InsideOutdoor | WINTER 2023 8 For the first time in five years, the Outdoor Retailer (OR) Show returns to Salt Lake City, but not everyone in the sector will be there. Several companies are keeping their promise to boycott because of the stance some Utah politicians have taken relative to two designated national monuments and public lands: Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante. More than two dozen outdoor industry companies indicated last February they would boycott the show if it returned to Salt Lake City, including major players such as REI Coop, Patagonia, Inc., The North Face, Oboz Footwear, Sierra Designs, Therm-A-Rest, Timberland, Helinox USA and Arc’teryx. In a letter, the group wrote: “We’ve joined together in stating that we will not support or attend a trade show event in Utah so long as its elected officials continue attacks on national monuments and public lands protections. Industry leaders are expressing their support for the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition and its longstanding efforts to protect the homeland of the Tribes and Pueblos with cultural ties to the Bears Ears landscape, as well as the overwhelming majority of the outdoor industry and the American public. “Despite widespread industry objections, Emerald [Expositions] has demonstrated a continued interest in moving the Outdoor Retailer trade show to Utah, a state that leads the fight against designated national monuments and public lands.” Despite the signees’ announced intention, OR announced in March that it would return to Salt Lake City. At the time, OR’s show director Marisa Nicholson explained the organization surveyed members and learned that Salt Lake City was the “preferred location across the community.” So, the show will go on as planned, Jan. 10-12, at the Salt Palace Convention Center, and according to the OR event website, nearly 400 vendors were planning to attend as of mid-December. When the return to Salt Lake City was announced, Nicholson said the show organizer was in talks with Utah officials regarding what the organization values and supports, and she said the political officials’ views align closely with the industry’s. In fact, a Business with Purpose Committee was formed comprising state and local officials along with members of the outdoor community to explore issues that are valuable and important to the industry and how everyone can work together to drive those issues forward. UtahWelcomes OR Back to Salt Lake City By Bruce Christian
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