Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) is looking for retailers and manufacturers to provide data for our biennial outdoor industry benchmarking reports. These reports are invaluable tools that help companies analyze industry-wide financial, operating and compensation norms and performance metrics. Surveys are due April 30.
 
OIAs benchmarking reports allow companies to gauge their performance against typical and high-profit peers, and also provide:



  • Comprehensive financial averages – return on investment, gross margin, asset productivity and much more
  • Industry-specific compensation norms and averages
  • Aggregated operating data – sales information, operating expenses, employee productivity, advertising expenditures, and more
     

Industry participation is key to these studies, said David Mudd, OIAs business intelligence manager. The broader the participation, the more accurate the data. And the participating companies really benefit because they get a customized look at how they stack up against others in the industry and how they can improve profits.
 
By participating in the survey, companies receive:



  • An industry-wide summary report
  • A customized Profit Improvement Profile (PIP) – a $10,000 value – which confidentially compares results at participating firms with those of peer groups and provides suggestions for improving profitability.
  • The PIP The Profit Toolkit Online – a spread sheet-based tool that provides simple guides to help plan and track improvement
     

I get lots of benchmarking reports but this one is the very best, said Keith Jackson, president of Industrial Revolution in Tukwila, WA. Its the most relevant because the others in the study are as close to ‘peers as Im going to find. I like the breakdown that shows the full data set as well as the high profit companies. Though I try to keep almost all of my records digitally, this report is one of the few things I also keep on paper because I reference it regularly.
 
Having been in the fly fishing business for 22 years, we have always worked hard to identify the latest trends and stay on top of them, said Tony Gehman, president of TCO Fly Shop in Bryn Mawr, Penn. The OIA reports not only validate our beliefs but also help us adjust where havent thought of. We use the OIA reports each year to better forecast our selling season and capitalize on bottom line.
 
Participant information is absolutely safe and confidential. All participant data sets are treated with complete confidentiality by Profit Planning Group, the administrators of the survey. Data are aggregated to prevent identification of any individual firm. All survey forms and files are destroyed after processing, and at no time will OIA have access to company-specific data.
 
All outdoor industry retailers and manufacturers are invited to participate. Companies do not have to be an OIA member to participate.
 
Completed surveys are due by April 30, 2013. Download the survey file today at outdoorindustry.org/benchmarking.
 
To learn more, contact David Mudd, OIAs business intelligence manager at 303.327.3505 or dmudd@outdoorindustry.org. OIA members can download the 2011 benchmarking reports at outdoorindustry.org/benchmarking.