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OIA's Audio Outdoorist

Dig deep into the issues facing outdoor brands and retailers, from domestic vs. international manufacturing to brick-and-mortar vs. online commerce. Conversations with CEOs, VPs, supply chain reps, retail clerks, marketing gurus and an occasional celebrity outdoorist offer valuable insights and entertainment about the business of playing outdoors.
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Now displaying: Page 3
Apr 15, 2017
In 2016, we conducted an extensive series of interviews and surveys to find out how OIA—the outdoor industry’s membership trade association—can best support outdoor companies. What we learned is that our members see us as a convener—the unifying entity best equipped to galvanize the industry around three important issues: policy, participation and sustainable business. We then identified individuals who are already working to move the needle on those issues within their respective companies.
 
Today you’ll hear from two of those individuals. They are colleagues, friends, climate warriors, and outdoorists. They’ve been all over the world, from the offices of politicos in D.C. to the vast, sweeping landscape of the Artic to advocate for the protection of the outdoors. They are Gareth Martins and Lisa Pike Sheehy and they demonstrate that through collaboration, our industry as a whole can do more so much more than a single company or individual can do alone. That's the concept behind our new campaign and our strategic vision: Together We Are A Force.
 
Want to learn more about these individuals and the work OIA is doing to foster collaboration throughout the industry and to catalyze change? Visit outdoorindustry.org/outdoorist to subscribe to our weekly newsletter and our Audio Outdoorist podcast.
Feb 16, 2017

As evidenced by an open letter from more than 200 CEOs to the incoming Trump administration, the outdoor industry is 100-percent aligned on the importance of protecting our public lands. The letter, which is available on outdoorindustry.org, states: 

“It is an American right to roam in our public lands. The people of the United States, today and tomorrow, share equally in the ownership of these majestic places. This powerful idea transcends party lines and sets our country apart from the rest of the world. That is why we strongly oppose any proposal, current or future, that devalues or compromises the integrity of our national public lands.”

There is no doubt our industry stands united for public lands. However, as we’ve seen over the past month, there are a range of opinions about how best to respond when those public lands are threatened, as they have been by policymakers in Utah. You’ve likely been following the recent news and the passionate debate surrounding the Outdoor Retailer trade show—whether it should stay in Utah or leave. To be sure, it’s a complicated issue. In today’s episode, we talk with OIA’s executive director, Amy Roberts, about the outdoor industry’s response to the state of Utah requesting that federal protection be removed from bears ears be national monuments.

Dec 8, 2016

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:

Ali Kenney, Senior Director of Global Supply Chain and Sustainability, Burton
Greg Gausewitz, Product Sustainability Manager, REI
Peter Haney, Manager of Stakeholder Engagement, Corp responsibility, Columbia Sportswear
Ned Hutchinson, Senior Product Manager, Mountain Khakis
Bernhard Kiehl, Leader of Fabrics Division Sustainability, Gore
Tiffany Teaford, Commercialization Manager, Orvis
Dec 1, 2016

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/

 

Nov 22, 2016

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.

Nov 16, 2016

“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. 

Oct 24, 2016
There’s more to setting up an insurance plan than getting property and theft protection for your store. For example, shops have to protect themselves from liability when renting ski or bike equipment. What insurance do you need when hosting an event? What about when you ask an employee to participate in an outdoor activity where he/she could get hurt? 
 
In this episode, we speak with Rob Martin, director of Outdoor Sports Insurance (a program from Horizon Agency, an OIA vendor partner). Rob will comment on the unique insurance needs of outdoor retailers and give advice on how they can best protect themselves. Joe Butler of Black Creek Outfitters and Bob Wade of Ute Mountaineer also chime in with their experiences.
 
Relevant links:
Rob Martin: (952) 914-7165, rob@horizonagency.com
Outdoor Sports Insurance - http://www.outdoorsportsins.com/
Ute Mountaineer - http://www.utemountaineer.com/
Black Creek Outfitters - https://www.blackcreekoutfitters.com/
 
Jul 29, 2016
For any small retail business, finding, interviewing and hiring good employees can be a challenge. For specialty outdoor retail, it can be even trickier because you want/need to find employees who are not only capable of the work tasks but who also exude passion and authenticity for outdoor products and activities and who reflect your store’s vibe. We often remark that great outdoor shops are convivial, communal hubs/gathering places. They’re about so much more than the transactions at the register. The personnel in the store and in the backroom are key to maintaining that community.
 
Show guests include Ponch Membreno of Toad and Co. (www.toadandco.com), Lori Kleiman of HR Topics (http://hrtopics.com/), and Nicole Leinbach Reyhle of Retail Minded (https://retailminded.com).
 
 
May 18, 2016

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:

  • Creating unique and impactful community events/programs
  • Partnering with brands/suppliers on in-store or local promotions and events
  • Local advocacy—how retail shops can lead efforts to promote recreation and conversation. Why is it important for shops to be the voice of these efforts in a community?

Show guests

  • Darren Bush, Owner and Chief Paddling Evangelist at Rutabaga Paddlesports
  • John Mead, Owner and President of Adventure 16
  • Deek Heykamp, Owner of Next Adventure
Feb 11, 2016

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.

Dec 21, 2015
In this episode of Audio Outdoorist, we talk with Chris Ritchie, manager of PR and communications at Thule. Out of about 2,000 workers worldwide, Thule employs 1,000 in the USA. The benefits of making products in the USA go beyond branding and high-quality production for a hard goods producer. Ritchie says that strategically located factories allow Thule to respond to trends in weather and reduce shipping costs. 
 
Thule Group is the owner of a collection of brands all related to the outdoors and various types of transportation solutions. It is the market leader in cargo carriers for automobiles and a leading company in the outdoor and bags market. The Thule motto is "Bring your life”.
Dec 7, 2015
We are joined by Neal Caplowe, founder and owner of Sport Science, a "Made in the USA" t-shirt company. It wasn’t always that way - Sport Science originally manufactured shirts in Central America and Asia but decided to move the process to the US to achieve faster turn times and more control. Neal talks about how labor cost is one of the largest variables when considering domestic production. Has he ever considered returning to international production? Listen to find out!
 
Sport Science was founded in 2004 when Neal Caplowe found himself wanting a versatile performance shirt that wasn’t just for running and training. Using drirelease™ technology, the engineered yarn is made up of 85% synthetic/hydrophobic fibers and 15% natural/hydrophilic fibers. Sport Science products are made in the Carolinas within a 200 mile radius, cutting out nearly 7,850 miles of traveling and all the fuel that goes with it. Sport Science is proud to keep their carbon footprint small, as well as keep jobs in the USA.
Nov 16, 2015

In this episode, we chat with Alex Kutches, the vice president of sales and marketing at Mystery Ranch and Kletterwerks, about the challenges and rewards of producing gear in the U.S. Kutches discusses the impacts of the TPP on domestic gear manufacturers and how his brands have navigated the Berry Amendment. As a heritage brand with strong ties to the U.S. military and strong consumer appeal in  high-fashion channels, Kletterwerks has established its reputation as a premium brand.

In 2012, the Gleason family (owners of Mystery Ranch and formally Dana Designs) re-launched Kletterwerks, a company that was originally started in 1975 by Dana Gleason. Today's line of Kletterwerks packs reflects the style of those built 40 years ago.

Oct 28, 2015

We sit down with Mike Cangi, vice president of United By Blue, to talk about the production of two products made entirely in the USA: the Ultimate American Sock (made of bison wool) and the Ultimate American Jacket (made of bison down). Mike discusses Made in the USA branding, the challenges of domestic manufacturing, and what needs to happen for this patriotic movement to continue.

United By Blue is a lifestyle apparel and accessories brand designed for the urban and outdoor adventurer. Catering to men, women, and children, products include eco centric organic cotton t-shirts, knits, and sweaters along with rugged waxed canvas bags with classic details and artisan jewelry. For every product sold, United By Blue removes 1 pound of trash from oceans and waterways through company organized cleanups.

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