Outdoor Insight

educational component at the show this summer, as well as an online component that kicks off in July. Utilizing outdoor space is also a focus, with a "Basecamp" for events that will be located across from the Colorado Convention Center entrance. Nicholson says she feels many in the indus- try feel it is "important to show up" — not just to industry events, but to "show up" in a more general sense for causes and beliefs overall — a hallmark of the outdoor community. As for OR this summer, she said, "It is a great opportunity for us all to get together and have a collective voice on how we recover from this and move the industry forward." l N E W S / A N A L Y S I S OUTDOOR EYE July 2021 • Outdoor Insight • 9 outdoorinsightmag.com M aking its debut this August, The Big Gear Show is an invitation- only, multi-category trade event for the paddlesports, cycling, climbing, and camping markets. The show's open-air, outdoor, demo experience will be fully integrated into the event, allowing buyers to test gear all day. Attendance is limited to 500 retailers (whose travel will be subsidized) and 250 brands. The veteran industry team behind the show, whose launch was delayed this past year due to COVID, includes co-founders Sutton Bacon and Darren Bush, Outdoor Show Director Kenji Haroutunian and Bike Show Director Lance Camisaca. Key brands committed to The Big Gear Show by contract include, from the camping and climbing brand side: Camp Chef, Eureka, Goal Zero, Jetboil, Kleen Kanteen, La Sportiva, Liberty Mountain, Miir, Osprey, Petzl, Princeton Tec, SOG Specialty Knives & Tools, Scarpa, Sterling Rope, and more. In the cycling category, com- mitted brands include Camelbak, Diamondback, Giro, Pinarello, POC Sports, Stan's NoTubes, Tern Bicycles, Troy Lee Designs, Wahoo Fitness, and Yakima. In paddlesports, brands on board include AIRE, Astral, AquaGlide, Eddyline Kayaks, Esquif Canoe, Johnson Outdoors / Ocean Kayak and Old Town Canoe, Oru Kayak, Seattle Sports, Suspenz, Tahe Outdoors / SIC, Wenonah Canoe / Current Designs, and more. Key retailers committed to attend The Big Gear Show by contract (and receiving financial support to attend), include specialty shops like Appomattox, Bill Jackson's, Sunlight Sports and The Trail Head, as well as regional and mass merchants like Scheels and Moosejaw, and e-commerce retailers like Backcountry.com and Outdoorplay, as well as independent bike shops such as Global Bikes, Landry's, Motion Makers, and Wheel & Sprocket. Sutton Bacon, co-founder, The Big Gear Show, answered a few of our questions about The Big Gear Show. What are some of the key aspects of your show that you see potential attendees being most excited about? "The Big Gear Show is different because of who we're looking to serve. We want this to be a place for retailers to do business with brands. Specialty retailers and brick-and-mortar stores are continually challenged by the ongoing and relentless change in retail trends, and yet we see them as very integral to our communi- ties. We need them and we want to see them supported. So one thing we're doing that is incredibly unique to most national shows is that we are paying them to come through our retailer incentive program. Another focus of ours is to offer a myriad of bonus features to show attendees. We're looking at some really creative and compelling media opportunities. We're working with the NBDA, People for Bikes, grassroots organizations, and industry veterans to build an educational tract that runs through the whole show — six sessions a day for each of the three days. These seminars will be beneficial to the retailers. Attendees can just drop in on whatever they're really interested in. We're really excited about it. I guess the last big one to mention is that by holding this show, outside in Park City, not only is it safer because of the pandemic, but it takes so much of the pressure off the brands. This is not a 'minimum $30k investment' kind of event for brands just to get in the door, like other shows can be. It doesn't cost two grand to hang a sign. You don't need to pay a union to put up your booth. In fact, we are encouraging Bringing a New Approach to the Trade Show Scene The Big Gear Show, Park City, UT, August 3-5 OR returns to Denver this August.

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