Below you will find helpful and relevant articles that we carefully curate for the benefit of our B.R.A. Retail Members almost every day. Be sure to scroll through the most recent article or use the Search/Lookup feature to find topics and keywords related to articles that may help you to lower costs, increase margins or create more remarkable customer experiences.

“College Students Develop Device to Save Skiers and Riders Trapped in Tree Wells” by Cooper Gegan via The Inertia

by admin | Jul 3, 2026 | Industry, News, Opinion, Outdoor, Resources, Snowboard

Avalanche beacons are a crucial part of backcountry skiing. However, even if the devices have saved many lives already, we haven’t yet reached the pinnacle (pun intended) of the technology’s potential. Students at OSU Cascades are working to change that, though. As...

“Do Wave Pools Actually Make Money? We Asked an Industry” by Evan Quarnstrom via The Inertia

by admin | May 18, 2026 | Customer Experience, Debate, Insurance, News, Opinion, Outdoor, Surf, Tourism

The Wavegarden pool under construction at DSRT SURF in Palm Springs, California. Photo: Wavegarden It feels like a lifetime ago that Kelly Slater unveiled his clandestine wave pool project in the Central California farmland. It’s been a little over a decade since...

“How Dick’s Sporting Goods Built a $13.7 Billion Business by Putting Community First” by Bob Phibbs via The Retail Doctor Blog

by admin | Feb 4, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Community, Customer Experience, News, Opinion, Outdoor, Resources, Retail Strategy

“It’s Never Just a Baseball Glove”: The Story That Shaped Dick’s Culture Dick’s Sporting Goods built a $13.7 billion business by treating every customer as a human being first and a transaction second. At NRF’s Big Show this past...

“SURF EXPO’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY: WHAT BRAND MARKETERS AND SPONSORS SHOULD PAY ATTENTION TO” by Roy Turner via the SightlineLive.com blog

by admin | Jan 31, 2026 | Community, News, Outdoor, Resources, Skateboard, Story Telling, Surf, Surf Expo, Trade Shows

Surf Expo kicked off its 50th anniversary with a high-energy January edition that reinforced its role as the leading global marketplace for watersports and coastal lifestyle brands. A 15% increase in retail company attendance translated into...

“Retailers carefully balance human intelligence with AI adoption” by Dani James via Retail Dive

by admin | Jan 18, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence / CHAT GPT, Brick & Mortar, News, Outdoor, Predictions, Retail Technologies, Staffing, Trade Shows

Sundar Pichai, CEO, Google and Alphabet, and John Furner, incoming Walmart CEO, speak at NRF 2026: Retail’s Big Show in New York City on Sunday. Courtesy of NRF Big Show 2026 – Jason Dixson Photography Executives at NRF’s Big Show were quick to say AI can...

“How The North Face, Vans and Timberland are trying to transform their businesses in 2026” by Julia Waldow via Modern Retail

by admin | Jan 15, 2026 | Industry, News, Opinion, Outdoor, Predictions, Skateboard, Story Telling

The North Face Apparel and outdoors giant VF Corp is revealing more details of its growth playbooks for three of its core brands: The North Face, Vans and Timberland. The company, which recently reported a 2% rise in revenue for its second fiscal quarter,...