Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 2015 Report ~When I went there, it was like this~
Written by Yasushi Hisatomi
Finally, I went to the "Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 2015" (OR), one of the largest outdoor equipment exhibitions in the United States.
It is held twice a year in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the new outdoor gear for next season will be unveiled by outdoor manufacturers around the world, so Outdoor Gearzine has always wanted to see it with this eye. So, when I went there, I was surprised, and I mean, it was on a scale beyond imagination that I couldn't put into words. Since it is impossible to tell you all about this in one report, we will be sharing the most popular gear information into several parts in the future, but we will first share the overall event with plenty of visuals!
Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 2015 Click here to see the highlighted gear for each category
table of contents
Starting with the slow atmosphere of Open Air Demo
First, the day before the opening of the main venue, the convention center, was held on the shore of the lake, about an hour's bus from downtown, where you can display and try out a variety of gear, including kayaks and stand-up paddles (SUPs). First of all, the atmosphere in this venue was really relaxed and open. The video has been uploaded from the official site, so please take a look if you like.
The booths of paddle gear makers, including SUP, lined up on the sandy beaches on the lakeside, are easy for visitors to try them out. Unfortunately, I wasn't in good condition for clothes to get wet (although most of the people around me are light casual clothes), so I was a total amateur and I was reluctant to do so.
I'm not familiar with paddle gear, but there were a lot of different vehicles available.
What's interesting is that this entire exhibition is basically only available for pre-registered participants, such as manufacturers, distribution, retailers, media, designers, etc., but there are a wider range of people, including children who are probably the family members of the people involved, including people of all ages and genders (and dogs) than you might think. Participants can test drive canoes or SUPs on the lake, participate in the game, or relax with a craft beer (free of charge!) while listening to music. I couldn't stop grinning alone, crying out at this open atmosphere that I had been completely craving.
"Rubber Mohyo Mohyo Toy Scoop with Head Sliding" game.
Chill out space. The music was a bit different, like Gypsy Kings.
My brother lets me demonstrate electric skateboarding.
And at the start of the event, the exhibitions were overwhelmingly overwhelming.
Until the day before, the unexpectedly quiet town was bustling with people like a lie, and the venue, which was probably wide enough to surpass Tokyo Dome, was filled with outdoor people from all over the world, so we took a break from relaxing. The vast venue features over 1,600 exhibitors in a small space.
The view of the venue is seen from a slightly bird's-eye view.
Each manufacturer designs the booths freely, and the major manufacturers, especially American manufacturers, are luxurious sets that are truly impressive and are designed to suit the brand's worldview.
KEEN is a start-up company as a shoe manufacturer, but it has a large space and is assembled in three dimensions. I feel the momentum.
OSPREY's booth, familiar to Japan, is made up of a spacious space and walls that evoke the mesh fabric of the Anti Gravity Suspension.
Do only a few people in Japan know? At prAna, there is a constant crowd in the large booth, and you can feel the establishment of yoga culture in America.
I'm so excited about the new products I'm coming across everywhere
If you walk around the large venue, you'll notice all kinds of products related to almost all outdoor sports (backpacks, camping, hiking, climbing, alpine climbing, running, trail running, cycling, mountain biking, triathlon, fishing, health & fitness, military survival, high-performance nutritional foods, paddle sports, surfing, water sports, pet supplies, skating, lifestyle, exercise, yoga, etc.) that catch your eye without much of a connection, so you'll be first struck by the chaos (of course, he has poor English skills).
After going one round, I gradually started to organize my head and found out that there are three types of gear that I think are new:
- New products from a well-known Japanese manufacturer, and will be available in Japan in the future.
- Existing products (new products) from manufacturers that are familiar in Japan, but categories not yet available in Japan
- Products from manufacturers that have never seen before (of course not available in Japan)
Three. At first I was excited about new products from major manufacturers, but once I settled down to a certain extent, I realized that when it came to Japan, like 1. (without fear of misunderstanding) it simply fulfilled my desire to know more about things that will eventually be revealed in Japan faster than others (though of course, this is important when it comes to learning about trends in outdoor gear and telling people who haven't come here). When you learn about this, the things that gradually become more interesting are those 2 and 3, which you will never encounter in Japan.
Even Belgans, which can only be seen in tents and canoes in Japan, has a new backpack that looks really good.
The long-established Italian store Salewa has become a brand that is difficult to obtain in Japan, but there were many trekking shoes with a nice feel.
I actually went there and found out that once globalization progressed this much, it seemed that most of the items that are in circulation in the United States are now available in Japan as well. In that sense, it can be said that there weren't many unknown manufacturers, but even so, when you dig, there are some interesting gear in unexpected places (for example, the photo below). We will also introduce these interesting gear in a compilation from next time onwards, so please look forward to it.
Natural soaps and shampoos made from natural origins have surprisingly not yet arrived in Japan.
I have not yet seen a brand of environmentally friendly socks made from polyester recycled from fishing nets in Japan.
It's a completely different way to deal with different manufacturers
What was confusing about the first thing that happened was the response to each manufacturer's media. It may be because the other person was just an amateur who couldn't speak English for stray media like me, but basically there are differences in response to the situation in which the manufacturer doesn't talk without an appointment, to the fact that they will not only introduce you, but also give you catalogs and samples, the response really depends on the manufacturer. Even if the filming was included as a media outlet, it was not safe, and it was banned for each manufacturer, or rather welcome.
Yes, before this is a venue for glamorous presentations, it is a venue for serious business negotiations and business between manufacturers and retailers. As proof of this, the more major manufacturers become, the more magnificent the booths have great business negotiation chairs and desks, and when I stopped by, business negotiations are normally held next to me, and almost all the manpower is spent on them. In that sense, I was deeply aware that in order to get the information I wanted in this place, I need to get used to it, courage, strategy, and high English and communication skills... Of course, even if you think it's tough, your bored brother may respond fairly politely at some times, and this seems to be a very common pattern in this country where you can't know until you try it.
The North Face booth was the largest I've seen this time, but I was hard to listen to because I was busy dealing with customers.
The Western Mountaineering booth, famous for its downs, has nowhere to go except for business negotiation space.
I was moved by the welcome of venture garage makers.
This can be a bit tingly, but at the booths made up of small, new garage makers, you can experience the excitement and friendly interactions of new discoveries unique to these open exhibitions. This time, the area where many of these garage makers gather is a pavilion tent that is located just a street from the main venue. After traveling for days, you realize that this is the real joy of OR. The photos are welcome, they explain things they haven't heard, they try to give them a real experience, and it's noisy to take samples with them. It's a truly fun time.
"SUP yoga" courses were held all day long in the special pool in front of the pavilion. The SUP boom here is real! ?
The pavilion was filled with a variety of garage makers.
Relax in the atmosphere of a night party
I haven't really understood everything, but on the evenings during the event, some kind of event is held every day in the spaces outside the venue, restaurants and bars, which is also a big difference from Japanese exhibitions. Sometimes it's a charity party like the one shown in the photo below, a music event hosted by a sponsor, or a premium screening of a special movie. Anyway, the day is filled with consideration and gimmicks so that everyone involved in the outdoors can interact with them as deeply as possible and enjoy them to the fullest. From my experience participating and entertainment and tech festivals in the United States
Not only parties but also families could participate, and there were various attractions, exhibitions, games and more at these parties. There are some areas where there are no people at all, but no one cares about whether it's popular or unpleasant (it may be me the only one who was thinking about that). Those who want to participate do it. Such a normal atmosphere flows like it's normal.
summary
This is a four-day period filled with exciting encounters that are irresistible for outdoor enthusiasts. There were many things that I couldn't tell you all about, but at the end, although I had predicted a certain extent, I found out clearly when I actually visited. This is not to be excited by the new products of individual major manufacturers, but the immeasurable value of this show is the place where you can share your encounter with new value, such as "What kind of incredible concept new sports, manufacturers, and gears will emerge this year," which you can only experience here. What I was able to realize this was very meaningful in thinking about the outdoors of Japan in the future.
I spoke with a Japanese manufacturer exhibiting here, and it seems that even more recent times, new manufacturers have been exhibiting slightly more slowly than a few years ago. Still, (regardless of whether the product is good or bad), it is not simply a great thing to be given equal space for manufacturers with no name or proven track record and to present to many retailers, but it has a great significance to foster industry and culture development. The roots of America's strength, which is constantly being created and metabolized, can be clearly seen in the outdoor industry. Although the fields are different, this structure is exactly the same in the IT industry and music industry. Is Japan just fine with the losses coming from here? I couldn't help but feel this feeling again as I came here.
Now, from now on, I would like to introduce some of the most popular gear that has come to mind as a result of walking around with my feet on my feet for three days, so please wait a while. See you next time!
