Looking for a bit more confidence in your adventure?

Didn’t you come to SplashMaps looking for a bit more confidence in your adventure? Well, our unfailing products are sure to keep you on the trail and curious for more explores. But, we believe, for our favourite people, there’s more to an adventure than maps. So we travelled to the Outdoors Trade Show in Liverpool to find exactly what.

Disconnect and be fully present

Repeat customers and their word of mouth marketing over the past 8 years have been our mainstay. Their wider need to disconnect and be fully present in their outdoors showed-up in most of our direct contact with customers. It’s proved inspirational. For them, we’re driven to deeper research. Not just to drive improvements to our product range (for 3 years 30% our income has come from new products launched within 12 months!), but to seek-out how else these customers can enhance their love of precious outdoors time.

The Outdoors Trade Show

And so, for our first non-virtual show of this weird season, we chose the Outdoors Trade Show courtesy of the Outdoors Industry Association.

Beyond the greenwash?

Our day began with a breakfast networking event around – you guessed it – The Environment. But, seriously, there appeared to be an encouraging mood shift here. Representatives from Rab, the BMC and our host, Chair of the OIA, Andrew Denton, emphasised the now real evidence of mans impact on the climate and the inevitable destruction of wilderness. Refreshingly the business and association stories went beyond the greenwash of the past. As I have written before, the outdoors industry at large has been painfully slow to follow an ethical path. The drive for ethical fabrics in mapping, for example, had to come from the cosmetics industry rather than the outdoors sector and their previously intractable priority on low cost raw material supply.

‘Category 3 impacts?’

These were a prelude to the introduction of Scott Nelson, an American accented millennial from the European Outdoors group. He described research efforts of the past year that underlie a Climate Action Plan we can all take home and adopt. The somewhat baffling term, ‘Category 3 impacts’ was used to define the greatest evil for the environment in the supply chain. I was left with the impression it’s more about focussing on energy in manufacture than it is the relatively easy win of changing packing.

Liverpool Exhibition Centre

The exhibition itself, homed in the light, airy, and brand new Liverpool Exhibition Centre – with terrific views across the Mersey – was a dream for visitors.

Well fed buyers

Day 1 suffered from a mini lock-down experienced as nearly all the outdoor industry’s buyers took a half day holiday (perhaps triggered by England’s 2-0 defeat over Germany). But, this was day 2 and, perhaps lured by the promise of a free breakfast, the well fed buyers made their tour of the stands, keeping the sales guys on their toes.

Spending time helping

We’re grateful to the innovators, sales staff and their representatives for HJ Socks, Lifesystems, Swim Secure, Coast, Silva, Dewerstone, LEDLens, Vibram, Troll Outdoors (thanks for the socks!) Ordnance Survey Leisure Ltd. and Harvey Maps for spending time helping us understand their related products.

Confidence comes from within

Confidence comes from within, there’s no doubt. But setting-out confidently for your adventure means;

• setting intentions – plan your adventure.
• believing you can do it – skill yourself and visualise the outcome.
• equipping for success – reliable products with a utility and weight & form you can handle.
• preparing for the worst – you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs right?

SplashMaps wants to equip customers with the best complimentary products. Not the most expensive, simply the best at fitting these 4 criteria.

What would you recommend?