Held for the fifth time in Stoneleigh Park last week,...

Held for the fifth time in Stoneleigh Park last week, the Outdoor Trade Show (OTS) again increased number of its visitors by 13 percent to 1,427 over the three days. They were welcomed by 120 exhibitors carrying more than 300 brands. The atmosphere was upbeat, in spite of widespread worries about supply issues in the Far East, which encouraged some of the independent retailers at the show to do away with pre-orders. The presence and expansion of Freedom, the specialist outdoor arm of the Stag buying group, was another recurrent topic of discussion among independent retailers who are faced with increasing market concentration. Yet still, the expansion of the U.K. market and the favorable weather conditions at the start of the year fueled a buoyant mood at the fair. Sidas UK, the British distributor of Sidas and Falke, obtained the Product of the Year accolade for the “Hoka Mafate” trail running shoe by Hoka One One, another brand in its offering.