Later this month outdoor retailers from across the nation and the world will gather in Salt Lake City and Ogden to preview and test the latest in outdoor products, gadgets and gear. Utah has become home to the Outdoor Retailer Summer and Winter Markets, two enormously important trade shows that bring approximately 40,000 attendees to the state annually and generate approximately $33 million in direct economic impact.

While indirectly related to the state's travel/tourism industry, the two shows are nonetheless important to the industry because they expose outdoor products manufacturers, retailers, industry advocates and media to Utah, where they can not only conduct business but also do it at the epicenter of outdoor recreational opportunities.

"The Outdoor Retailer show bolsters Utah's reputation as the premiere outdoor recreation location in the country," says EDCUtah President and CEO Jeff Edwards, "which fuels economic development in many areas and strengthens our tourism industry."

Indeed, Utah's $7 billion-a-year tourism industry is a key economic driver. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that approximately 10 percent of all Utah non-farm jobs are directly or indirectly related to travel and tourism, trailing such sectors as trade, transportation, utilities, government, professional and business services, education and health services, and manufacturing. While Utah is fortunate to have an economy as diverse as its landscape, travel and tourism are nonetheless important to the state, especially in rural Utah, where they dominate the economies of counties in the northeast and southeast regions and comprise a significant portion of the employment base, tax receipts, personal income and business profits.

While competition is intensifying among nearby destinations for local and regional travel/tourism dollars, Utah is gradually garnering a greater percent of U.S. domestic traveler spending, from 0.88 percent in 2004 to 0.94 percent in 2008. National trends in key segments of the travel market, such as adventure travel, cultural and heritage tourism, nature-based travel and family travel bode well for Utah. The state is well positioned to attract visitors in these segments due to its rich diversity of outdoor recreational opportunities -- from skiing the "Greatest Snow on Earth" to hiking spectacular slick rock, sandstone canyons and all adventures in between.

According to data from the Utah Office of Tourism (UOT), an estimated 24.7 million vehicles crossed Utah's borders in 2008 via its interstate highways. While the airline industry has taken a beating, some 20.7 million passengers arrived at Salt Lake International Airport during 2008, a decrease of five percent from 2007 that is largely attributed to the weak economy and smaller planes with lower capacity. Nonetheless, Delta Airline's new non-stop flights from Salt Lake City to Tokyo, combined with a visa waver agreement signed between the governments of the United States and South Korea, are expected to greatly assist Utah in attracting visitors from Asia.

Last year international visitors accounted for 3.77 percent of total non-resident visitation with an estimated 740,000 visits. Utah's top foreign markets include:

• Canada
• Mexico
• Germany
• United Kingdom
• France
• Japan
• The Netherlands
• South Korea

Approximately 77 percent of Utah's visitors come from the Western United States. Top markets include:

• Colorado
• California
• Idaho
• Nevada
• Arizona
• Texas

Utah overnight leisure visitors (including Utah residents and non-residents) are estimated to have spent on average $101 per person per day and stayed 4.95 nights during 2008, according to UOT data. Traveler spending in Utah rose approximately 6.2 percent to $7.1 billion and generated an estimated $631 million in state and local tax revenues.

Utah's five national parks experienced 5.6 million recreation visits during 2008. Through May 2009 the national parks have experienced 1,822,512 visits. Bryce Canyon has experienced a 20.8 percent increase over last year, while Arches has experienced a 6.1 percent increase and Zion National Park has seen a 1.5 percent increase over the same period last year. Canyonlands and Capitol Reef have both seen small decreases in visits through May 2009.

During 2008 another 3.1 million recreation visits occurred at Utah's seven national monuments, two national recreation areas and one national historic site. And despite the economic recession, Utah's 13 ski resorts experienced the fourth best season on record for the 2008/2009 ski season, hosting 3.9 million skier days.

Edwards says Utah's reputation as an outdoor recreation wonderland not only impacts jobs in travel and tourism, but is also extremely beneficial for recruiting and growing outdoor-related businesses here. Many outdoor product companies have operations in Utah, such as Rossignol, Dynastar, Nidecker, Salomon; Atomic; Goode Skis; Voile Ski, Snowboard, & Bindings; Dale Boots; Black Diamond; Morrell Boards; Revolution Snowboards; Petzl; Ortovox; Peregrine; Backcountry.com; Easton Technical Products; Chums; Zeal Optics; Chisco; and Liberty Mountain. What's more, Specialized Bicycle has its western warehouse in Salt Lake City and many bicycle accessory manufacturers like Lone Peak, Lizard Skins, Black Bottoms, Reynolds Cycling, and Flat Attack call Utah home. Increasing the cluster of outdoor products companies in Utah is an important part of EDCUtah's recruitment activities, Edwards adds, and the organization will continue to actively recruit outdoor products companies to the state.