Nielsen Expositions and Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) have begun soliciting industry input on whether to keep the expanding biannual Outdoor Retailer (OR) show at the Salt Palace Convention Center when its contract expires after the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in August 2014.
In a statement last week, the two organizations said they launched “Collective Voice” at www.outdoorretailer.com/collective-voice to foster dialog because the show has outgrown the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. The facility has hosted the show in Salt Lake City since 1996, but last summer Nielsen had to erect a large tent outside to accommodate 150 vendors. The decision elicited complaints from many of the newer exhibitors who landed there and renewed debate over OR’s decision to allocate scarce floor space inside the convention center to component suppliers such as fiber, fabric and other textile companies. Perhaps more concerning is a lack of hotel rooms that has forced attendees to travel farther from Salt Lake City to secure lodging.
While Nielsen shut down its Fly Fishing Retailer and Action Sports Retailer shows in 2009 and 2010, OR has flourished as the dominant trade show for active outdoor lifestyle brands. Growth has come not only from fly fishing and action sports brands, but also from companies that sell apparel, footwear, consumer electronics and other gear for performance sports such as running and triathlon and rapidly growing new categories such as stand-up paddleboarding, or SUP.
At the Collective Voice website, visitors can learn about OR’s evolution, the pros and cons of growing the show and six other venues that could host either the summer or winter editions of the show, or both. Future potential venues for the show include: the Salt Palace, Colorado Convention Center (Denver), Sands Expo & Convention Center (Las Vegas), Las Vegas Convention Center, Mandalay Bay Convention Center (Las Vegas), Anaheim Convention Center and the Orange County Convention Center (California).
By providing a secure moderated online forum, the site is meant to encourage show stakeholders to engage in a discussion of the show’s future. Nielsen and OIA will send an email invitation to the discussion soon and follow up next month with an email invitation to participate in an online survey.
“We've done surveys of the OR audience for years, and have even posted the results on our website for the whole industry to see,” said Kenji Haroutunian, vice president at Nielsen Expositions and Outdoor Retailer show director. “Though the surveys are extremely helpful, the Collective Voice project adds an important new element to the process by giving every industry stakeholder a voice. This way, a dialog can develop amongst industry leaders and a thoughtful, inclusive and open process can drive the resulting decisions that will determine the future success of the OR shows.”
The industry outreach effort, analysis of the input, sharing of the findings with the industry, and determining the strategic direction of the show will span several months with the goal to decide a show direction in the near future. Currently Outdoor Retailer has a contract with the Salt Palace that expires after Summer Market 2014.
