Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 8

The Tribe

Larry Harrison

Outdoor Retailer 35th Anniversary

OUR GREATEST SUCCESS
For 35 years, Larry Harrison has been learning about how to do
business and how to care for our wild places from the characters
who fill the aisles of Outdoor Retailer. This is the story of the people
and passions that transformed an industry into a community.
Written By Larry Harrison

I

see faces.
All around me I am looking into the faces of fellow travelers on the path to outdoor adventure. What a crew. I want you
to see them, too: Throughout this 35th anniversary issue of Outdoor Retailer magazine, you
will see their portraits. Study them. Read about
who they are. There is much to learn.
Many of the personalities behind the faces
captured on these pages by gifted photographer
Andrew Kornylak at the 2017 Winter Outdoor
Retailer show have taught me to delight in life,
laugh at hardship, persevere when quitting
seems the easier path, and believe in the power
of our community. Some of these lessons took
place in the backcountry, others in business.
During my day-to-day work at Outdoor
Retailer, I find myself using the word "community" a lot; it describes our event better
than "trade show." I like the ecology definition of the word best: "a group of interdependent organisms of different species growing
or living together in a specified habitat." This
speaks to me because I strongly feel the interdependence with others, that "I couldn't
do this without them" sensation that has
marked my career in this business.

I HAVE NEVER BEEN A GREAT CLIMBER, BUT I
have roped up with Kenny Cook, Jim Donini,
Nawang Gombu, Jack Tackle, Lou Whittaker,
Skip Yowell, and many more. They shared
their rich stories and passions with me while
connected by a figure eight follow through. I
am more because of these experiences, and
they happened because of our community.
An example: I got married on Mount
Rainier after telling my wife-to-be, Carol, that

8 OUTDOOR RETAILER

/ 35th Anniversary 2017

the 14,411-foot volcano was just a long walk.
Along with my business partner/minister Jim
Thomsen, we made several training jaunts together to the Sierras, but mostly we "hiked" to
Paco's Tacos for dinner and margaritas. On our
first day on the mountain, Carol stood balking
before a deep crevasse, bright white around the
lip going to black toward the bottom. She was
roped up to famed Sherpa Nawang Gombu, the
first to summit Mount Everest twice. "Jump," he
said. "No way," she said. A strong yank from the
fearsome Gombu and Carol learned that cooperation on a mountain is a tangled affair-but
she made it to the other side.
It's the same in this business. We compete
against one another, selling and marketing
our products, developing new ones, working to
make our message resonate, and we pray the
consumer approves once it hits retail.
We open the store wondering, did we do
enough to get customers to shop? Is the mix and
breadth enough? Are they just going to buy online? Is the staff trained well enough? Will the
deliveries be on time? What about the company
store down the street?
The point is we all wish to dominate our corner of the market. Yet we collaborate and remain friends with those enlisted in the battle

against us. We achieve astonishing results and
celebrate together. We build brands, nudge
others to try what brings us joy and, in the process, we create more supporters of wilderness.
Our greatest success is not about making and
selling stuff, but the immense constituency we
have created for wild lands. Whether urbanite
or suburbanite, there is a whiff of adventure
about the puffy jacket they bought that moves
them to stand for public lands.

LOVE OF OPEN SPACES DROVE COWBOYS AND
cowgirls West. We are no different. The heart
still soars under an open sky. In today's world,
this happens no matter if we are in a small urban park or out in a national monument, park,
or forest. Our aspirations, dreams, and intellect
expand to fill the horizon. The key we all share
that opens us to this expansion is the outdoors.
So please forgive me if the next time we
speak, I overuse the word community. It's what
I believe in. It's what makes us different. It's
what allows us to speak with a passionate, yet
gentle voice.
I see faces and they are united. O.R.
Larry Harrison has called the outdoor industry home for over 40 years. His sales company Earth Games helped define the role of the
independent rep thanks to a new, innovative
approach. Most recently, he created the adidas Outdoor team and served as its director
of sales, helping the company launch a brand
that spoke to young climbers and other aspiring outdoorists. In the late '70s and early '80s,
he ran the popular California Backpacking
Shows in Oakland and Anaheim, California,
but he argued in the trade press that there
needed to be a national show. He closed his
shows when Outdoor Retailer moved to Reno.
Today, he's the brand development director for
Outdoor Retailer, tasked with ensuring the
show listens to exhibitors, retailers, and reps.

The point is we all wish to dominate our
corner of the market. Yet we collaborate
and remain friends with those enlisted
in the battle against us. We achieve
astonishing results and celebrate together.
photograph by ANDREW KORNYLAK



Outdoor Retailer - July 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Outdoor Retailer - July 2017

OUTDOOR RETAILER - JULY 2017
CONTENTS
CONTRIBUTORS
FIRST WORDS
THE TRIBE
GREG THOMSEN
YVON CHOUINARD AND GERRY LOPEZ
STEVE BARKER
THE SCENE
JEFF LOWE
PETER AND PATTY DUKE
BEAVER THEODOSAKIS
CARSON STANWOOD
CHAD GALLWITZ
JOHN MEAD
THE TORNADO
THE SCENE
SALLY MCCOY
JOHN STERLING
CASEY SHEAHAN
THE SCENE
MUSIC AND MEMORIES
PETER METCALF
SALLY JEWELL
CONRAD ANKER
JEN TAYLOR
DAN NORDSTROM
JEREMY COLLINS
JOANNA HOSHIMOTO
THE FUTURE
THE BACKSTORY
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - OUTDOOR RETAILER - JULY 2017
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - Cover2
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 1
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - CONTENTS
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 3
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - CONTRIBUTORS
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 5
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - FIRST WORDS
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 7
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE TRIBE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 9
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 10
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 11
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - GREG THOMSEN
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 13
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 14
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 15
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - YVON CHOUINARD AND GERRY LOPEZ
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 17
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 18
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 19
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - STEVE BARKER
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 21
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 22
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 23
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE SCENE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 25
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 26
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 27
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - JEFF LOWE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 29
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - PETER AND PATTY DUKE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 31
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - BEAVER THEODOSAKIS
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 33
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - CARSON STANWOOD
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 35
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - CHAD GALLWITZ
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 37
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - JOHN MEAD
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 39
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE TORNADO
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 41
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 42
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE SCENE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 44
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 45
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 46
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 47
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - SALLY MCCOY
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 49
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 50
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 51
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - JOHN STERLING
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 53
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - CASEY SHEAHAN
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 55
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE SCENE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 57
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 58
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 59
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - MUSIC AND MEMORIES
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 61
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 62
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 63
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 64
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 65
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - PETER METCALF
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 67
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 68
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - SALLY JEWELL
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - CONRAD ANKER
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 71
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - JEN TAYLOR
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - DAN NORDSTROM
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - JEREMY COLLINS
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - JOANNA HOSHIMOTO
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE FUTURE
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 77
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 78
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 79
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - THE BACKSTORY
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - Cover3
Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/2023Winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/2023summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/thedailyguidess23
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/dailySM2022_Day3
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/dailysm2022_Day2
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/dailySM2022_Day1
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/daily2022_Day3
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/daily2022_Day2
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/daily2022_Day1
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/daily2021_day3
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/daily2021_day2
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/daily2021_day1
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/outdoor-retailer-august-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/outdoor-retailer-july-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/outdoor-retailer-june-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/may_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/outdoorretailer/april_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/march_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/february_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/january_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/december_2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/theweekly_07302020
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https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/postshow2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/daily2020_day3
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/daily2020_day2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/daily2020_day1
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/preshow2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2020winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/postshow_summer2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/day3_summer2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/day2_summer2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/day1_summer2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/preshow_summer2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2019summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/postshow2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/daily2019_day3
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/daily2019_day2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/daily2019_day1
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/preshow2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2019winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2018summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2018winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/201707
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2017summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2017winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/outdoorretailer/2016summer
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https://www.nxtbookmedia.com