Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) and Outdoor Retailer will partner for a second time to present the Made in America Product Showcase at Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 2015, held on January 21-24, 2015 in Salt Lake City.
Building off the success of the inaugural Made in America Product Showcase at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 2014, the showcase will again feature products from 30 brands manufacturing product in America.
In recognition of the growing interest in domestic manufacturing, the showcase was launched in August 2014 to share the story of companies sourcing here in the United States. This first showcase met its goal of raising the profile of domestic manufacturing at Outdoor Retailer, and educating exhibitors, retailers, and media about American manufacturing.
In addition to the showcase, the OIA Made in America Working Group will offer Outdoor Retailer Winter Market attendees a passport which will feature participating brands and provide information about trends and challenges in domestic manufacturing. Passport holders can visit the 30 participating company booths to receive stamps after engaging with the participating companies. Those with at least five stamps will then be eligible to enter the Made in the USA product raffle to win a prize package from Made in America Product Showcase companies. Passport participants will receive one additional drawing entry for every five additional brands visited within the passport program.
“We were happy to give OR attendees a preview of Exxel Outdoors new Made in USA mummy and shaped sleeping bags, through this gorgeous and cleverly executed showcase, said Harry Kazazian, CEO of Exxel Outdoors. The display shined a new light on the wide range of American-made outdoor products, while letting people know at which booth they could view each product up close and personally.”
Dave Petri, Vice President of Marketing for Farm to Feet, added, The Made In America Product Showcase is a great addition to the Outdoor Retailer show. It provides participating companies an opportunity to feature their outdoor gear and highlight the investments they have made in the American manufacturing engine- growing American jobs and the economy.
Finished products will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis, and applications are now open.Companies can apply here. (To ensure the link works properly, please click directly from this release. Do not copy once you have opened in a browser.) To learn more about the showcase goals and participation details, please visit OIAs website. The deadline for applications is December 5, 2014 to be included in value-added passport program. The showcase will be located near the East Entrance of the Salt Palace Convention Center and will feature educational information about U.S. sourcing and manufacturing, as well as information about participating companies and their products.
In conjunction with the Made in America Product Showcase, an educational forum on Made in America trends and challenges will be held on Day 1 of the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market, Wednesday, January 21 in the New Product Zone.
The showcase is being presented by OIA and Outdoor Retailer in collaboration with the the OIA Made in America Working Group, made up of 175 companies. Launched in 2013, the working group was established to provide a forum for outdoor companies who manufacture in the United States to connect, share resources and communicate their needs and challenges to OIA. In the past year, the group has discussed such topics as the Federal Trade Commissions guidelines for Made in America labeling, the Berry Amendment and government procurement, databases and resources on U.S. sourcing, and workforce development. Those interested in more information or in joining the Made in America Working Group should email Lindsay Bourgoine, Advocacy Manager at OIA.
