Photos and report from Outdoor Retailer

The Outdoor Retail Show was busy all day. The show is huge – with one large main ballroom, several side rooms and even hallways packed with booths.

Chip Wilson, who runs the show’s PR, expects about 25,000 people to attend over the three days.

Compared to two years ago, there is a significant increase in action sports and standup paddle companies at the show.

Billabong had an entire room inside the show’s entrance in a prime spot at the venue, and most of its brands were represented.

Each booth was custom built and the layout looked nice. I saw Billabong Americas President Paul Naude and asked him about the company’s presence and why the outdoor market and this show was important to them.

“Because ASR no longer exists, this is our opportunity to extend our reach to a newer market,” Paul said. “So far we are pretty happy to be here, and we look forward to building momentum in this market in the future.”

For brands like Honolua, this was its third OR show, but for brands like VonZipper, also under the Billabong Group, this was its first Outdoor Retailer Trade Show.

“Last I heard, sunglasses were made for the outdoors,” said GT of Von Zipper somewhat joking. “For us, we’ve been partying with the same people for the last 10 years, so the show gives us an opportunity to party and partner with new people.”

See Page 2 for more from the show floor