Mike Wallenfels was recently elected chairman of Outdoor Industries Association, succeeding GoLite CEO, Kim Coupounas, who held the position for two years. Wallenfels has been president of Mountain Hardwear since November of 2004. Before that he was VP of sales for Mountain Hardwear for ten years following a successful career at Sierra Designs.


Wallenfels has served on OIA’s board of directors since 2000 and as vice chairman for the past two years.



 






















































BOSS: What were your overall impressions of OR Summer Market?
MW: I left the show feeling extremely positive regarding the overall attitude and health of the industry. It seemed that retailers were working on some very progressive issues locally. Of course, there are always some topics that are out there that are where the best way is for retailers to address them in their local regions.
Really, I think everyone came off of what seemed to be a very strong end of season. It seemed relatively weak early on, so some people came in talking about some very challenging times, but the general attitude seemed to be very good. Gear sales seemed to have increased a bit after decreasing for several years. I think that a number of retailers have started to adjust their product mixes to take advantage of more lifestyle type clothing and apparel and I think that higher-end approaches are paying off well for these retailers.
Where things become challenging in the market right now is where retailers are competing primarily on price with very similar product. So, of the specialty shops that I had conversations with, the ones that are looking at their mix of product and are trying to be unique, are trying to be different, the consumer seems to be shopping them very well.
So, when you look at it all combined, it is a strong, healthy market. When you look at individual markets, there can be some challenges. For example, there are several major metropolitan areas that have several large-format retailers, all competing very directly with one another, without any specialty presence to speak of.
BOSS: Did the new floor plan and additional square footage help the show from your view point?
MW: We tried to take advantage of the new floor plan. The disappointment with the floor plan is that, yes there is more square footage, but the big decision and debate is over how usable that square footage is. It’s quite a challenge right now, trying to create activity-based, functional areas where certain types of companies and certain types of businesses can be located. However, when the day is done, everybody wants to be where the main program and the main party is happening and they don’t want to be left out in the upper decks.
So, Nielsen and the Outdoor Retailer folks are working extremely hard at trying to encourage people to expand their horizons out to the newly built-out area. It’s absolutely necessary that we embrace those parts of the trade show and travel there and use them in the most effective way in order to make the trade show as fruitful as possible.
I think it was an extremely good move by Outdoor Retailer to open up the Energy Solutions Center as a design forum next year. Most people think that the whole show is all about retailers and manufacturers buying and selling finished goods, but I have a whole lot of people at Mountain Hardwear and there are a lot of other attendees that are planning and doing business for the next fall season. Trying to find the right space that is relevant is very difficult. I think Kenji [Haroutunian, show director for Outdoor Retailer] did a great job of trying to meet the minds between the manufacturers, the wholesalers and the retailers and bring some relevance for all parties.
That being said, there is still a bit of work to be done, especially as we look at trying to expand the show going out into the future. Larger companies have enough people on their teams that are specialized, so they can be in different places at the same time. Some of the smaller companies are going to face some real challenges, because the person doing the selling is often the same one doing all of the design work.
BOSS: How did OIA’s new Eco Working Group Meeting turn out?
MW: I think there was great progress made at the Eco Working Group meeting given that not that long ago in Boulder we met just to talk about the concept. We looked at what other industries have done with similar efforts. This meeting started to consolidate itself. It wound up having very strong management and senior directional people from some very important fabric suppliers, finished goods manufacturers and retailers.
The fact that we came up with a meeting schedule, dues structure, and a primary mission, objective and vision for what to do going forward – that was all agreed to during this meeting – these are all great initial steps. Sometimes, working on details can take quite a while, but I think the group is very interested in getting this done. It’s a wonderful example of the industry coming together as a whole, as competitors that can work together to get it done. Defining what it is will be the next steps.
BOSS: The Thought Leaders Symposium was a first for OIA this year – how was that received?
MW: It was a first for us. There is an overall concept that we put forth that OIA is trying to add to the two Outdoor Retailer trade shows. We see trade shows as more than just as a place where manufacturers and retailers come together to do business. That’s not just what it is about. You wind up having the significant players and the “thought leaders” coming together and OIA really wants to encourage a lot more discussion and a lot more thinking and a lot more action from companies when it comes to the mega-issues the industry is facing.
The key message for this thought leadership conference was getting youth active and I think that it spurred quite a bit of conversation. I think I saw some people starting to talk about taking action and participating in some of the programs that OIA has available.
It was interesting, a number of people that I talked to said, “I don’t know why I’m here but I know I need to be here. It’s that important.” The industry has that attitude and the event had great attendance and a lot of energy was in the room. It was great to be able to get away from the show and mix in a way we don’t typically get to.
BOSS: Finally, OIA held their annual industry breakfast before the first day of the show, what were your thoughts on the event this year?
MW: The breakfast is a great communal gathering for the industry – it seems to be a standard and I see a lot of the same faces every year. It has been a platform for the sustainability conversation quite a bit. It’s an ongoing portion of an overall platform that OIA has to try to educate and inspire people that are in the industry. There have been some great speakers and then there have been some okay speakers. The topic that was covered this year probably helped a lot of manufacturers think of ways they can address sustainability, but I think it is debatable how directly we can take what Starbucks has done and apply it to what we do everyday. But, boy it really shows that when there is a corporate commitment, you can effect change. So, hopefully that was the primary take-away of the group.