SOAR Communications Announces Brand, Spankn’ New Hire

After nine months in the womb and kicking our co-worker, Crew Wesley Lansford joins the SOAR team

SALT LAKE CITY – March 11, 2010 – SOAR Communications is proud to announce that the newest member of its team, Crew Wesley Lansford, arrived Tuesday, March 9, 2010 at 3:30 p.m. He is the smallest among them, weighing in at 6 pounds 15 ounces, but brings to the group his the public relations skills he inherited from his mother, our Account Executive, Maura Lansford.

“We are so excited for the fresh perspective Crew will bring to our PR strategy,” said Chip Smith, SOAR Communications CEO. “We expect his cuteness will make it harder to focus during our staff meetings, but that he will become a kind of PR muse.”

SOAR will waste no time grooming Crew to become an account executive. His job includes daily “tweeting,” mostly at his mother, and being SOAR’s booth baby at the Outdoor Retailer and Interbike trade shows.

Crew comes to SOAR with three days of life experience and plans to develop “Cooing,” a social networking site for infants. His inherent love for competitive sports (Go Longhorns!), skiing and golf comes from his father, Cole, and makes him a true advocate for everything outdoors.

“I’ve sensed from the first kick that Crew was going to be an athletic guy, and I think life with SOAR will fit him perfectly,” said Maura Lansford, SOAR’s account executive and only mother. “Plus, after nine months, I think it’s time he start earning his keep.”

For more information about Crew and his PR qualifications, please e-mail Maura Lansford at mlansford@soarcomm.com.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Chip Smith, SOAR Communications, 801.656.0472 x1 (work/) 801.597.7515 (mobile), csmith@soarcomm.com or

Elizabeth O. Hurst, 801.656.0472 x3 (work)/ 408.386.8168 (mobile) ehurst@soarcomm.com

Despite the huge amounts of preparation that goes into each OR show, SOAR, like the rest of the OR operations staff, doesn’t have time to rest on its laurels when the show is happening in the Salt Palace.

We start before day one managing the periphery of the show to make sure only qualified media get badges and that their press needs are me once they’re inside. We help journalists work around the show director’s very busy schedule and step in as spokespersons when needed. We get up at 4:30 a.m to coordinate early morning shows on the floor, with hair brushed and smiles on our faces. On occasion, we double as models for exhibitors’ product, feeling a little embarrassed and mostly excited when attendees point and ask “Weren’t you on T.V. this morning?” We get a little jealous when attendees ask us about the discounted lift tickets they can purchases with their OR badges, not sure of the next time we’ll be able to hit the slopes.

Though we don’t do as many laps around the show floor as most retailers, the 12-hour day catches up with us once it’s time to party with the industry. Still, we party on. The Woolrich Fashion show made us want to dance (we may have acted on that impulse) and industry’s enthusiasm over the Canada Goose Cup was super fun to watch. We talked to Pam Theodosakis about Prana’s hockey win the next morning as we prepped her to speak about Project OR on camera with a local TV studio.

Of course, between these appointments we are writing like crazy so we can keep media in the loop about the news of the show. We each manage to get away for a few moments, though, to admire amazing new products on the show floor, talk with exhibitors and see how the Project OR designs are developing.

Even though there is still snow still on the ground and in the mountains, we’re shifting our attention to Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, running August 2-3, 2010. Even more exciting times for SOAR and the outdoor industry are on the horizon.

Here’s to warmer weather and more hot products!

Credit Matthew McDermott

Outdoor Retailer ended in late January on a high note with both industry attendance and optimism up from winter 2009. In the midst of writing orders and thinking about upcoming selling seasons, though, the industry as initiated dozens of efforts to provide relief for Haiti after its devastating earthquake.

Manufacturers across the Winter Market show floor offered product to an industry Haitian relief effort coordinated by Terramar, Sierra Trading Post & Eric Larsen. The Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) also partnered with Americares to get first aid kits, water purification systems, headlamps, tarps and hydration containers willing donated from manufacturers in the outdoor industry to Haitians in desperate need of essential supplies. (See below for more information on getting your product to Haiti via Sierra Trading Post and Americares).

In an industry that highly values authenticity and social responsibility, it’s no surprise that the outdoor industry mobilized so quickly to aid Haiti. It employs individuals with just as much strength and heart as the products it manufactures- prepared to be put to work at a moments notice. These qualities and others make SOAR super proud to be part of the outdoor industry.

In fact, we see these qualities in the outdoor industry year round. We associate with outdoor industry leaders that support advocacy groups and let their passion for their sport drive their compassion. SOAR has had some fun and rewarding opportunities to work on a pro-bono basis with non-profits like Bikes for Kids Utah and Trips for Kids. We get to see how much work goes into each event and initiative. Every donation, vote of confidence, re-tweet and sponsorship makes a difference.

Let’s all continue to heed OIA’s call for the industry to “dig deep” during this and every time of crisis and need.

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Click here to read about the partnerships forming in the outdoor industry to help Haiti.

To donate this urgently needed product/equipment contact Randy Weiss at Americares at (203) 658-9527 or rweiss@americares.org. All donations will be delivered by air and sea directly to the region by Americares.

Outdoor Retailer exhibitors are invited to donate show products to Haiti via Red Cross if it can arrive at Sierra Trading Post by FEBRUARY 8, 2010. All packages should be sent to  Sierra Trading Post Robin Jahnke/Haiti 5121 Campstool Road Cheyenne,  Wyoming 8200.

The ORWinter conversation will continue throughout the show as attendees Tweet about the new products they’re seeing, the people they’re meeting  and the industry events they’re enjoying. Outdoor Retailer sponsor Channel Signal will display these conversations, too, on four 50-inch screens strategically placed around the show.

They’ll toggle between the ORWinter Twitter feed and the top five mentioned exhibiting OR brands. Look for them while you’re there. It will be convincing visual evidence of how social media permeates even the outdoor industry and a reflection of how fast the conversation can shift, especially when there are thousands of people participating.

Next to the monitors will be a directory of 200 exhibitors on Twitter.

If you’re interested in attending the show, January 21-24, please register at outdoorretailer.com. See you there!

• 13 ski resorts, most which are less than 40 miles from Salt Lake City
• Nearly 400 inches average annual snowfall at the resorts
• Nearly 27,000 skiable acres
• More than 1,100 ski runs
• Snowboarding allowed at 11 out of the 13 resorts

Ski (or snowboard) on!

Information gathered using information from SkiUtah’s 2009-2010 Utah Resort Facts