The Big Gear Show to host retail education seminars during summer show

The Big Gear Show has announced that it will be hosting a range of retail education seminars during its show, scheduled to take place 3-5 August in Park City, Utah.

The event will feature educational presentations, panels, and small group discussions covering a wide range of topics geared towards industry leaders and professionals. The presentations will features topics on inclusion and customer retention, and e-Bikes.

Kent McNeill, the CEO of IMBA and Steve Matous, the president of NICA will aim to keep new cyclists engaged, encourage children to ride bikes more often and increase diversity within the cycling industry.

Bosch will lead sessions focusing on how finance options and e-Bike rental can increase revenue, while Greg Robidoux of the Serotta International Cycling Institute will help retailers see the potential of bike fitting in today’s market. The NBDA will host a State of the Industry Panel on Tuesday with Scott King, who is one of SRAM’s co-founders, Tobie De Pauw from People for Bikes, and Larry Pizzi, of Alta Cycling. The NBDA will also present Bicycle Retailer’s Excellence Awards at the show on Wednesday, August 4th.

Sutton Bacon, founder and co-owner of The Big Gear Show, said: “The goal of these educational presentations is to bring people from multiple facets of the outdoor industry—bike, outdoor and paddlesports—together for the first time in over a year and learn. Much has changed in the industry—and the world—over the past year, and the Big Gear Show is the perfect place for us to collectively learn from all of these trials we’ve just been tested by.”

Outdoor specialty and paddlesports retailers will be able to benefit from presentations by Rich Hill,President of Grassroots Outdoor Alliance, on point of sale retail data and how to use it; Teddy Schiavoni of Locally.com, on how to connect with local markets and showing your stock online in local searches; and a panel hosted by Yoon Kim of Outdoor ECom looks at the importance of content marketing to increase your online clout at any stage of retail business. There will also be numerous paddlesports-centric sessions, with an emphasis on supply chain issues, how to convert new participants into enthusiasts, and shipping and logistics. There will also be a “State of the Paddlesports Industry” roundtable discussion.

Heather Mason, president of the National Bicycle Dealers Association, said: “The importance of planning has proved fruitful over the past 15 months, with the most profitable retailers benefiting by staying informed and pivoting with the trends and times. Dynamic content, focused specifically on 2022 planning entwined with daily peer-to-peer learning sessions makes The Big Gear Show the best opportunity to learn from our current moment while planning for future success. All retailers in attendance, both bike and outdoor, will find these topics engaging.”

A complete list and schedule of Educational Opportunities at The Big Gear Show can be found here.