Switchback is coming to Nashville, TN, June 16-18, 2025, separate from its sibling show, The Running Event. Diversified Communications (Div Comm) will host the new-ish education and business gathering for the outdoor industry, led by an experienced outdoor industry team.
The new Switchback Spring venue will build on the momentum of its original fall gathering, which launched in 2022 as a specialty outdoor showcase at The Running Event (TRE), North America’s run and outdoor specialty retail conference and trade show.
Div Comm said in a release that with the addition of new June dates, Switchback now provides a twice-yearly home for “a growing core of specialty retailers, media and brand leaders in backpacking, apparel and footwear, as well as openly welcoming the sizable outdoor industry members who have lapsed from regular attendance at open national trade events.”
The event will find competition for attention from retailers and vendors as June gets busier each year after Outdoor Retailer moved the OR Show to June in Salt Lake City, UT, and Grassroots Connect holds the premium slot for the outdoor space. New to the space is the Big Gear Show, a consumer-focused show that partnered with Outside in Denver, CO.
“A key driver of Switchback’s growth has been from the encouragement of our cornerstone exhibitors, retailers and industry partners, as they’re eager to see the energy and engagement around this style of event continue,” said Christina Henderson, Switchback event director. “We’re also inspired by the opportunity to build a bridge between the known need for discovery—of new brands, new relationships, and new ways to grow—and the large number of outdoor industry members who are openly searching for an event that delivers on it all.”
With an intentional focus on core outdoor activities, hosted in a central U.S. location and scheduled in an optimal timeframe for valuable buying conversations, Switchback organizers reported they are “centering the June event around key industry priorities.”
“I’m excited to see a show in the East that’s closer and more economical to attend,” said Ed McAlister, owner of River Sports Outfitters in Knoxville, TN. “Also, it’s great to be able to see all the new and great trail-running brands at one time. This is a growing market. We all need to stay on top of.”
Switchback builds its Spring format “to support outdoor needs through the same four pillars at previous events: learning, discovery, connection, and celebration.” The venue will provide a “robust schedule of forward-looking conference programming and peer learning that will be applicable and valuable to multiple business levels and positions.”
“Switchback has been a valuable new trade show opportunity for Scarpa,” said Mark Mathews, vice president of sales at Scarpa. “We can effectively show off our brand and products–and meet with many specialty retailers–in a very positive and supportive industry-only environment.”
Div Comm said Switchback Spring will continue providing retailer scholarships while ‘building meaningful industry partnerships and welcoming an advisory panel to support shaping the event’s trajectory.’
“TRE has a great format for retailers, and we look forward to a new event that features more outdoor and active lifestyle,” said Chris Groom, owner of Mountain High Outfitters.
Switchback’s educational sessions, networking events and exhibition space will all be hosted within a dedicated portion of the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, that includes 12 restaurants and an attached hotel. With all attendees staying and meeting in one local, the “focused and efficient environment will enable private planned meetings and serendipitous run-ins.”
In addition to its walking proximity to the Grand Ole Opry, the historic country music venue, the Gaylord is also a neighbor to the Cumberland River; the 935-acre Shelby Bottoms nature preserve, and a Nashville greenway trailhead that is part of the city’s network of 180 miles of non-motorized pathways. Five Tennessee State Parks and three lakes can also be accessed within a short drive.
Nashville’s central location is also easily accessible for retailers and brand reps in multiple sales regions, as the city is less than a half-day drive from Asheville, Atlanta, Birmingham, Memphis, Louisville, Cincinnati, and St. Louis. For those traveling farther, Div Comm said Nashville has daily direct flights from over 90 domestic airports, including Boston, Bozeman, Charleston, Charlotte, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington DC.
For more information on Switchback, go here.
Image courtesy Diversified Communications
