Outdoor Retailer shared many details about its just completed June show in a press release Tuesday.
The three-day show, held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City in June:
- Drew nearly 1,700 attendees.
- Had more than 350 exhibiting brands from over 40 states.
- Focused on building purposeful relationships, highlighted innovation, and aligned with evolving consumer values such as wellness, sustainability, and performance, according to the release.
“Outdoor Retailer served as a vibrant hub for meaningful commerce and collaboration – bringing together hundreds of brands and buyers on a bustling, full-scale show floor designed to reflect the industry’s evolution,” said Sean Smith, Outdoor Retailer’s show director, in a statement.
Established business leaders, first-time exhibitors, advocacy groups, and other stakeholders came together under one roof to discuss the future of the industry, discover products, and talk about the most pressing challenges in outdoor.
“The outdoors runs on connections, and last week, we experienced that at Outdoor Retailer,” said Ted Ayliffe, CEO at Coulee Coffee. “From product collabs to potential retail partners and sustainability champions, we’re leaving Salt Lake City energized by what’s ahead.”
Photo courtesy of Outdoor Retailer.
“We’ve shown at Outdoor Retailer since the mid-’90s,” said Travis McMaster, general manager at Cocoon. “A brand wants to meet retailers and open doors. We’re here to sell stuff. We want to open new doors and revisit those relationships that we’ve had in the past. Ultimately that’s the goal. This year I wanted to work on things in between the aisles – make connections to help us with our direct-to-consumer business and connect with content creators and social media influencers, and this show hit the spot for us for the peripheral stuff beyond showing the brand to retailers.”
Industry Day Tackles Tariffs, Sustainability, and AI
Outdoor Retailer kicked off with its first Industry Day, an afternoon of discussions about issues such as tariffs, sustainability, and artificial intelligence, held one day before the trade show floor opened. Executives from Cascale, Christy Sports, Cotopaxi, Google, Orvis, Salomon, Skullcandy, and more shared their insights with the audience of retailers, buyers, exhibitors, and outdoor enthusiasts.
“Industry Day at Outdoor Retailer was an energizing and impactful experience,” said moderator Sunny Stroeer, who owns Dreamland Safari Tours and is the founder of AWExpeditions. “The half-day pre-show conference was designed to inspire collaboration and conversation by bringing together the most thoughtful voices in our space to share ideas, challenge assumptions, and offer actionable strategies that can transform businesses, improve customer interactions, and help brands and retailers alike operate more efficiently. Events like this are critical to the health of the outdoor community, because when we come together to learn from each other, we move the entire industry forward.”
Photo courtesy of Outdoor Retailer.
In addition to Industry Day, the show featured educational programming in The Camp on the show floor with 14 sessions and 37 speakers, including Circana’s Julia Day, who shared outdoor industry data and insights.
Showcasing Innovation, New Products, and What’s to Come in 2026
The New Product Showcase and the Ascent area, dedicated to emerging outdoor brands, highlighted dozens of companies introducing new solutions and products. The Utah Outdoor Recreation State Pavilion Program highlighted local innovation, homegrown brands, and reinforced the role of regional outdoor recreation economies across the U.S.
The convergence of travel and outdoor was highlighted at the Travel Goods Association Travel Gear Pavilion, which showcased products from brands such as Osprey, Bellroy, Topo Designs, and more.
“As the travel industry has changed and grown and gone in different directions, it’s important for all of us to start finding different avenues for business,” said Cynthia Mitchell, senior sales manager at Go Travel, part of the Travel Goods Association (TGA). “I think that the most important thing here today, this week, is to make new contacts in different industries.”
“Sun Bum has a great partnership with Outdoor Retailer,” said Phil Demangone, senior sales manager at SunBum. “We continue our main mission on just sun education and sun safety, and just educating people on the brand, and then obviously gaining those retail partnerships that are long-lasting and connecting with the right retailers that can help us with that mission. This year, we just met with Zion National Park, which is the second largest national park in the country. Within a few moments, we were all shaking hands and already becoming friends and family. We were welcoming them into our program.”
“There’s been wins from all across the country,” said Dustin Smith, director of global wholesale sales at FAHLO. “It’s definitely been quality over quantity. We’re seeing high-end buyers from reputable stores and sources that we want to work with.”
Lindsay Hubley, senior vice president of the sports and outdoor group at Outdoor Retailer parent company Emerald X, said the outdoor industry is rapidly evolving due to shifting consumer expectations, economic forces, and cultural trends, and that next year’s show would take that into consideration.
“We recognize the need to evolve alongside it,” Hubley said. “We’re taking a thoughtful look at every aspect of the show to ensure we continue to meet the needs of the industry now and into the future.”
Kate Robertson can be reached at kate@shop-eat-surf-outdoor.com.
