movement and how it is the responsibility of both brands and consumers to understand and communicate the message.
Polartec's headquarters are in Lawrence, MA, where they continue to pioneer leading fabric technologies – category defining fabrics – used in the most challenging environments around the globe.