Outdoor Retailer - February 2021 - 11

online is going to replace being
in the field. Our mission is to get
people out there. The end goal is
to inspire, educate, and activate
people to fuller and more purposeful lives in the outdoors. We
know how fulfilling it is to be part
of the outdoor community and
how satisfying it is to feel connected to wild places. It's a healthy
lifestyle. Learning these sports
and activities get us out with the
people we love. Sharing all of that
through teaching, from personal
experience, isn't meant to replace
doing it. But hopefully it can help
inspire through education.

Courtesy Roam

Roam has an all-star cast. How
hard was it to get people to sign
on to help?
JERARD: From the beginning,
we've been able to rally our
group-from all aspects of adventure-around the vision " a
new adventure company with
community, content, and education, all on a foundation of telling
stories with a DNA of purpose. "
We are trying to find the next generation of explorers, educators,
athletes.
CHIN: It hasn't been hard. In
fact, it's been the exact opposite.
We're all excited about where
Roam is headed.
Tell us about the academy's
ownership structure and business model? Is revenue solely
from memberships? Or is
there a sponsorship component as well?
JERARD: When we first talked
about the idea, it was a modern adventure company. The 13
original founding members, who
come from all corners of the adventure world, have ownership in
the company. We have incred-

wheel low. Continue to bring
deep and meaningful value to our
community. We also want to add
to our roster of classes, grow the
community, and hopefully celebrate the ability to roam abroad
once again!

Jimmy Chin (left) and
Christopher Jerard
pose with Chin's
Academy Award for
Free Solo.

ible institutional and individual
investors as well. Our studio has
in-house production capabilities
for branded content and also produces original content for sponsors with baked-in distribution
to our millions of fans on owned
platforms. Our expertise in social
and influencer programs, in partnership with our founders and
a huge network of contributors,
means we can both create and
distribute storytelling at scale.
And we also utilize this capability in our premiere membership,
which includes Roam Academy,
our Roam Awards, and discounts
on travel and experiences with
our adventure program. We're
building the world's biggest, most
trusted, adventure club.
What does membership
mean and include?

JERARD: Instant access-any-

time, anywhere-to hours and
hours of educational content
from Jimmy, Conrad Anker,
Cory Richards, Ian Walsh, Kelly
Starrett, and many more on everything from climbing and surfing to photography and fitness.
For a small monthly fee, you get a
ton of value. You also get monthly access to online and physical
events, like the Roam Awards,
and as we grow, more local community meetups, gear, travel, and
lodging deals. You also get access
to the minds of our founding
members via monthly questionand-answer sessions and more
as we partner with best-in-class
operators around the world.
Any particular growth goals
for '21?
JERARD: Stay focused. Four-

What has you most excited
about Roam Academy going
into 2021?
CHIN: The breadth of expertise
and knowledge we're sharing
with the world-something that
would have been impossible a
decade ago, now totally enabled
by technology. The way we all
engage with online education
is changing fast. If we can help
more people feel empowered to
connect with this community
and get outside to experience
wild places, that is exciting.
How has filming during a
global pandemic changed?
CHIN: As with so many things
during this time, it's been a steep
learning curve of COVID-19 contingencies, complex production
requirements, and unexpected
complications. We were fortunate to have many things in different stages of production going
into lockdown, so we were able
to adjust and really didn't skip a
beat. Plenty of posts got done in
April, May, and June. Like everyone, we had to make big adjustments-like learning to direct
remotely, halfway around the
world from the set, at 2 a.m. But,
just like on so many expeditions,
nothing ever goes as planned,
and success always comes from a
professional, passionate, skilled,
and level-headed team that looks
at the weather, the objectives,
and the players, and makes adjustments on the fly. O.R.

February 2021/ OUTDOOR RETAILER 11

Outdoor Retailer - February 2021

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