Amy Roberts
Amy Roberts, of The North Face
Caveman Collective
Amy Roberts is currently The North Face's senior director of communications and corporate social responsibility. Previously, she served as Outdoor Industry Association’s executive director for 10 years. Her last day was Sept. 30, 2019.
Roberts has also been the director of sustainability and a member of the executive leadership team at Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) where she guided the Canadian outdoor retailer’s commitment to business and product sustainability and innovation. Roberts also serves on the boards of The Conservation Alliance, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition.
Prior to joining MEC, Roberts worked as the vice president of government affairs for OIA where she managed the outdoor industry’s lobbying efforts focused on trade and recreation. During her time at OIA, Roberts also facilitated the development of the outdoor industry’s Eco Index to measure the environmental footprint of products, and she was heavily involved in the subsequent formation of the HIGG Index tool for broader apparel and footwear industry adoption by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition.
Outdoor Industry Association announces its new executive director
After a six-month search, Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) has announced its next executive director. Aangeenbrug currently serves as executive director of the Outdoor Foundation, OIA’s philanthropic arm that focuses on getting kids and families outside. OIA vetted almost 400 ...read more
Amy Roberts bids goodbye to OIA
Amy Roberts served her last day as executive director of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) yesterday. Roberts, who been with the organization for the last decade and in the ED role for the last four, turns her focus this week to her new gig at The North Face, serving as the ...read more
Government measures outdoor industry size at $427.2 billion
Once again, the government considered the outdoor recreation economy a significant part of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product, this time breaking out statistics in each by state. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) put outdoor recreation at 2.2 percent, or $427.2 billion in 2017, ...read more
Industry Buzz: Jax Mercantile, Hyperlite, Ultimate Direction, Solo New York, plastic in Lake Tahoe, and a German tourism tactic
Keep up by reading Industry Buzz. Here are today's top headlines: Have a news tip? Email us at snewsedit@aimmedia.com Keep Tahoe plastic-free: For the first time in history, researchers have discovered microplastics in California's Lake Tahoe and they are trying to determine the ...read more
BREAKING: Amy Roberts is leaving Outdoor Industry Association
When Congress passed a historic public lands package or when Outdoor Retailer moved to Denver, Amy Roberts had something eloquent and impactful to say about it as executive director of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA). But after four years leading the organization, and ...read more
Trade show report: Grassroots Connect Show
The Grassroots Outdoor Alliance worked hard and played hard at this year’s 25th anniversary show in Knoxville, Tennessee. On the first night, during a festive and nostalgic happy hour, dinner, and awards ceremony, members, staff, and special invited guests of the Alliance ...read more
Outdoor companies urged to weigh in on tariffs
Hiking boots, hiking shoes, trail running shoes, skis, sleeping bags, ski jackets and pants, polar fleeces, and all other apparel, footwear and sporting goods are the new victims of the U.S.-China trade dispute. President Donald Trump followed through with his plan to impose a ...read more
John Sterling stepping away from Conservation Alliance
John Sterling, who has served as executive director of the Conservation Alliance since 2004, announced this morning that he’s stepping down. Sterling has accomplished a lot during his 15 years at the helm of the organization and he walks away having achieved the specific goals ...read more
Camber CEO Outdoor Equity Pledge sparks major backlash
On the final day of the 2019 Outdoor Retailer Snow Show last week Camber Outdoors announced its CEO Outdoor Equity Pledge. Following a panel discussion moderated by Harvey Floyd II that included Amy Roberts of Outdoor Industry Association, Kim Miller of Scarpa, Jim Weber of ...read more
Show floor buzz: Greg Thomsen, NPD Group, Polartec, Outdoor Business Climate Partnership, our favorite booth, and more
Keep up on the news, even among the trade show madness. Here are today's top headlines: Have a news tip? Email us at snewsedit@aimmedia.com. During the Industry Breakfast, Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), Snowsports Industries America (SIA) and the National Ski Areas ...read more
Don't miss these 6 events at Outdoor Retailer Snow Show
1. Snow Show Kickoff Breakfast: A New Era of Collaboration 7:15 to 8:45 a.m. Wednesday (Day 1) in Meeting Room 401: In order to address important issues, position our industries for success, and continue to innovate for the future, industry-wide collaboration is paramount. ...read more
Trump ends government shutdown...for now
It's not over. Even though President Donald Trump has reached a deal to open the federal government after a historic 35-day stalemate, it's only temporary. News reports indicate that lawmakers get three weeks to reach a decision on Trump's demands for funding a border wall ...read more
The industry speaks: Here’s how SNEWS can help you be better at your job
This year, SNEWS is celebrating 35 years of covering the outdoor industry, from in-depth dives into important trends and issues to its daily happenings. We're also launching a brand new, radically different trade journal, and it drops on Jan. 30, 2019. The talented filmmakers at ...read more
Congress 'dropped the ball' on LWCF reauthorization
Because the U.S. Senate failed to move forward on a critical public lands legislation package, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and a number of other programs will remain in limbo. Frustration in the delay came from both sides of the aisle and leaders promised to ...read more
Confusion still looms over the November and January shows
When Outdoor Industry Association posted a letter saying the January Outdoor Retailer show is "still too late for many outdoor brands and likely will not be sustainable for years to come," Snowsports Industries America was taken aback. After the energy and momentum at the first ...read more
Industry Buzz: Sexual misconduct survey, Julbo, MEC, national parks, and more
Keep up by reading Industry Buzz. Here are today's top headlines: Have a news tip? Email us at snewsedit@aimmedia.com. On Wednesday, we will officially close our #SafeOutside survey about the prevalence of sexual assault and harassment among professionals in the outdoor industry. ...read more
Trump delays raising tariffs
President Donald Trump's truce with China is welcomed news in the outdoor industry. During a dinner on Saturday, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to hold off on raising tariffs on each other's goods come January while they continue to negotiate intellectual property ...read more
Outdoor Industry Association welcomes new power player
At the end of November, Outdoor Industry Association will have a new voice in Washington, D.C. to help press forward the industry's increasingly demanding agenda on trade and land conservation. Patricia Rojas-Ungár, OIA's VP of government affairs, comes from the U.S. Travel ...read more
The post-election playbook
Varying levels of excitement, hope, and anxiety reached fever pitch last week as Americans went to the polls in record numbers for what many considered to be an extremely consequential election. With the fate of public lands, climate change action, tariffs, and more in the ...read more
MEC CEO David Labistour will step down in June
David Labistour, CEO of Canadian retail giant Mountain Equipment Co-op, has announced that he’ll step down from his role next June. This news comes as somewhat of a surprise, only two weeks on the heels of his recent open letter addressing MEC’s failure to represent its diverse ...read more
LWCF expires; OIA promises to keep urging Congress to reauthorize
After 50 years of funding recreation projects across the country, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has expired because Congress did not reauthorize it before Sunday. “We are extremely disappointed that Congress is letting one of the most popular and bipartisan programs which ...read more
Federal report measures outdoor industry economy at $412 billion
We all know that the outdoor recreation is an economic powerhouse. And on Thursday, the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) recognized that too. A final report shows that it accounts for 2.2 percent ($412 billion) of the 2016 U.S. Gross Domestic Product. The final report ...read more
Questions linger around Supreme Court online sales tax ruling
Brick-and-mortar retail might have scored a point over mega online retailers stores today, thanks to a new Supreme Court ruling that gives states the authority to require sales tax, even if the sellers don't have a physical location in that state. But some specialty retailers ...read more
OIA elects 6 board members
Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) elected six new board members, who will officially take their seats at the meeting preceding Outdoor Retailer Summer Market. "The OIA Board plays a significant role in helping to guide and shape our focused work in policy, sustainable business ...read more