Outdoor Retailer 2024 Recap

Outdoor Retailer

Outdoor Retailer is one of the biggest outdoor industry trade shows around. It was held this year in Salt Lake City and filled the Salt Palace Convention center. As a member of the “media”, I was invited again to see all of the new brands that were showcasing at the show. Some were familiar names with new product lines but more than any year before there were a lot of new brands with new products. I haven’t had a chance to test much of the gear yet so this is just my first-take recap based on my quick meetings at the brands booths. Here is my Outdoor Retailer 2024 Recap.

Innovation

This year brought more new businesses to Outdoor Retailer and with that came a ton of new innovation. This year about 80% of the companies at OR were first time presenters and there was a big mix of products being shown. Here are some of my favorite innovative products that I saw this year.

Tick Mitt

Tick Mitt actually won the innovation award this year at OR and it is a really cool product. This is a mitt you can put on your hand and wipe it over your clothes or your pets and it will pull off all the ticks. Tick Mitt developed this glove using the same concept as Velcro, with a loop and hook. As the Mitt runs across a tick, they get stuck in the Tick Mitt and are removed. This hit a bit close to home as I found myself in a tick nest recently and ended up with about a half dozen ticks on me and I wish I would have had a Tick Mitt at that time. I can’t wait to use this one.

Coast

Coast Products came up with a really cool new feature to their headlamps. They have added a voice activation system to the headlamp. So now you can control the headlamp simply by saying phrases like “Coast On”, “Coast Red”, or “Coast off”. I like this for a couple of situations. First would be if you wake up in the tent and its dark and you can’t find your lamp you can just call out to it. The other function would be just to keep your hands free in any situation. What a cool way to make your day safer and easier by Coast.

My Favorite Story

Every year there are some stories that just make you feel good. This year there was one brand that really won my heart. It is great when brands support causes but when the brand is built around a cause or a person it really makes me feel great about a product.

Melan

I loved the story of Brandi, the founder of Melan Suncare. Brandi is a survivor of stage 4 melanoma but she didn’t stop fighting when she won that battle. Brandi said she wasn’t going sit back and take it and she wasn’t going to hide inside. Instead, she created Melan, a sunscreen with less chemicals that is better for your skin and body. Melan, will also give a part of their proceeds directly to melanoma research. I love that Brandi and Melan keep fighting the fight against melanoma.

Cool Stuff

There were so many options of cool gear to check out I wasn’t sure how to categorize some of it. So I basically just picked it all as “Cool Stuff”. In short, this is stuff that I walked by and said, “That’s cool” to either the product or the story. Here is my list of Cool Stuff at Outdoor Retailer 2024

Seniq

Seniq is a new line of women’s outdoor and lifestyle clothing founded by two women and a third woman works as the designer. I love seeing small businesses with such a good showing while they are starting out and I was really impressed with the clothes that Seniq was showing. They were basically a crossover between stylish and athletic and perfect for the trails or the town. They had a really cool pair of pants that they showcased with a ton of tech including adjustable sizes to help with layering and fit.

Trek Bug Spray

Trek Bug Spray by Lemongrass Farms. takes a unique and more natural approach to bug spray. For the spray, Trek uses ingredients such as Lemongrass oil, Cedarwood Oil, and Peppermint oil to form a natural insect repellent. The oils that they use also double as a moisturizer so your skin feels great while using Trek instead of sticky. It is a gentler version of bug spray and is also available in a kids version.

Crokit

CrokIt was a cool one for me. Instead of focusing on keeping all of the food you take on that next adventure cold, Crokit looks at it the other way. How can we keep the heat going? Basically, the Crok Pot concept is in a smaller, portable and sealable container so when you get to your favorite fishing or camping spot, you can have some nice hot soup or food. It was really cool to see the food portability problem looked at in a new way!

Nomad Grills

Nomad Grills had a unique way of looking at grilling. What makes Nomad cool is that they use a metal, portable case so you can take your grill wherever you go. The case opens up to have a space for the charcoal, a grill and then a top section for smoking or you can get a second grill insert to double your cooking surface. All of this is a portable, and easily carried, container so you can have your grill anywhere. A really cool look at grilling that I haven’t seen before.

Snacks

You can’t have a name like FatManLittleTrail without focusing on the snacks. Snacks are the best part of hiking after all! This year there were several snack and hydration products that were presented at the show but I focused on something new and something known.

Bridgford

Beef Jerky is always one of the best snacks to bring along on the trail. Last year, I met the folks from Bridgford Beef Jerky and they told me I bet I knew their product. Well, after that I saw them everywhere and realized that my favorite jerky is from Bridgford. They also are pairing with Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauces to really make a great new product!

SuckerPunch

Sucker Punch is a new product looking to get into the outdoor space. Sucker Punch is a pickle juice based hydration drink that they are now selling in these small individual containers. They are packed with electrolytes and easy to carry for a quick boost of energy and rehydration.

Wrap up of Outdoor Retailer 2024

Outdoor Retailer 2024 was a nice gathering and there were a lot of cool brands. It has changed a bit over the years with more newcomers bringing new energy into the show. It is always so cool to see what the new innovations and brands bring to the show. I really enjoyed meeting all of them and make sure to keep watch of my page to see me test some of the products over the next few months.

More from the Fatman

I want to thank Chloe so much for lending her thoughts on this review. If you are looking for great tips on new media marketing and copywriting, make sure to check out her website at https://chloeanne-copyagency.com/.

For a list of other products that I have reviewed you can check my Product Review page here. If you have any products you would like me to review or any comments you can email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com or you can follow me on any of the below social media platforms. Happy Hiking!