One day we packed up our FJ Cruiser and headed to Alaska. It was a road trip of epic proportions — camping and exploring all across the open lands of the West. (No, we didn’t have an Instagram handle; this was a bit before van-life really took off on social media.) We took a lot of time off to truly enjoy our public lands and deeply learn about their origins, their caretakers, their people, their flora and fauna. We wouldn’t trade that time off with such special places in our country, for the world.
At the end of our adventure, we landed in Durango, where we started our business, BoldBrew, in the mountain town we quickly fell in love with. We didn’t start BoldBrew to be a public relations and marketing agency, anywhere. We’re rooted in Durango, and we want to be right, damn, here. So we work tirelessly to bring more ingenuity, resourcefulness, prosperity and collaboration to our town and our state.
That’s why we are overjoyed to welcome the Outdoor Retailer + Snow show to Colorado starting today through Sunday. At BoldBrew, we applaud OR’s commitment to standing up for public lands and want to thank them for recognizing that Colorado shares its values.
As Colorado entrepreneurs and business founders, we know we wouldn’t be where we are today without the San Juan Mountains, the most amazing creative outlet and backyard one could ask for. Protecting our backyard is critically important to us. That means focusing on keeping our public lands public.
Protected public lands, a stable climate, and clean waters are vital to this country’s booming outdoor industry — which supports 7.6 million jobs and $887 billion in annual consumer spending in the United States. That’s why we are a member of the Colorado Outdoor Business Alliance, a coalition of over 170 businesses across Colorado who are working together to support our outdoor recreation economy. Without the hard work of COBA, the OR Show might not have moved to Colorado in the first place.
Colorado hosting both the winter and summer OR shows marks a turning point in the outdoor industry. The next chapter of OR will be one of advocacy, not just for public lands, but also for climate action and community resilience. In starting this new chapter, we hope that OR continues to partner with more pro-conservation organizations, businesses and elected representatives to tackle the climate change and public lands challenges we face today.
Businesses big and small have a powerful voice when it comes to advocating for our environment and our future. With our fellow Colorado Outdoor Business Alliance members, BoldBrew will continue to advocate for pro-conservation policies, and we hope that you join us as we start a new year and a new chapter in activism.
Amanda and Adrian Goad are the founders of Durango-based BoldBrew, a creative communications shop inspired by the outdoors.
