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ISSUE 1605FEBRUARY 1, 2016
The Weekly Digital Magazine for the Active Lifestyle Market
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ISSUE 1605FEBRUARY 1, 2016
MARKET REPORT
4Track & Field’s David vs. GoliathA Former U.S. Olympian Challenges Exclusive Sponsorships
6Austin Canoe & Kayak and Summit Sports MergeSpecialty Outdoor Retail Business Eyes More Acquisitions
8By The Numbers
Columbia Sportswear Amps Up Sports Offerings
10NCAA:Don’t Pin Young Athletesto Just One Sport
11Movers & Shakers
22Industry Calendar
SGB EXCLUSIVE
12The Legacy of Sports Specialists Ltd.with Stephen Rogers and Scott Ford
ONE-ON-ONE
14Todd Spaletto Pesident, The North Face Paints A Broad Perspective Of The Outdoor Consumer
FEATURE
16Avy Safety Gear for 2017
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MARKET REPORT
TRACK & FIELD’S DAVID VS. GOLIATHA FORMER U.S. OLYMPIAN CHALLENGES EXCLUSIVE SPONSORSHIPS
A lawsuit filed last week challenging U.S. Track & Field and U.S. Olympic exclusive sponsorships raises the question of whether big brands are help-ing or hurting the sport.
Nick Symmonds, who won the 800-meter qualifying event at the U.S. Championships said he was dropped from Team USA for refusing to sign a document instructing him and other Team USA athletes to pack only Team USA, Nike or non-branded apparel for the Beijing trip.
The Brooks Running-sponsored athlete said at the time that he had no problem wearing Nike gear at official team events, but felt the agreement was overreaching. (What if all my underwear and socks aren’t Nike or Team USA?)
On January 20, running nutrition company, Run Gum, co-founded by Symmonds, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Eugene, OR, al-leging USATF and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) were preventing Run Gum and other companies from sponsoring individual athletes at upcoming trials.
The anti-trust lawsuit challenged the legality of sponsorship agreements used by major athletic brands in an effort to level the playing field among sponsors. The current system, where athletes competing during trials
could wear only logos belonging to apparel and equipment manufacturers that have been approved by the USOC, was accused of excluding competi-tors from receiving publicity at major sporting events.
And while the lawsuit didn’t name Nike Inc. as a defendant, the move was clearly a jab at the giant in the industry. In April 2014, Nike and US-ATF signed a long-term ongoing sponsor partnership extending from 2017 through 2040, which both skyrocketed support for Track & Field athletes and raised the fear that Nike may have bought out the sport. Sym-monds expressed disdain for the agreement when it was first signed, and that fire has only grown leading to the January suit.
“We are simply looking to level the playing field,” said Symmonds of the Run Gum lawsuit. “It is completely illogical and unfair to allow a very small sector of the market to have total control over the advertising space on an athlete’s competition uniform.”
This isn’t the first time the USATF has faced controversy over the issue. In the spring of 2014, high-end running apparel brand Oiselle published doctored images of USATF athletes at the World Relay Championships, replacing the Nike logo with their own. According to Oiselle, the purpose of the photos was to congratulate all athletes and brands in attendance.
“We are simply looking to level the
playing field.”
– Nick Symmonds, former Team USA Track & Field athlete and winner of the 800-meter U.S.
Championships
FEBRUARY 1, 2016 | SGBWeekly.com 5
While the lawsuit will likely take months to work itself through the courts, the move by Sym-monds is generating plenty of debate on social media:
• “That is how the sport will grow and become more popular.” [email protected]
• “Push for support for hard working athletes. We are much more than billboards for Nike.” - @cmchattie
• “You’re gonna be one of the most remem-bered USA runners in history. Keep up the fight.” - @thehoffman31
Famed road runner Lauren Fleshman responded to the lawsuit, which has become a battle cry for Track & Field runners worldwide, with an article on her website, asklaurenfleshman.com.
Fleshman wrote, “I support Nick and Run Gum in their lawsuit. Even though winning it would result in a rule change that appears small at first glance, it could make a big difference, and set precedent for bigger changes in the fu-ture. It’s time to question, and dismantle, the real reasons why ‘nobody wants to invest mon-ey in track and field.’ Run Gum’s lawsuit, and changing IAAF Uniform Rules as I proposed with this resolution, would go a long ways to-wards making the sport more viable for athletes, and more attractive to investors and sponsors.”
Brooks Running has also expressed support for Symmonds’ efforts. The company's Chief Customer Experience Officer, Anne Cavassa, told SGB, "Brooks stands firmly in support of athletes as they pursue their running dreams, and in favor of new opportunities that allow them to make a living. We admire Nick Sym-monds’ passion for creating opportunities for track and field athletes where they may not have existed before. His company Run Gum’s endeavor to open the door for more athlete sup-port is one that shares ties with why we exist as a brand: to inspire everyone to run and be active. At the very least, we’re glad this starts a discussion around how we all can make changes that benefit the sport and those who participate in it.”
Whether the lawsuit is a solution or public-ity stunt, it’s an undoubtable David vs. Goliath fight that has hit its stride with the Track & Field community who wants to see more for its athletes.
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6 SGBWeekly.com | FEBRUARY 1, 2016
Two specialty outdoor retail shops are now one.Austin Canoe & Kayak in Texas and Summit
Sports in Michigan announced a merger deal, January 26, that brings together their retail ex-pertise in snow, paddle, and other outdoor ad-venture sports.
The combined business, backed by Digital Fuel Capital, consists of five stores in Texas, four in Michigan, and numerous e-commerce sites, including Skis.com, InlineSkates.com, Snow-boards.com, WaterOutfitters.com, CampGear.com, AustinKayak.com, and RackBoys.com.
And the business may further expand as in-vestors in the deal said they are seeking more acquisitions in the space.
Peter and Steve Messana, co-owners of Austin Canoe & Kayak (ACK) will retain equity owner-ship in the combined entity under the Summit Sports LLC name. Peter Messana will serve as CEO of the business, while Steve Messana will be vice president of merchandising. Summit Sports Founder and CEO Steve Kopitz will shift to become chairman of the board.
“Summit Sports and Austin Kayak are a natural fit and will build upon and grow on
each other’s expertise to create a symbiotic and successful business,” Kopitz said. “It is excit-ing to see these two companies become one, and Summit Sports is looking forward to ex-panding and innovating with ACK to continue bringing the best in specialty outdoor sports to consumers.”
“In just 10 years, we grew ACK from a small mom and pop shop with two employees to one of the largest specialty paddlesports retailers in the country,” Peter Messana said. “We are look-ing forward to the next chapter for ACK, and in particular what it will offer our customers, em-ployees, vendors and partners.”
As specialty outdoor retailers look to compete against larger chains, e-commerce and direct-to-consumer business models — or in some cases, transition with succession planning — an increasing number of independent shops are teaming up with fellow like-minded stores to merge and grow.
Previous recent examples include Back-woods acquiring specialty outdoor shops Neptune Mountaineering in Boulder, CO and Dynamic Earth in Springfield, MO in 2013
AUSTIN CANOE & KAYAK AND SUMMIT SPORTS MERGESPECIALTY OUTDOOR RETAIL BUSINESS EYES MORE ACQUISITIONS
and 2014, respectively. And on October 30, 2015, Backwoods opened a new location in Bentonville, Ark. It now covers five states with 11 locations.
In 2015, Alpine Shop, a St. Louis-based out-door retailer, purchased The Pathfinder, a spe-cialty outdoor store in Manhattan, Kan., in-creasing its store count to five in three states — Missouri, Kansas and Illinois.
The Austin Canoe & Kayak and Summit Sports deal was backed by investment firm, Digital Fuel Capital LLC. In addition to Digi-tal Fuel Capital, Bay Capital Partners, Eagle Private Capital, MB Financial and Pine Street Capital provided financing for the transaction. Cascadia Capital LLC advised ACK on the transaction.
“We believe that outdoor sporting goods re-tailers should offer experiences tailored to the specific passions of the consumer,” said Carson Biederman, president of Digital Fuel Capital. “We are eager to have Peter and Steve Messana, along with ACK, become a part of Summit’s strategy to acquire other leaders in specialty sports.”
Photo courtesy Summit SportsPhoto courtesy Austin Canoe and Kayak
8 SGBWeekly.com | FEBRUARY 1, 2016
BY THE NUMBERS
$3.96 BillionUnder Armour's total sales in 2015, up 28 percent from a year ago.
€4 MillionThe amount that a Taiwan-ese employee is suspected of stealing from bike and fitness maker Accell Group.
14The number of store loca-tions Baltimore-based lacrosse retailer Lax World will have after acquiring Denver-based Breakaway Sports.
9.1%The projected increase of annual U.S. exports by 2030 if the Trans Pacific Partnership is fully imple-mented, according to a recent Peterson Institute study. The same study noted, however, that the deal would not net any U.S. job creation.
30,000 Square FeetThe size of a slated, four-level, modern fitness center called Crunch Fit-ness Downtown to serve the financial district in San Diego.
10 MilesThe distance of aisles at last week's 2016 PGA Merchandise show; which was expected to attract 42,000 to 45,000 people, with more than 1,000 ex-hibitors from 91 countries.
COLUMBIA SPORTSWEAR AMPS UP SPORTS OFFERINGS
Columbia Sportswear is getting sportier with a host of licensing and sponsorship deals.
The biggest surprise was its partnership with Manchester United, one of England’s most popular soccer teams, to become the team’s first Official Outdoor Apparel Partner. Columbia will create dual- branded outerwear for outdoor pursuits, including hiking, climbing, mountaineering, and water and snow activities. The collection will debut in fall 2016.
Manchester’s Managing Di-rector, Richard Arnold, said the partnership joins two brands with a rich history – Columbia starting in 1938 and Manches-ter in 1878 – and a shared com-mitment to performance and innovation. Manchester has won 62 trophies and garnered a dedicated global community of more than 650 million followers.
“We look forward to working together to provide our fans with a new way of expressing their support for the Club via our range of branded outdoor apparel,” said Arnold. “No matter what activity they are partak-ing in, this partnership will help the Club to accom-pany our fans wherever they go.”
For Columbia, the agreement is similar to its deal starting in Spring 2015 to make co-branded sports-wear, outerwear and accessories with the Dallas Cow-boys. Through Outdoor Custom Sportswear (OCS), Columbia has similar licensing deals with MLB, the NBA and hundreds of college teams.
Beyond driving brand awareness in the U.K., given Manchester United’s sizeable, global fan base, Colum-bia saw a significant sales opportunity in its focus mar-kets across Europe, Asia and the Americas. Said SVP of Columbia Merchandising and Design, Joe Boyle, “To-gether, we will deliver to Manchester United fans around the world an attractive line of outerwear featuring Columbia’s most advanced proprietary technologies.”
In golf, a category the company first entered in 2009, Columbia will spon-sor several professional players for the first time to support a much broader collection of performance sportswear and outerwear designed for the links. The collection features Omni-Freeze ZERO sweat-activated cooling polo shirts, Omni-Tech waterproof breath-able jackets, and several pieces that offer Omni-Shade sun protection to help golfers stay on the course in any weather. Overall the 28 golf styles in-
clude a colorful assortment of classic polos, breathable rainwear and windbreakers, as well as performance shorts and pants.
Elite golfers sporting Columbia Golf on this year’s PGA Tour will include Robert Garrigus, Jason Kokrak and Ryan Palmer. “I’ve worn Columbia in the outdoors
for most of my life, and am thrilled they are finally enter-ing the golf arena,” said Palmer. “I’m very impressed by the fab-rics, the fit and the color com-binations. My apparel is part of my equipment, and I can’t wait to play in this new collection on tour this year.”
“Our roster of golfers is as passionate about the outdoors
as we are,” said Stu Redsun, chief marketing officer at Columbia. “These guys love to hunt, hike, ski and fish every chance they get. Many of them are as comfort-able casting a fly rod as they are with a wedge.”
The new partnerships build on the Columbia brand’s expansion into performance underwear through a deal, announced in December, with Delta Galil, which al-ready held the global license for Columbia socks. The arrangement marks the first time Columbia will be dis-tributing women’s sports bras and underwear as well as men’s underwear.
Said Isaac Dabah, chief executive officer of Delta Galil, “This represents an important growth opportunity for our business as activewear remains a strong contrib-utor to our overall sales.”
Finally, Columbia in mid-January signed a new sun and optical deal with Marchon Eyewear Inc., replacing a former licensee. Marchon’s licensing partners already include Nike, Lacoste, Calvin Klein, Sean Jean and Fer-ragamo. Collections will include eyewear specially en-gineered for sport fishermen.
Marchon Chief Executive Officer Claudio Gottardi said, “Columbia presents exciting opportunities for Marchon
while further enhancing our Sport/Performance division. With a global reputation for innovation, quality and performance, Columbia fits perfectly into Marchon’s brand portfolio.”
Columbia sportswear’s Director of Licensing Matt Merriman added: “Our shared goal is to deliver an in-novative eyewear line that enhances our customers’ experiences in the out-doors. Whether you are on the water, on the trail or cruising around town, the new line will do just that.”
Columbia will become Manchester United's, one of England’s most popular soccer teams, first Official Outdoor Apparel Partner. The collection will debut Fall 2016.
Elite golfers sporting Columbia Golf in this year’s PGA Tour will include Robert Garrigus, Jason Kokrak and Ryan Palmer. Styles
include the Shotgun Quarter Zip featured here.
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10 SGBWeekly.com | FEBRUARY 1, 2016
While a new survey from NCAA Research showed college sports had an overwhelmingly positive impact on student-athletes, one area of concern was found to be youth sports specialization.
The study found that many NCAA student-athletes began specializing in their sports "at what experts consider a very early age (e.g., before age 12)," especially in sports like ice hockey, tennis (DI and DII only) and soccer.
"Many NCAA athletes think youth in their sport play in too many contests and a number of them (especially men) wish they had spent more time sampling oth-er sports when they were young,"
their sport across DI, DII and DIII by the age of 12. In men's D1, soc-cer and tennis ranked high across divisions, followed by baseball, ice hockey, basketball and swimming. Among sports, 78 percent of male college ice hockey players in D1 felt they were very-to-somewhat-likely to become a professional and/or Olympic athlete in their sport, the highest among sports. Also ranking high was basketball, 73 percent; golf, 72 percent; football, 64 percent; soccer, 53 percent; and baseball, 49 percent.
Among women, gymnastics was by far the largest sports where ath-letes began specializing by the age of 12. That was followed by tennis, soccer, basketball and swimming. Among sports, 47 percent of female college basketball players in D1 felt that they would very-to-somewhat-likely become a professional and/or Olympic athlete in their sport, the highest among sports. Coming in second was golf, 41 percent; ice hockey, 28 percent; track & field 20 percent; volleyball, 20 percent; and soccer, 18 percent.
The third edition of the Goals study was unveiled at the NCAA Convention that was held in San Antonio, TX from January 14-16. Responses were received from more than 21,000 student-athletes at near-ly 600 schools across Divisions I, II and III. Student-athletes were sur-veyed during spring 2015 by faculty athletics representatives from around the nation. The previous Goals sur-veys were released in 2006 and 2010.
NCAA stated in its report. "Many current NCAA student-athletes had high parental/family expectations of playing college and/or profes-sional/Olympic sports that started at a young age. This is especially true among participants in certain DI/DII sports. These family expecta-tions appear to carry over to cases of unrealistic pro expectations among the student-athletes themselves."
"Many NCAA athletes think youth in their sport play in too many contests and a number of them wish they had spent more time sampling other sports when they were young."
The report includes surveys of men and women who specialized in
Overall, the survey found that student-athletes felt their time spent in college sports had increased their sense of personal responsibility, honed their teamwork skills and enhanced their work ethic. A vast majority also believed participating in college sports had a positive ef-fect on their leadership skills, their values and ethics, self-confidence, time management, understanding of diverse cultures, study skills and commitment to volunteerism.
Academic success and preparing to get a job after college is a topic students want their coaches to talk more about.
When responding to their opin-ions on academic experiences, more than three-quarters of the student-athlete respondents (both male and female) said that their ex-perience had been positive.
In general, student-athletes don’t mind devoting time to their sports if they feel athletic activities are be-ing conducted efficiently and they can pursue their other interests.
Finally, when respondents were asked which topics they wished their coaches and administrators would talk to them about more fre-quently, the top responses were:
• Academic success and preparing to get a job after college;• Maximizing athletic perfor-mance (proper nutrition and how to get good or more sleep); and• Balancing academics and ath-letics while keeping sports in perspective.
NCAA:DON’T PIN YOUNG ATHLETES
TO JUST ONE SPORT
FEBRUARY 1, 2016 | SGBWeekly.com 11
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Arc’teryx promoted Jon Hoerauf, currently the brand’s Global Commercial leader, as its new President and General Manager.
Asics signed two new global tennis ambassadors, ATP world No. 16 David Goffin, and WTA world No. 50 Julia Goerges.
Brooks-Range Mountaineering added four new climbing athletes - Ali Criscitiello, Eric Layton, Miranda Oakley and Drew Smith - to its 2016 Ambassador Program.
Chums and Beyond Coastal sunscreen brand has hired former K2 exec Mike Hattrup as its National Sales Manager.
Diamondback Bicycles has chosen Backbone Media as its North American public relations agency of record.
Hillsound Equipment, a producer of winter traction equipment and gaiters, tapped Donnelly-Strough Co. to represent Hillsound’s products in the Great Lakes region of Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Michigan.
Icebreaker hired Carla Murphy as its new Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer. Murphy formerly worked for Amer Sports.
Leigh Steinberg, the sports agent best known as the real-life “Jerry Maguire,” is launching Steinberg Ventures to raise venture capital for sports-related start-ups.
Lululemon Athletica hired Alan Wizemann, formerly at Target, as its new Vice President of Guest Experience and Digital Product Management.
Nutcase Inc. tapped bike industry veteran Scott Montgomery as its new CEO. Montgomery most recently served as CEO for Club Ride cycling apparel and previously worked with Cannondale and Scott Sports.
Puma promoted Anders Jonsson to area General Manager of its Nordics region.
Saucony signed 2004 Olympian Tim Broe as Program Director of its newly-created Saucony Elite Athlete Development Team.
Under Armour welcomed LPGA pro Alison Lee to its roster of am-bassadors while unveiling its first Under Armour Women’s Golf line.
Tailwind Nutrition announced public relations agency Darby Communications as agency of record, to expand brand awareness.
The Buckle Inc. announced that Patricia K. Whisler, Senior VP of Women’s Merchandising, would retire from her position with the company later this spring.
The State of Utah named Petzl North America Sales Director Kenneth Thomas (Tom) Adams as Director of the State's Office of Outdoor Recreation.
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SGB EXCLUSIVE
THE LEGACY OF SPORTS SPECIALISTS LTD.WITH STEPHEN ROGERS AND SCOTT FORD
By Jahla Seppanen
SSL’s Legendary President and CEO Passes the Torch as the Buying Group Makes Plans for a New Era of Specialty Retail.
January 2016 marks the 45th anniversary of Sports Specialists Ltd. (SSL) - a buying group of about 140 of the highest quality specialty snowsports and outdoor retailers in the country.
Ushering in the new year, the collective will be led by President, Scott Ford, who only months ago took the place of specialty retail expert and 30-year SSL President and CEO, Stephen Rogers.
As Rogers swapped a 60-hour work week for a 60-hour work month, remaining as SSL consultant during a transitioning period, Ford jumped into the position after 21 years with Cole Sport in Park City, where he acted as Equipment Hardgoods Buyer for more than half of that time - working closely with Rogers and SSL in the process.
The hiring of SSL’s new leader was not to be taken lightly. The process took more than two years. Rogers recalled, “it became apparent to me a few years ago that my tenure was coming to a close…the hardest part was finding the right individual who could maintain the soul of the organization and still bring it into the future of specialty retail.” The right fit made itself apparent once Ford made his interest known.
“When I heard that Steve was looking to retire, my personal feeling was the future success off SSL depended on his replacement,” said Ford. “I’ll be honest, I didn’t think of myself in that role right away. But then it sat with me inside and I knew my next step was to take the reins and continue to drive SSL into the future.”
On a call with Rogers and Ford, their comradery was undeniable. Not to mention their shared satisfaction with the authentic reputation SSL has built over its near-half a century of supporting “the industry’s heart and soul,”- specialty retail. The two were also
confidently optimistic about the next phase of the group’s evolution - a launch into areas of business support for specialty retailers.
Their interview also gave a harmonious glimpse into the past and future of SSL; its creation, transition, plans and potential power, all of which could only come about from the passionate leadership of Rogers and Ford.
Slaying the DragonSSL has been around since 1971, beginning as an offshoot of the Ski Specialist Guild. This network of specialty snowsport retailers were fighting an uphill battle, as sporting goods
stores caught wind of the popularity of skiing, and began marketing special makeup skis. “It was the dragon every specialty retailer had to find a way to slay,” said Rogers. “Specialty retail couldn’t compete and be price competitive.” The primary initiative of SSL became finding a way to work together and use collective purchasing power to buy and competitively price skis. After all, these were snowsport-specific shops. Ski was their bread and butter.
Jump forward 45 years and SSL continues to bat off the ever-changing obstacles facing specialty retailers. The “dragon” is still present, only in a different form.
Stephen Rogers, 30-year SSL President and CEO
FEBRUARY 1, 2016 | SGBWeekly.com 13
SSL’s 2016 Game PlanLeading into 2016, SSL will super-charge its service-end components, addressing the many aspects of business profitability, awareness and presence within the new age.
“There has been an evolution from, say, special makeup skis into what are the real tools that make a store successful,” said Rogers. “Now the challenge is staying collectively competitive with technology.”
Ford filled us in on the components of “staying collectively competitive,” which SSL will introduce this year. “There are many aspects of being a business and to business profitability,” said Ford. “So we’ll offer more than just the program deal.”
New business services will include: building social media; online ads and participation to drive consumers to specialty retailers and their online platforms; methods to create community; online ordering; B2B cataloguing; and more.
Overall, SSL found that in 2016 the representation of the specialty retailer will take a predominate role in its overall selling success. And some of these smaller retailers are either behind on the changes in retail or lack the funding to pursue elaborate strategies, such as social media strategies and online campaigns that big-box chains devote millions to each season.
However, it is important to remember that many of the new business services to be offered by SSL are things all manufacturers have trouble putting into place. “The services include various backend efficiencies for suppliers, as well as retailers,” said Ford. “We can tap into these efficiencies and apply them to up and coming specialty products.”
After all, it’s in the mission statement of SSL: “Purchasing program and business services.” And SSL plans to be “second to none in providing these services,” said Ford.
Make or BreakRogers concluded that technology would be the thing that really makes or breaks any organization in the future. “What I found as I was getting a little older was how hard it is keeping up with the rapid changing tech- nology of how goods and services are delivered. There is going to be new delivery methods, and specialty retail has to respond to that,” he said. “SSL can help.”
Rogers noticed that purchasing and delivery trends have shifted to consumers making buys closer to when they will use the product. Therefore, increasing at the resort level will become an adaptive adjustment when accepting new members into the buying group.
Many in the outdoor industry might consider Rogers the seer of snowsports, who has used projective insights to carry SSL through 45 strong years. In fact, the reason SSL is celebrating its 45th anniversary this January is because the group has evolved to respond to the needs of specialty retailers.
“I believe there will always be a reason and purpose for the specialty retailer,” said Rogers. “Customers dictate how they want goods and services and it take specialty retailer with a heart and passion to really respond to those needs and changes.” However, specialty owners may not always be the savviest businessmen and women.
In the retail business, dominated by numbers, one might believe the lack of business savvy could mean business failure. SSL doesn’t buy into the hype. What truly makes a difference is an owner that has a devotion to the outdoor activity they sell for.
SSL’s dedication to the passionate specialty owner was the pull that
brought Ford on board in the first place. “I always appreciated the uniqueness of SSL. It’s very professional, business minded, but always kept that respect and integrity for creating sincere partnerships with passionate members,” said Ford. “I will never go into any meeting where SSL hangs its hat on the numbers. It’s about the quality of our members.”
People know SSL – its top-grade suppliers ranging from Salomon, to Smartwool and Under Armour, and its business resources. “It would be very easy for us to drive numbers,” said Ford. But in keeping with the heritage ethos laid out by Rogers, Ford does not plan to uproot SSL from an intimate collective to a numbers-based buying mob.
“Steve has done an incredible job in what I firmly believe is the best buying group out there for all specialty retail,” said Ford, who agrees the retail landscape is changing, via the Internet and social media. “It’s an evolution of communication,” Ford continued. “There are new ways business is done, and this can be a great equalizer for the little guys.”
And as we know, it’s never the big army that slays the dragon, but the singular, unsung hero.
Rogers will remain closely connected to SSL in his consultant role. “To not include someone with that knowledge and history would be absolutely asinine,” said Ford. And with the two working together, 2016 is guaranteed to be another one for the record books.
Scott Ford, SSL, President elect
14 SGBWeekly.com | FEBRUARY 1, 2016
ONE-ON-ONE
TODD SPALETTOPRESIDENT, THE NORTH FACE
PAINTS A BROAD PERSPECTIVE OF THE OUTDOOR CONSUMER
The President of the North Face doesn’t like segmenting his brand’s consumers.
“It’s the same customer playing in different environments,” Todd Spal-etto told SGB. “These hardcore athletes aren’t less core because they step into an urban environment.”
In other words, The North Face is taking a broader perspective — still delivering hardcore gear for when people hit the mountains, but then car-rying those same performance and technology stories into lines for fitness and training in the city, or even a night out.
We sat down with Spaletto to see how the industry is adjusting to an evolving active lifestyle landscape.
How do you see the definition of outdoor changing? The line between the outdoor and active markets is blurring. We’re seeing consumers’ inter-est in the outdoors growing exponentially. More people are getting out-doors year round, but their activities are different. This is where the blur between outdoors and active takes place. It’s now less about the three week backpacking trip and more about active, yet social moments in an authen-tic outdoor environment.
How does The North Face address those changes without losing its core outdoor credibility? The North Face brand purpose is to inspire a life of exploration. We have always sought to inspire and encourage consum-ers to get outdoors through our products and local programs. Our core consumer leads a very active lifestyle and appreciates technical products whether for training for their goal, summiting the local mountain, or wearing our product in their day-to-day life.
To ensure we are remaining authentic, we take this deep understand-ing of our customer and connect it with our heritage of making the most technical product possible. The end result is innovative products that are appropriate for both use cases. Take for example, ThermoBall, which is technically authentic — and is now available in more than 20 colors.
No doubt, the outdoor lifestyle category has boomed at retail. How can brands and retailers better deal with the fast-changing trends that fashion brings with it? We have been — and always will be — dedicated to providing the highest quality product. Our core consumer cares about the way a product fits and looks, so we ensure it not only performs at the highest level in activity, but also looks and feels good. Our consistent focus is on delivering exactly that — products that perform at the highest level while simultaneously keeping innovation, style and fit top of mind.
Today’s outdoor consumers increasingly want their brands to reflect their environmental and social values. How has The North Face provid-ed greater transparency in these areas? The North Face is built on a love of exploring and protecting the outdoors, so making products responsibly
is a priority for us. We absolutely believe that it is important for the indus-try to help conserve land and promote the outdoors in countries around the world… and we know our customers feel the same way.
The North Face has been involved in conservation since the brand’s inception and engages people in outdoor activities through the Explore Fund, our grant program for nonprofits that get people outdoors. We focus on getting people outdoors, because we know once they experience and appreciate it, they will be inspired to care for the wild places we love.
The North Face cofounded The Conservation Alliance in 1989 and con-tinues our strong commitment to conservation to this day. Alliance funds have played a key role in protecting rivers, trails, wildlands and climbing areas. Over the past couple years, we’ve partnered with the Department of the Interior and the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps (21CSC) to help care for our nation’s public lands. The 21CSC employs youth and re-turning veterans and has signature programs across the country for people to get outdoors in meaningful ways.
We are always working to improve social and environmental support for the manufacturing companies making our products. Through our focus with Bluesign, which began in 2008, we have saved more than 828 mil-lion gallons of water, 49 million kilowatt-hours of energy and 6.1 million pounds of chemicals across the globe, including in the countries where our products are made.
Regarding transparency, each year we share information around our op-erations, responsible sourcing and manufacturing through web, email and social conversations to ensure they understand how the products they are purchasing are made.
FEBRUARY 1, 2016 | SGBWeekly.com 15
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16 SGBWeekly.com | FEBRUARY 1, 2016
Avalanche safety has become more than a guiding principle for mountain travelers, it has become a business where, for a price, technology and education merge to save lives. Three examples illustrate this: Avalanche safety classes which have become a veritable rite of passage for backcountry skiers, avalanche transceivers, and airbag packs. Transceivers are considered an essential form of rescue insurance. Knowledge of the factors that cause avalanches are important to buffer reliance on luck for avoiding them, and airbag packs are the best way to survive them if caught. Each one has become a reliable source of revenue for those who offer them, and a budgetary requirement for those in need.
While retailers are not generally in the business of providing avalanche education, it has become a form of soft marketing and a way to build rapport with customers to offer introductory, one-night avalanche awareness seminars. I'll suggest there is one more step retailers should consider if they don't already, and that is to make sure that their sales staff take an AIARE Level I Course. This could be considered a benefit to working at a shop, and will improve credibility when talking about the
technology that drives avalanche beacon and airbag pack performance. With that in mind, here's a list of new avalanche safety related products
for the 2016/17 ski season.
BEACONSAvalanche transceivers have always been a form of last resort insurance, allowing the wearer to be found if they should be caught in an avalanche and buried. Whether or not they are found alive depends on many factors, including how easy they are to use. Until Backcountry Access developed the Tracker DTS with dual-antennas to provide distance and direction info, the key to a successful rescue was dependent on users knowing, via practice, how to search and dig. With multiple antenna technology the need to practice searching was reduced, but not eliminated. For the next ten years beacon manufacturers leap-frogged each other with improvements in that technology, adding the ability to find more than one victim quickly.
In the end, the Peter Principle took effect, because the improvements in multiple victim search technology were still dependent on practice and
AVY SAFETY GEAR FOR 2017
By Craig Dostie
education, the original hallmarks of successful avalanche rescues. Thus, dramatic advances in beacon technology have effectively ceased.
That doesn't mean there are no changes, but the shift in focus is now for the beacon to be part of an overall mix of products to deal with the consequences of being caught.
To that end Arva will unveil a new beacon with new functionality but at press time were unwilling to provide any details.
BCA is refining their Tracker 3 for next season with new firmware (version 3.3) that changes the audio cues to mimick the tried and true sounds of the Tracker 2. In addition the “big picture” mode is improved and v3.3 allows the comprehensive self-check to be exported so fleets can keep records of a beacons functional history.
Pieps will introduce the Micro for next season, a smaller, three-antenna avalanche transceiver. Being smaller it won't have record-breaking range, but it will carry on with Pieps intuitive visual clues courtesy of a large display and big fonts. It's light too, only five ounces (150 g). New light and motion sensor technology switches it to receive automatically when removed from its harness.
AIRBAG PACKSWhile beacon technology was limiting out, the decades old concept of airbags had an undeniable track record of saves by keeping victims on or near the surface. When it was realized that ABS's proprietary use of Nitrogen wasn't required to get the same results the race began to develop alternate airbag packs.
ARC'TERYXVoltair, Arc'teryx' long anticipated Airbag Pack, will be available to a closely controlled group of beta testers this season, and the anxious
consumer come Fall 2016. Like Black Diamond's battery powered, fan fed airbag, Arc'teryx relies on electricity to power, not a fan, but a centrifugal blower to inflate an airbag that wraps on three sides of the users head. This system allows a user to practice inflating and the subsequent repacking several times for a fraction of the cost of systems using compressed gases. The benefit to users is their ability to build familiarity with a system that has the potential to save their life. Gordon Rose, Senior Design Engineer at Arc'teryx said, “In a high consequence situation, you don't rise to the occasion, you fall back on your training.”
While the Voltair doesn't use cartridges of compressed gas that are restricted for air travel by the common man, the 22.2-volt lithium ion battery powering the blower, lithium ion batteries have a bad reputation
Pieps Micro
Backcountry Accessdeveloped the Tracker DTS
with the TSA. To prevent their ire, the Voltair has a quick disconnect harness so the battery can be accessible, on-board and thus extinguishable in the unlikely yet possible event that it bursts into flame.
BACKCOUNTRY ACCESS Perhaps the biggest news regarding product updates from Backcountry Access is the addition of K2's avalanche safety-related products under the Backcountry Access umbrella and the cessation of K2 branded Airbag Packs. That makes more cents than projecting out how many of the same product will sell with different logos.
Next season K2's Backside products, like the Shaxe and Rescue Shovels will now be marketed under the Backcountry Access brand. The only obvious change to the Rescue shovels are new colors, and the Extendable Rescue shovel includes four bolts with wing nuts that fit inside the shaft for building a rescue sled from a pair of skis and the shovel parts. New for this year is a Shaxe that pairs with a straight, or curved ice axe shaft.
The Float packs undergo an obligatory revision to steadily refine their functionality. Backcountry Access Revised Float 42 with a molded foam back panel reinforced with a central aluminum stay in the plastic frame sheet allowing for better load carrying. Besides improving the frame, the waist belt can now be moved up or down to provide a better fit for small, medium and large sized torsos.
BLACK DIAMONDBlack Diamond was the first to introduce this fan-based airbag technology to consumers last year. They've already had their first recall to force upgrading the software that controls the process from trigger to inflation. Satisfied that potential problems have been solved they have no plans for any further revisions to the pack or its components for next season. As a
new concept in the airbag arena seeing verifiable results before changing anything more sounds prudent. The prime advantage of Black Diamond's fan powered JetForce system is the ability to deploy the bag multiple times with a single charge, plus the ability to easily recharge it.
MAMMUTOverall Mammut’s airbag pack line, from a pack layout perspective will remain largely unchanged. However, the heart of the airbag system will undergo its first significant revision since being acquired from SnowPulse. Everything but the actual cartridge is refined to improve functionality and reduce weight. The same refillable cartridge of compressed air will work with the original and updated P.A.S. and R.A.S. Bags, but other parts are
Voltair Airbag Pack
AIARE (American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education) offers AIARE 1 3 day | 24-hour introduction courses in avalanche hazard management.
FEBRUARY 1, 2016 | SGBWeekly.com 19
not interchangeable. The most dramatic change is a synthesis of the venturi valve and cable triggers into a single molded unit to reduce potential errors when connecting the cartridge, increase strength, and save weight.
The trigger will be easier to pull, due to more adjustability in the trigger position, and a more defined trigger point. The ability to do a dry-run trigger pull so users can mentally calibrate the pull strength required will remain.
The airbag itself will be lighter, yet stronger making it more resistant to tears or punctures, and lower volume when packed. Colorwise the bag will be a brighter orange for better visibility in low light conditions with some slight 3D sculpting changes to the shape; which will make the shoulder straps of the PAS version less bulky and more comfortable to wear.
ORTOVOXThe details are still unfolding at press time but Ortovox will be delivering airbag packs next season with new plumbing that uses a single airbag behind the head instead of ABS's classic two-bag system running extending on either side of the pack. This will make configuring the pack easier for carrying skis or a snowboard without interfering with the bag's functionality. It also means a simpler, lighter design for overall pack construction and organization.
SCOTTScott entered the fray two years ago by adapting the technology used to inflate life vests in water to inflate an airbag on a pack. As with other systems, it uses compressed gases with a venturi valve to inflate the airbag. Called the Alp Air System, it uses two small cartridges of compressed gases – one inert Argon the other carbon dioxide. The beauty of this system is that the cartridges are small, cheaper than the competition, and approved for air travel by IATA. The inference is that the TSA will let them on an airplane too, but we all know how fickle they can be. Nothing new from Scott on the airbag fronts other than a few revisions to pack layouts.
Shaxe Rescue Shovel pairs with a straight or curved ice axe shaft
REFLECTIONNow comes the irony of airbag packs. Statistically we know that users of airbag packs are more likely than not to survive if caught in an avalanche. This of course presumes the user triggers the airbag quickly and the airbag inflates correctly. Survival is still not guaranteed because the operating principle is not the ability to float on top of the avalanche flow but rather the probability in a turbulent flow of material for larger bodies to rise to the top while smaller ones sift their way to the bottom. The airbag increases the size of the snow rider so that they tend to end up, if not on top, at least close to it making a subsequent rescue more likely.
So while the use of airbag packs for backcountry skiers improves their chances of survival, does this knowledge cause users to tempt fate more often? If you're likely to win a gamble, does that mean you're more likely to gamble? With your life?
From personal experience, I can assure you the temptation to rely on an airbag’s increased survival chances will most definitely cause you to take chances you might otherwise have not. No other avalanche rescue technology ever tickled that sense of invincibility because the probability of being buried was unchanged by an avalanche transceiver or AvaLung pack. Those tools simply increased the likelihood you could be rescued after the fact. My response to the temptation of airbag packs might not be a universal result, but it is certainly bound to affect those who are naturally inclined to take greater risks and the proliferation of videos showing snow riders surviving avalanches reinforce that view.
Dale Atkins, avalanche pro and former president of the American Avalanche Association reflected on the shift in attitude that has resulted from airbag packs. “We carried technology as a backup in case we messed
up. Today's riders are using technology to justify going into dangerous places, 'cuz that's the fun stuff, and they're doing it during periods of high instability. They're thinking technology will save them.”
Dave Furman, Hardgoods Manager for Mammut USA thinks this is a temporary phenomenon and that over time backcountry snow travelers will realize getting caught still exposes them to death by trauma and survival chances are only increased when there are no trees or cliffs in the path of the avalanche. Over time he expects the increased survival odds of Airbag Packs to be replaced by the time- honored practice of avoidance.
Let's hope he's right. Otherwise, the chances of surviving an avalanche could be cancelled out by taking more chances.
Backcountry Access Revised Float 42
©2016 Implus LLC. Yaktrax® is a registered trademark of Implus LLC. 1.16
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22 SGBWeekly.com | FEBRUARY 1, 2016
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Athletic Dealers of America1395 Highland AvenueMelbourne, FL 32935t 321.254.0091athleticdealersofamerica.com
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Tennis Industry Association1 Corpus Christi Place I Suite 117Hilton Head Island, SC 29928t 843.686.3036tennisindustry.org
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