Today on Outdoor Unfiltered, Eoin Comerford breaks down how a historic super El Nino could devastate cold-weather apparel and outerwear sales this fall and winter, drawing on lessons from the 2015-2016 season that battered retailers like Dick's Sporting Goods, Paragon Sports, and EMS.
He shares hard-earned advice from his Moosejaw days on how retailers in the Northeast and Midwest should prepare for what NOAA and Weather Trends data predict could be the strongest El Nino on record.
Then, Eoin calls BS on Arc'teryx's new climbing-dedicated retail concept in Venice, California, questioning whether the comically thin product assortment is really about climbers or just another way to sell $600 shells.
Later, Jen Gurecki, founder of Coalition Snow, joins for a candid conversation about her decision to shut down the trailblazing women's ski brand after 12 years, how a cancer diagnosis forced clarity, the brutal economics of seasonal hard goods manufacturing, the outdoor industry's retreat from DEI commitments, and her new venture Far Out.
Time Stamps
0:00 -- ISPO Amsterdam Preview Eoin runs through what to expect at ISPO November 3-6 in Amsterdam, from the Peak Reality climbing wall and The Loop sustainability section to the Snowfest Village, Waterlab testing pond, padel court, and running expo with brands across outdoor, snow, water, fitness, and running.
1:50 -- Super El Nino and the Threat to Outdoor Retail A deep dive into how historically high Pacific water temperatures and a forecasted record-strength El Nino could crush cold-weather apparel demand, with data from NOAA, Weather Trends, and the 2015-2016 playbook that hit Dick's Sporting Goods, EMS, Paragon Sports, and brands like Patagonia, Arc'teryx, and Canada Goose.
11:45 -- Calling BS on Arc'teryx's Venice Climbing Store
Eoin questions whether Arc'teryx's new climbing-dedicated retail concept in Venice, California, with its Grasshopper climbing wall and comically thin carabiner assortment, is really about climbers or just another way to sell expensive shells, despite the brand's legitimate climbing heritage dating back to 1989 as Rock Solid in Vancouver.
15:07 -- Jen Gurecki on Closing Coalition Snow
Coalition Snow founder Jen Gurecki on her decision to shut down the women's ski and snowboard brand after 12 years, how a cancer diagnosis brought clarity, and the weight of being a female founder representing an entire community.
18:00 -- The Unique Burden on Female Founders Jen and Eoin discuss the heavier responsibility women founders feel toward their investors, communities, and the broader representation of women in a male-dominated outdoor industry.
20:46 -- Is It Actually Tougher to Build a Brand Now? A conversation about how COVID fallout, tariffs, the AI-driven attention economy, and the Meta and Google tax have made it harder than ever for small, undercapitalized brands, particularly women-owned businesses, to survive.
25:16 -- Why Seasonal Hard Goods Are the Worst Business You Could Start Jen breaks down the brutal economics of manufacturing skis and snowboards once a year, the cash flow gap between paying your manufacturer in February and getting paid by retailers 60 to 90 days after delivery, and why model-year stamping makes it all worse.
29:00 -- Advice for the Next Women's Ski Brand Founder Jen recalls her conversation with Anna Daly, who is starting her own women's ski brand, and the pointed observation that Anna admired Coalition but never actually bought a pair of their skis.
32:43 -- The Real Size of Coalition Snow
Jen reveals Coalition was always a tiny business, never more than three full-time employees, never broke a million dollars in annual sales, and why she chose grassroots guerrilla marketing over paid Meta and Google advertising.
35:39 -- Sexism in the Ski Industry
Jen shares specific stories from SIA trade shows, including a male rep getting aggressive about her product, buyers flexing her skis between their legs and refusing to believe she was the owner, and a shop that tried to avoid paying her until she walked in and took her product off the wall.
39:21 -- Being a Political Brand and Whether It Helped or Hurt Jen on running Coalition Snow as an unapologetically feminist and provocative brand, whether it cost sales, and why she believes not rocking the boat just upholds the status quo.
42:34 -- The Industry's Retreat from DEI Eoin and Jen on how brands quietly backed away from diversity, equity, and inclusion commitments after 2020, whether it was hypocrisy or pragmatism, and the missed business opportunity for someone to step up and differentiate.
48:14 -- Far Out: What Comes Next Jen introduces her new venture Far Out, co-founded with creative director Andrea Slusarski, focused on the intersection of creativity and the outdoors, featuring original artwork, group adventures to Kenya and Japan, and small-batch handmade goods, all created without AI.
52:43 -- Did She Succeed in Shredding the Patriarchy?
Jen reflects on whether 12 years of Coalition Snow was a success, how she defines it beyond the P&L, and the impact of making people feel seen and heard in an industry that often failed them.
55:22 -- Redefining Radical on Substack Jen points listeners to her Substack, Redefining Radical, where she does her deepest writing and thinking, as a better way to get inside her brain than Instagram.
Connect With Us
We would love to hear your thoughts on the show, inside intel, guest ideas, sponsorship inquiries or whatever's on your mind. DM Eoin Comerford on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/eoincomerford/ or email outdoorunfilteredpod@gmail.com.
Outdoor Unfiltered is a production of Rockfight LLC.
Our Sponsors
ISPO -- Unites the sporting and outdoor goods industry, inspiring global movement, protecting the places we play and providing a single, streamlined platform for the brands, athletes, buyers and innovators who shape the future of sport. Register at www.ispo.com
Crux Retail -- Creating bold retail displays for bold outdoor-active brands. www.crux-retail.com/outdoor
Aarn Packs -- Aarn Packs give you a more comfortable backpacking experience by using Balance Pockets that help you spread your pack weight around your center of gravity and allow you to keep your posture natural. https://www.aarnpacks.com/
