OR survives economic downturn
According to organisers at the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market, 110 new exhibitors attended this year’s show, which ran January 22-25. Despite this, the number of attendees (approximately 16,500) fell around 5% and floor space sold (330,000 net-sold, sq. ft.) dropped as a result of the economic downturn.
"Historically, the outdoor industry has done well in economic downturns, and this trend appears to be holding true today as our overall numbers are down only slightly from last year's Winter Market," said Kenji Haroutunian, Outdoor Retailer show director. "Although some manufacturers and retailers sent fewer people to this year's show, the right exhibitors and buyers were in attendance, and orders were definitely being written on the show floor."
Highlights at the Backcountry Base Camp this year included a new, more realistic testing track for Nordic skiing and an avalanche safety product demo where show director, Kenji Haroutunian, was embedded in a six-foot pile of snow for an hour.
A centralised community space located on the show floor, the Backcountry Village, provided a neutral forum and meeting space for the products, people and technologies. Feature presentations in the village included the Winter Wildlands Alliance Film Festival and Save Our Snow with world champion freeskier Alison Gannett.
Meanwhile, in the Scandinavian Village, OR attendees were able to explore the product offering and culture of members of the Scandinavian Outdoor Group (SOG), 30 Scandinavian outdoor brands established to serve and support retail customers and media in European markets.
