Author:
Mark Copeland
Are you concerned about our industry’s future? You’re not alone. Many retailers and manufacturers in the archery industry see opportunities to bring new participants into archery and bowhunting; and to improve business relationships between retailers, manufacturers, sales representatives and other organizations.
In fact, the ATA’s Board of Directors met several times in 2018 to identify areas to improve, and to create a strategic plan to address those objectives. You might not have been in the room during that process, but the good news is that you had other retailers representing you. They’re members of the ATA’s Retail Council, a standing committee of the ATA Board.
Questions about the council? Contact Kurt Smith. Photo Credit: ATA
The Retail Council has been around quite a while. In 1994, members of the ATA (then known as the AMO, or Archery Manufacturers and Merchants Organization), elected 12 retailers to form its first dealer council. Those individuals met to discuss retailers’ needs, and were represented on the Board of Directors by Jeff Poet of Jay’s Sporting Goods. Poet also served as the dealer council’s chair.
The number of members on the ATA’s Retail Council has fluctuated through the years, but retailers have always been represented on the ATA Board of Directors through this committee. Today the Retail Council’s chair and two vice chairs have seats on the Board with full voting rights.
There are still spots remaining on the council. Photo Credit: ATA
But the Retail Council still needs your help. The Council is accepting nominations for six of its 15 seats. There are three new seats to fill and three seats are up for re-election, so the Council has room for new voices in this conversation, and new ideas to help the ATA best serve its retail members. Do you have thoughts you’d like to share with the ATA’s leaders? Would you like to be more engaged with the efforts of your industry’s trade association?
If you’re an ATA retail member, consider putting your name on the ballot for one of the Retail Council’s open seats. Council members are asked to participate in monthly phone-call meetings, and to provide input on retailing topics. Elections for open Retail Council seats will be held in February 2019.
If you’d like to serve on the Retail Council, please contact Mark Copeland, Council chair, at mcopeland@jayssportinggoods.com; or Kurt Smith, ATA director of industry relations, at kurtsmith@archerytrade.org.
You may also access the Retail Council Nomination Form online.
