Entries filed under 'Merrell'

Summer Outdoor Retailer: Pads, Packs, Pants, a Platinum Tent, Magnetic 'Biners

In sleeping pads, air is the new self-inflating foam. Therm-A-Rest, creator of the self-inflating open-cell foam pad which enjoyed enormous popularity among backpackers for decades, will mark its 40th anniversary in 2012. Yet even that iconic brand is putting plenty of effort into its air pad offerings. Imagine: Its original air pad, the game-changing NeoAir, was introduced in early 2009. That original design will be mothballed in 2012 and replaced by 3 new models. Other air-pad makers have ...

Posted by T.D. Wood on February 6, 2012 5:13 PM & Tagged Big Agnes, Exped, Kuhl Outdoor Retailer, Merrell, Osprey, Probar, Therm-A-Rest and Vibram | permalink | Comments



REI Names Its Top Vendor of the Year: Vibram USA

Did you know that REI carries the products of more than 1,300 vendors? It’s a staggering number of companies, but one that we comb through once every year to recognize our best of the best. Last night at the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market trade show, we announced our 2010 Vendor Partner of the Year award winners. Please join us in congratulating the team at Vibram USA for taking home the top honors. Known best for its very popular FiveFingers footwear for natural running and fitness training, ...

Posted by Steve T on January 21, 2011 2:19 AM & Tagged FiveFingers, Merrell, Osprey, Outdoor Retailer, Vibram, rei and yakima | permalink | Comments



OR Report 4: Footwear Trends

The five-fingered shoe seems to fit, and a growing number of footwear-makers showcasing their 2011 product lines here at the summer Outdoor Retailer trade show in Salt Lake City are getting in step with the natural-motion program. Phenomenon is more like it. Spurred on by the ongoing popularity of the Christopher McDougall book Born to Run and a steady wave of converts, “barefoot,” “minimalist” or “natural motion” footwear styles are in a boom phase for 2011. Merrell, Nike, Saucony, Brooks and ...

Posted by T.D. Wood on August 5, 2010 6:51 PM & Tagged Merrell, Outdoor Retailer, Superfeet, Vibram, barefoot running and footwear | permalink | Comments



A Sneak Peek at New Gear: What Do You Want to Know?

Interested to know what clever new wrinkles will appear in next year's outdoor gear? Me, too. Got a few questions you'd like to ask? Great; send them my way and I'll add the best of them to my own list. Next week I'm zooming to Salt Lake City for a popular trade show known as the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, an annual preview party for outdoor gear due to arrive this fall, winter or in 2011. I have not previously attended OR (those 2 letters serve as the event's hipster shorthand), but with ...

Posted by T.D. Wood on July 30, 2010 6:34 PM & Tagged Big Agnes, Black Diamond. Jetboil, Brooks, Exped, Marmot, Merrell, Nike, Outdoor Retailer, Petzl, Saucony, Teva, Vibram Five Fingers and camelbak | permalink | Comments