Outdoor Retailer has canceled their November show in Salt Lake and will now host one event a year that includes both the summer and winter markets. This comes just two years after its return to Utah,
The Outdoor Retailer trade show has historically been held twice a year at the Salt Palace Convention Center downtown SLC, except for the five years it spent in Denver. In an interview with The Daily — OR’s newsletter that broke the announcement Thursday — show director Sean Smith said OR will now combine into one, big, “more comprehensive show and enhanced experience” in June.
Organizers have said “we aren’t canceling the November show,” just combining it. But there will be no show in two months, according to The Daily. As recently as this week, OR was advertising a show this fall.
Neither Smith nor a brief press release posted on the Outdoor Retailer website made mention of a November show in 2025. The Daily, OR’s newsletter stated “That means OR November 2024 will not stage in a few months.”
The summer show has always been the flagship event for OR, and typically draws three to four times the number of exhibitors as the fall show, which this year was scheduled for Nov. 6-8. This year’s fall show was set to run concurrently with Outdoor Design + Innovation, a show under the Outdoor Retailer umbrella that focuses on new technologies, as well as raw materials rather than finished products. That show will return to the June slot, where it made its debut this year.
“Our decision comes after taking in a ton of feedback from exhibitors and attendees,” Smith said, “along with data on just how important the June sell-in time is for the industry.”
Outdoor Retailer 2025
Outdoor Retailer 2025 will take place June 18-20, 2025, and will still be held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah
The consolidation comes amid shrinking attendance worldwide at large trade shows like Outdoor Retailer since the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent years, Emerald Expositions, Outdoor Retailer’s parent company, has experimented with opening its doors to the public and holding off-site demonstration expos to draw more interest. The show’s return to Salt Lake City last year after moving to Denver — in what was seen as a boycott of Utah’s public land policies — has also earned Outdoor Retailer some critics.
When it returned to Salt Lake City, Emerald Expositions took the opportunity to do some rescheduling. It moved its Snow Show from January to November and renamed it the Winter Market. Then it reserved the January slot for what it called The Summit, which was to be less show and more of an outdoor-focused conference.
Earlier this year, Outdoor Retailer also parted ways with partner Outdoor Industry Association, ending a 30-year partnership.
A Salt Palace spokesperson also did not immediately respond to questions about whether OR had a contract for the November show. A spokesperson for Salt Lake County, the entity that actually owns the Salt Palace, did not immediately comment on OR’s decision.
Splitting the show into two seasons was, historically, a way for brands to debut seasonal gear and retailers to plan and buy accordingly. Consolidating, OR said online, is a way to respond to “the evolving buying patterns in the market.”
Smith said the show wants to sharpen its focus on “new and innovative brands and products to the show because that’s what really drives the industry.” The expanded show in June will include a new “emerging brands” section called Ascent and new product categories, Smith told The Daily.
Outdoor Retailer mentioned they “absolutely” plans to stay in Salt Lake.
