Podcast Summary: The Rock Fight – "Pitchfest 2025: Women Building the Future of the Outdoor Industry"

Podcast: The Rock Fight: Outdoor Industry & Adventure Sports Commentary
Host: Colin True (B), Guest: Shantae Salibair (D)
Date: October 17, 2025
Episode Theme: An in-depth exploration of Title Nine’s Pitchfest 2025—a groundbreaking event spotlighting women entrepreneurs shaping the outdoor industry.

Episode Overview

This episode centers on Title Nine’s Pitchfest 2025, a unique forum empowering women-founded outdoor brands with support, mentorship, and investment. Host Colin True is joined by journalist and Gear Abbey host Shantae Salibair, who attended Pitchfest and shares her insights, emphasizing the event’s significance for industry diversity, representation, and real, actionable change. Drawing on firsthand observations and candid dialogue, the conversation alternates between wry industry critique and authentic celebration of women breaking barriers.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Outdoor Industry’s Status Quo & Title Nine’s Role

• Historical Context:
  • The outdoor industry has been dominated by white men, with persistent challenges for women and minority representation ([03:10–09:25]).
  • Title Nine’s 1989 founding marked a bold shift, predating icons like Arc’teryx and Powerstretch innovation.
• Title Nine’s Legacy:
  • “Title 9 has been making women's and athletic outdoor clothing since it was founded in 1989 by Missy Park. And I don’t think people realize how groundbreaking that is.” – Colin (B) [03:06]
• Pitchfest’s Purpose:
  • Launched in 2018, Pitchfest lets female entrepreneurs pitch to a panel for a prize that includes a significant purchase order and mentorship ([04:10–04:40]).
  • Support extends beyond winners—community-building is core.

2. Why Pitchfest Matters: Representation, Support, Real Change

• Industry Experience:
  • Shantae recalls her early trade show days:
    • “It felt like wading into an ocean of white men wearing flannel.” – Shantae (D) [07:37]
    • Women’s gear was often unavailable: “Why isn’t there a boot for me?” [08:10]
  • Pitchfest is a counterpoint, with Title Nine investing “money, time, [and] expertise into brands designed by, founded by, run by and made by and for women.” (D) [09:07]
• Meaningful Support, Not Just Optics:
  • “It’s not just the in-house brand… even the brands that don’t win are part of this whole movement. And to me, that’s magic. They’re not just like, alright, you losers, get out of here… They still are plugged in.” – Shantae (D) [10:17]
• Community Building:
  • “You’ve got this built-in community… like, oh, I’ve got another women founder I can talk to about tariffs, or… vendor issues… suddenly you’ve created this thing, we talk about the old boys club–well, now we have a new kind of club.” – Shantae (D) [18:00]

3. Pitchfest’s Real World Impact and Philosophy

• Not Altruism, Smart Business:
  • Missy Park’s stance:
    • “I’m not altruistic about this.” – Missy Park, via Shantae (D) [13:58]
  • Pitchfest has invested $1.7 million (2020–2025) and $72 million overall into women-led brands. “That’s real money. And Missy’s not just giving it away. This isn’t a charity.” (D) [14:52]
  • “If you pour resources into women-run brands, you are increasing the number of women who own, who have capital, who have a real stake in the industry.” (D) [15:00]
• Using Capitalism for Good:
  • “If you want to try and do something based off warm feelings alone, it might work for like a hot second… at the end of the day, we’re talking about billions of dollars and a capitalist driven economy and brands and money.” – Colin (B) [15:36]
• Contrast to Superficial DEI Efforts:
  • “Think about all the initiatives… that have been, you know, quote DEI focused, that just feel like window dressing. It was all bullshit and are all… kind of wiped away now. No one’s doing it.” – Shantae (D) [16:38]

4. Real Problems, Real Solutions: The 2025 Pitchfest Brands

• Lived Experience as Innovation:
  • Example: Luxefit (sports bras for larger chests, founded by Charlene Assam):
    • “We started this company from a place of pain… She would have to wear multiple bras to offer that compression.” – Shantae (D) [19:33]
  • Thicket (plus-size technical pants, founded by Arwin Turner and Kara Hardman):
    • “The Brecon pant’s got two styles. One style accommodates bigger bellies, one style accommodates bigger butts… That’s genius. The human body is not just sample—there’s not just one sample size.” – (D) [21:24]
    • "Four out of five Americans wear plus size. The outdoor industry is just catering to 20%." (D) [22:18]
  • Consumer Trust Issues: “People don’t trust most mainstream brands… even if it says it’s their size, and that it’ll actually fit their bodies.” (D) [22:45]
• Barriers to Scale:
  • “Somebody like Kara and Arwin can design these pants, but… they can only manufacture so many… it’s hard. There’s so many little bitty parts… it is an uphill road for anybody to start a brand, but especially one where you’re filling a niche that has always been ignored.” (D) [24:54]

5. Critique of Wider Industry & “Core” Narrative

• Gatekeeping & Missed Opportunity:
  • “A lot of the loudest voices… will tell you that the industry is all about the core… like 3 to 5% of the people that go outside. And so you have all this gatekeeping by people who want to kind of control the narrative…” – Colin (B) [25:39]
  • “The money is left on the table.” – Shantae (D) [19:20]
• Outdoor as Healthcare:
  • “This is healthcare. This is you… having a healthier life and maybe reducing a medication… or doctor’s visits…” – Colin (B) [26:07]

6. Standout Products & Memorable Pitches ([27:27–30:34])

• Birdie Blue:
  • Repurposes textile waste from ski resorts and brands into stylish bags. “They get these materials for free… because it’s just waste from the cutting floor and things like that. I loved that. We definitely need more of that.” – Shantae (D) [28:25]
• All Over Apparel:
  • Soft-shell overalls with innovative peeing zipper, designed for women.
• Tobiq:
  • Roller bag whose top detaches as a backpack. “The collective ‘ohh’ that everybody uttered when she… showed us how the whole top… detaches… If there’s something women love, it’s pockets.” – Shantae (D) [30:18]

7. Broader Outlook: Are Things Getting Better?

• Hidden Optimism, But Realism:
  • “It’s a slow path. It’s a long path… I feel like we’re still a ways out from really understanding.” – Shantae (D) [31:24]
  • “I think what changes it is when women start to own all the tools of capital.” – Missy Park, as quoted by Shantae (D) [31:43]
  • “Until really that capital starts shifting a little bit more toward being more equitably dispersed… I think change will continue to be kind of slow, honestly.” (D) [32:48]
  • “Most of the time, we get this kind of tokenism where it’s like, I’ve got a Black person in my ad, or I put a woman on our board, and it’s like, cool. We need more. Like, that’s not enough.” (D) [33:02]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It felt like wading into an ocean of white men wearing flannel.” – Shantae (D) [07:37]
• “I’m not altruistic about this.” – Missy Park (via Shantae) [13:58]
• “If you pour resources into women-run brands, you are increasing the number of women who own, who have capital, who have a real stake in the industry.” – Shantae (D) [15:00]
• “Screw the old boys club. We are investing in the future we want to see, even if it doesn’t exist yet.” – Shantae (D) summarizing Missy’s view [15:24]
• “If you want to try and do something based off warm feelings alone, it might work for like a hot second… at the end of the day, we’re talking about billions of dollars.” – Colin (B) [15:36]
• “Four out of five Americans wear plus size. The outdoor industry is just catering to 20%.” – Thicket (via Shantae) [22:18]
• “If you’re not going to let us into your club… We are going to just create our own. Like, screw the seat at the table. We’re building a new table.” – Shantae (D) [18:21]
• “I think what changes it is when women start to own all the tools of capital.” – Missy Park (via Shantae) [31:43]
• “Most of the time, we get this kind of tokenism… We need more. Like, that’s not enough.” – Shantae (D) [33:02]
• (On overlooked innovation) “Why is this genius… not everywhere now?” – Colin (B) [27:04]

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |-----------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:06 | Colin details Title Nine’s origins and the context of women’s exclusion in the industry | | 07:32 | Shantae gives a personal account of homogeneity in outdoor trade shows and retail | | 09:07 | Discussion of Pitchfest’s mission and positive community effect | | 13:29 | Shantae recounts her illuminating walk and talk with founder Missy Park | | 13:58 | “I’m not altruistic about this.” – a core quote from Missy Park (via Shantae) | | 14:52 | $1.7M investment in just last five years, $72M over 30 years in women entrepreneurs | | 18:21 | New ‘club’ for women founders—community created among Pitchfest participants | | 19:33 | Innovations born from personal pain points (Luxefit sports bra example) | | 21:24 | Thicket’s Brecon pant: innovative fit for plus-sized bodies | | 22:18 | Four out of five Americans wear plus size; industry caters to 20% | | 24:54 | Barriers to scaling new, inclusive products | | 25:39 | Critique of industry’s focus on “the core” and exclusionary gatekeeping | | 28:25 | Birdie Blue – upcycled textile bags as a sustainability highlight | | 30:18 | Tobiq’s innovative roller bag that becomes a backpack | | 31:24 | Shantae’s honest assessment: “It’s a slow path… we’re still a ways out” for full equity | | 31:43 | “I think what changes it is when women start to own all the tools of capital.” Missy Park (via Shantae) | | 33:02 | Call for more than tokenistic representation |

Final Takeaways

• Pitchfest is a rare case of sustained, systemic support for women entrepreneurs in the outdoor world.
• Real change, though incremental, is happening—driven by women-founded brands offering products that mainstream players miss.
• A frank acknowledgment: equity won’t arrive overnight. Change depends on ownership and control of capital, not just token representation.
• The community and honest dialogue fostered at Pitchfest might be the spark—and blueprint—for wider industry transformation.

If you want authentic, unfiltered insight into both the progress and persistent gaps in the outdoor industry, this episode is a must-listen.