I thought we should share this BLOG post form The Gear Caster for two reasons.  First, he does a fabulous job of describing the RED Messenger Bags, but also points out the program Timbuk2 was running during the OR show in Salt Lake City.

At Outdoor Retailer, Timbuk2 ran a promotion to either trade in your old bag or donate $40 in exchange for a special edition Timbuk2 RED bag. Timbuk2 has been donating 5% of the sales of these messenger bags to the Global Fund to help fight AIDS in Africa. I donated my $40 and am now the proud owner of a Timbuk2 RED Optic Messenger bag.

The RED messengers are of the company’s classic messenger style. I not only love that all Timbuk2 bags are hand made in San Francisco, but it’s the functional design details that really endear me to these bags.

The RED messenger bags feature the new True Fit cam buckle so you don’t have to constantly be adjusting your shoulder strap. Simply pull up on the handle of the cam to adjust the fit the way you like it. When you want to take the bag off, un-click the cam and the strap is at full length to pull over your head. Put it back over your shoulder, click the cam back into place and voila- you have the same strap adjustment as before.

The Napoleon Pocket is a zippable side entry pocket that lets you get at your keys and wallet without having to open up your entire bag. A slash pocket against the inside back wall gives you a padded, separate place to store your laptop or files.

A red key tether, uber organizational options and tons of room make this the perfect carry on, trade show, commute or work bag. The only beef I have with the messenger bag is that the ballistic nylon fabric on the outside back does no favors for cashmere sweaters.

Timbuk2 CMO, Kevin McSpadden, walked me through some of the company’s newer bags at the show. The Command Messenger is made of Oxford Nylon with a studded laptop Love Glove for extra protection. The TSA compliant external laptop compartment fully unzips and lays flat so you can send it through Xray without having to remove your laptop.

The Command Messenger bag also comes with the True Fit cam, Napoleon Pocket and a luggage pass through strap on the back so you can throw it over your wheelie. A zipper pocket on the bottom of the bag lets you store your heavy power cords for easy access and better load carrying.

With Mike Wallenfels, former CEO and founder of Mountain Hardware, now at the helm, expect to see a big retailer push and promotional campaigns for Timbuk2 in the near future.

Carri in between appointments at WWSRA Intermountain Winter Market, texting her buyers for appointments at the Denver show

They came, they saw, they bought (a lot)!

We wrapped up WWSRA Winter Market SLC yesterday and are preparing for Denver which fires up March 1st. If you don’t have an appointment contact Zach, Carri, or Deb and set something up today.

Thanks to everyone we did see in Salt Lake, we had a great show!

Fall 2010 Collection from Smartwool

increase your accessory

Smartwool Fall 2010 Collection

commitment to SmartWool in F10 – we’re talking GIGANTIC margins so don’t miss out!  F10 accessory targets are set for each account. You’ve probably already seen the line and know about the program, but if you have not, contact your rep to see if you are an eligible SmartWool retailer.  This program does not apply to accounts buying into accessories for the first time.  Please feel free to call or email any time with questions regarding this program.

So here are the links to Time Magazines Coverage of the topic.

Time Magazine Video: Is Barefoot Running Better for You?
Time Magazine Article: Toe Huggers

Additionally here is the link to the NPR story which has been airing nation wide.

NPR | Study:  Humans were born to run barefoot.

This is the impetuous of the groundswell of information flowing on barefoot running.  Read it carefully if you are a VFF retailer – there is a lot of information for you to digest.

Harvard Universities Skeletal Biology Labs Report on Running Barefoot (or with minimalist shoes)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Check out the new product from Atomic; RJ is holding a pair of light touring skis, Zach has his hands on a new tele-ski, Sandy has the new skate race skis and Carri is holding the Atomic Nordic boots.  Make sure to get by the booth at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City to check out the full-line.  See you in there!

This light goes from a negative battery to fully charged in just 90 seconds!  Additionally the light will operate for up to two hours on a full charge.  It really is the only light your customers will ever need.

Contact you Mountain Source representative today and get some ordered for Spring.

Stansport Winter Newsletter

Here’s what I like about his post.  One of the first entries we did on this new web site/BLOG was a recap link on the Wired Magazine review Dave references.  Pretty cool to see earned media efforts really paying off.  Make sure they are a part of your marketing and communications strategies for 2010.  No, we are not talking about going after a story in the Wall Street Journal, but make sure you are reaching out to your local media on a regular basis.

Read the entire SNEWS release on Klean Kanteen here.