Nielsen Sports Group promoted Kenji Haroutunian to be the new show director for the Outdoor Retailer trade shows. Haroutunian has been a member of the Nielsen Sports Group team since 1999, most recently as a senior account executive for the Outdoor Retailer and FlyFishing Retailer trade shows. He fills the vacant position most recently held by Peter Devin. Haroutunian also became the new show director for the FlyFishing Retailer World Trade Expo.

As the new show director at OR, Haroutunian will manage strategic planning, staff, sales, marketing and budgeting for the bi-annual event, and also work closely with OIA to encourage growth opportunities for core partners. Haroutunian was instrumental in producing Backcountry Base Camp and helped develop Green Steps. Prior to joining Nielsen, he spent 14 years at A16.

“For over 20 years I’ve been advocating for people to get outdoors, and I hope to continue my work from this new post, serving the industry with the same mission,” said Haroutunian. “It’s really exciting to see the energy out there for youth involvement, for preserving our natural resources and promoting an active, healthy lifestyle.”

“Kenji understands the outdoor community’s needs and is passionate about our industry,” adds Frank Hugelmeyer, president and CEO of OIA. “Given Kenji’s excellent reputation and his expert knowledge of trade events, he will have the full support of the OIA in his new role. We congratulate him and look forward to working with Kenji and his team.”