SIMA and BRA Present Industry Boot Camp

Press Release

• March 05 2009
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OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE - SIMA and BRA PRESENT INDUSTRY BOOT CAMP:
AN OPEN FORUM FOR MANUFACTURERS AND RETAILERS

- Speakers Announced & Registration Now Open -

ALISO VIEJO, Calif. (February 26, 2009) – The Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) is pleased to announce Industry Boot Camp, a joint seminar with the Board Retailers Association (BRA). Industry Boot Camp will be held Thursday, March 19, 2009, at the Waterfront Hilton Beach Resort in Huntington Beach, Calif.

Get REGISTRATION MATERIALS HERE.

For the first time in the SIMA local educational series, SIMA and BRA will be joining forces to bring both manufacturers and specialty surf retailers together for a day of seminars, learning and candid roundtable discussions. Networking time will be plentiful during the time set aside for breakfast and lunch, as well as a cocktail reception courtesy of Surf Expo.

“SIMA is excited to be offering an educational session and day of discussion with our retailer counterparts at BRA,” said Dick Baker, SIMA chairman emeritus.  “This Industry Boot Camp will be a fantastic platform for manufacturers and retailers to not only benefit from presentations targeted to their respective groups, but to also come together and have meaningful discussions about issues affecting our industry today. There is no better time for unity and learning than today, in addition to the always valuable networking time the event will provide.”

Manufacturers and retailers will split in the morning to attend two seminars each that are specifically targeted for their business. Manufacturers will learn important tips and strategies from Charlie Cotton of Path to the Rack Consultants in a seminar titled “Getting Product Sold: Merchandising & Visual Presentation,” as well as learn how to get the most out of a trade show budget from a session presented by Kevin Flanagan, Vice President of Marketing for Reef and former ASR show director.  Retailers will benefit from a seminar by Alan Roseman of Strategic Results titled “Merchandise Planning: Yesterday’s Gone, What’s Your Tomorrow?,” as well as an informative and interactive discussion on an array of retail and economic issues led by Gregg Solomon, former Senior Vice President of Retail at Quiksilver.

The two groups of manufacturers and retailers will then join together again for an afternoon of roundtable discussions. Attendees will be divided into multiple groups to discuss pressing issues and hot topics in the industry today. Each roundtable will be made up of a mix of manufacturers and retailers, providing opinions from all angles of the industry. Topics to be discussed include: customer service, marketing support, green products, merchandising, trade shows today, distribution strategies, and product innovation.

“This Boot Camp provides the best of both worlds to retailers and manufacturers alike,” said Todd Roberts, BRA chairman and co-owner of ZJ Boarding House in Santa Monica, Calif. “The educational component is invaluable and to combine that with presentations by industry experts, networking opportunities and an open dialogue between retailers and manufacturers, the Boot Camp is an event that will not only benefit all those in attendance, but the entire industry as well. Every retailer should take advantage of this unique opportunity to meet with industry colleagues and discuss solutions to issues we are all facing.”

The registration fee for SIMA members and BRA members is $75 per person. The cost for surf manufacturers that are non-SIMA members is $200 per person, and the cost for surf specialty retailers that are non-BRA members is $100 per person. Included in the registration fee are seminars, conference workbook, breakfast, lunch and a cocktail reception sponsored by Surf Expo.

Registration materials were emailed today and can also be found at www.sima.com.  For more information, please contact Shannon Park, SIMA Event Manager, at shannon@sima.com or 949.366.1164 x2.

The Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) is the official working trade association of more than 300 surf industry suppliers. Founded in 1989, SIMA is a non-profit organization that serves to promote awareness of the surf industry and participation in the sport of surfing through public relations efforts and a variety of services, educational programs and research. In addition, SIMA actively supports oceanic environmental efforts through its 501(c)(3) charitable environmental foundation, the SIMA Environmental Fund. In the past 19 years, SIMA’s Environmental Fund has raised more than $4.4 million for environmental groups seeking to protect the world’s oceans, beaches and waves. The SIMA Humanitarian Fund, also a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation, was established in 2006 to award grants to various surf or boardsport related social and humanitarian non-profit organizations whose efforts are focused on improving the quality of life, health and/or welfare of people.