It's showtime: Outdoor Retailer Tradeshow begins 5-day run Tuesday

Outdoor enthusiasts from around the country will be in Utah next week, learning what's new in the industry while brushing up on things such as green business practices and how to encourage others, primarily youths, to play in the great outdoors.

The Outdoor Retailer Summer Market Tradeshow begins Tuesday and runs through Sunday, primarily at the Salt Palace Convention Center in downtown Salt Lake City. It is the 11th summer the event has been staged in Utah, and with the some 20,000 participants comes $18 million in immediate economic benefit to the state.

"The economic impact to Salt Lake City, (Salt Lake) County, Wasatch Front and the state of Utah is substantial," said Shawn Stinson, director of communications for the Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau. "The impact is as far-reaching as Davis County, Summit County, up in the Park City area."

The show is not open to the public. More than 20,000 people attended the 2006 summer show, including manufacturers and distributors of outdoor products and owners and buyers from specialty retail stores.

At last count, 1,138 exhibitors had registered to participate in next week's event.

"We're growing," said Frank Hugelmeyer, president of the Outdoor Industry Association. "This is by far the largest outdoor show in the world. It is the

spotlight on the active outdoor industry every year, and this summer show is always the largest."

The association also hosts a winter show in Salt Lake each January. It has agreed to host both events in Salt Lake through 2010, though Hugelmeyer said he hopes to be around much longer than that.

"There's some of the greatest, most beautiful inspiring landscapes in the world in Utah," he said. "To have the city in close proximity to the outdoors is an enormous advantage from our perspective."

Utah's active lifestyle and appreciation for the outdoors is a perfect match for the trade show's message, Stinson said.

"They're fantastic partners in everything they do, and a lot of it has to do with the ethos of the outdoor industry," he said. "Salt Lake mirrors that ethos, and I think that's where the partnership has grown over the years."

According to the CVB, outdoor recreation contributes $5.8 billion annually to Utah's economy, supports 65,000 jobs and generates nearly $300 million in annual state tax revenues. The industry also produces nearly $4 billion annually in retail sales and services — nearly 5 percent of Utah's gross state product.