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In this episode of First Look, our Editor-in-Chief, Kristin Hostetter, sat down with Kristin Carpenter, Founder/CEO of Verde Brand Communications to discuss the Multi-Channel Marketing Academy.  Some topics we cover: The format of the course How brands can cut through the ...read more

September 15 to October 15 marks National Hispanic Heritage Month and in honor of the rich cultural traditions of our Hispanic neighbors, friends, and colleagues, SNEWS would like you to meet five designers with roots in Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru. Some have worked in the industry ...read more

VF Corporation released its 2020 Inclusion and Diversity Annual Profile to the public in recent days, providing an in-depth look at the company’s global efforts to create a highly inclusive culture that celebrates the diversity among its 50,000 employees. The report—the first ...read more

In addition to decreased sales, supply-chain challenges, and coronavirus restrictions, outdoor brands and retailers are facing another obstacle brought on by the pandemic: potential eviction. In a lawsuit filed last week in Boulder County (Colorado), landlord Ten Eleven Pearl LLC ...read more

“The intimidation hits me before I even walk into an outdoor store like REI,” says Jahmicah Dawes, who owns the Texas based, outdoor gear shop Slim Pickins Outfitters. “It starts when I roll into the parking lot in my 2007 Chevy Impala with my fly rod sticking out the window. I ...read more

Mikah Meyer is a queer outdoorsman, a change maker who’s determined to make our natural spaces more inclusive. Meyer first drew public attention in April 2019 when he became the only person to visit all 419 units of the U.S. National Park System—including national parks, ...read more

Miho Aida is a walking lesson in intersectionality. Born and raised in Tokyo, Aida has spent her adult life in the United States working in the outdoor industry. A former NOLS backpacking and climbing instructor, Aida is also an adventure cyclist, environmental educator, and ...read more

Mark Satkiewicz, partner at SBT GRVL, former GM of TOMS, and former president of Smartwool, passed away this weekend after a suspected cardiac incident during a bike ride near his home in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Satkiewicz was 51 years old. A much-heralded leader within the ...read more

The pandemic has created mayhem for all of us. Earlier this spring, at Formidable Media, we received more than one phone call from clients who wanted to put their plans on hold. Some needed time to assess the damage to their supply chains. Some wanted to defer payments to ...read more

Last week, Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was accosted by Republican Congressman Ted Yoho, who in front of reporters called her a f***ing b**** on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. This was, according to reports, an unprovoked attack. He did ...read more

On July 1, 2020, Pocket Outdoor Media (POM), the leading endurance sports media platform, acquired SNEWS and many of our sister brands within Active Interest Media’s Active Living Group, including Backpacker, Ski, Climbing, Warren Miller, Yoga Journal, and others. Read the full ...read more

Now that Pride month has come to a close, brands across the industry will once again begin taking down their rainbow logos, packing them away until next summer. There's no question we've come a long way in our celebration and amplification of LGBTQIA+ people in the outdoor space ...read more

To honor the 155th celebration of Juneteenth, we wanted to take a moment to honor some of the amazing people working to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion within our industry. As recent events have taught us, we have a long way to go before the industry—and society at ...read more

In this edition of Straight Talk, Editor-in-Chief Kristin Hostetter sits down with Teresa Baker, co-founder of the Outdoor CEO Diversity Pledge to discuss how recent events have created an overwhelming surge in interest in the pledge. Here are some soundbites from Baker:  We do ...read more

Merrell's new head of marketing, Janice Tennant, could hardly be more perfect for the role she stepped into just last week. Combining a lifelong love of the outdoors with more than 18 years of marketing leadership experience—including her most recent role as CMO of Cat ...read more

Outdoor Industry Association will have four fresh faces at its board meeting on June 22.  Trina Fornerette-Ballard, Brand manager at Waypoint Outdoor “I’m solutions driven with a willingness to have tough conversations to look for resolve.” Alison Hill, CEO at LifeStraw “As a ...read more

Patagonia announced the departure of its CEO, Rose Marcario, who has served as the company's chief executive officer since 2008. "Circumstances around the pandemic created a natural inflection point for reimagining our business and Rose and the Board felt it made sense for those ...read more

In 1992, I was hired as the first black independent sales representative for The North Face (TNF). Back then, TNF was privately owned and headquartered in Berkeley, California. On the way home from my very first sales meeting, I happened to bump into the company president, Bill ...read more

Backcountry announced leadership changes today. Melanie Cox will serve as CEO, replacing Jonathan Nielsen, and Sarah Crockett will serve in the newly created role of chief marketing officer. Cox comes to Backcountry from fast fashion brand rue21 where she was interim CEO. Cox ...read more

When he was a homeless teen living in San Diego, Ryan Hudson crossed paths with Outdoor Outreach, a nonprofit that introduces underserved kids to the outdoors, and it changed the trajectory of his life. He went on to compete in The North Face Masters of Snowboarding and the ...read more

Baltimore-born artist Dunston trained in scientific and preparatory medicine illustration in college. But when the Denver resident discovered en plein air painting—the full-on French Impressionist kind—it was an epiphany. “I didn’t know it was a thing people ...read more

“Before 2016, I’d never put the two words ‘outdoor’ and ‘industry’ together,” says documentary filmmaker Faith Briggs. The Brooklyn, New York, native worked for the Discovery Channel after graduating from Yale. But while on a shoot with the National Park Service in 2016, ...read more

Kicking off our Straight Talk series of laid-back, free-wheeling conversations with outdoor industry leaders, SNEWS Editor-in-Chief Kristin Hostetter connects via video with Eric Henderson, founder of Meteorite PR, which represents brands like Salewa, Dynafit, Sweet Protection, ...read more

The Sierra Club's newly elected president, Ramón Cruz, has spent his entire professional life fighting for sustainability, climate advocacy, and responsible urban planning around the world. A graduate of American University and Princeton, he has worked as a senior policy analyst ...read more