IO_Summer20

17 Inside Outdoor | SUMMER 2020 are a short drive from the city of Jack- son, Miss. (population 160,000). Certainly, a city the size of Atlanta has the infrastructure and resources to host a large outdoor industry gath- ering. National Forest lands are within an hour to an hour-and-a-half drive in just about every direction. Finding places to play might not be as quick and convenient as, say, a Salt Lake City or a Denver, and attendees might have to Uber to their hotel rooms and VRBOs, but maybe those are small sacrifices to make. Going to Carolina Already, one state in the south- east is emerging as its own regional hub within the outdoor industry. North Carolina is home to nearly 100 out- door recreation companies, suppli- ers and organizations, ranging from smaller niche brands such as Hur- ricane Kayaks in Warsaw, and Misty Mountain Threadworks in Banner Elk, to larger players such as Nester Hosiery in Mt. Airy to major vendors such as Implus, located in the city of Durham, and Unifi in Greensboro. According to the Economic Develop- ment Partnership of N.C., the outdoor recreation industry employs more than 260,000 people across the state and generates $28 billion annually in consumer spending. In January of 2018, North Carolina become the eighth state to establish an official state-funded office of outdoor recre- ation with the naming of a Governor- appointed director of its new Outdoor Industry Recruitment Office. Founded in 2017, the North Caro- lina Outdoor Recreation Coalition, meanwhile, advocates on behalf of its 20-plus member companies and organizations at the North Carolina General Assembly and within execu- tive agencies.  And nestled in the shadows of the Blue Ridge Mountains, outdoor destination Asheville, N.C., is home to the Outdoor Gear Builders of WNC (Western North Carolina), the first gear builder association of its kind in the outdoor industry. Celebrating its seventh year in existence, Outdoor Gear Builders has grown to more than 50 members, including such names as Astral, Diamond Brand, ENO, Farm to Feet, Kitsbow, Sport Hansa, Sylvan Sport and Watershed. Asheville is also the home of influ- ential outdoor specialty retail buying group Grassroots Outdoor Alliance, as well as rep group 360 Adventure. Asheville also is the host of the an- nual Outdoor Economy Conference, which takes place in October. The state of North Carolina, it should be noted, ranks 9th among U.S. states and territories in terms of percentage of Black population, at 22 percent. It’s also among the states with the most overall Black residents, with more than 2.6 million. Colorado, by comparison, is home to about 200,000 Black Americans. Utah is home to about 30,000; Ver- mont, less than 7,000. The Advocates Quickfeat Vietnam produces knits, wovens, outerwear and activewear. QUICKFEAT VIETNAM Our Services - Fabric Sourcing - Trim Sourcing - Garment Development - Factory Sourcing - Production - Quality Control - Packing & Logistics 541 350 1615 Marketing O ice Bend, Oregon USA info@quickfeat.com | www.quickfeat.com C M Y CM MY CY CMY K QF-InsideOutdoors_Vietnam_HalfPgVert(10-22)_ƒ.pdf 1 10/22/18 8:10 AM