Three Keynote Speakers Confirmed for NSGA Conference/Summit

MOUNT PROSPECT, IL – The National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) proudly announces a triple-header of keynote speakers for its 45th Annual Management Conference & 11th Annual Team Dealer Summit, which will be held May 3-6, 2009, at the Westin La Cantera Resort in San Antonio, Texas.

Dan Clark, best selling author and internationally known speaker, will open the Conference & Summit on Monday, May 4, with a keynote address titled, “The Answers Are Still In The Box.” Clark, primary contributing author of “Chicken Soup for the Soul,” has spoken to more than 4,000 audiences with the key message that solutions to a company’s challenges lie within the company. In other words, the answers are still in the box.

Clark will show how companies have learned to ignite the passion within each employee and then use this passion to overcome the toughest business obstacles.

On Tuesday, May 5, basketball-coaching legend Jim Boeheim, head coach of Syracuse University’s men’s team, will open the general session with a message of “Winning in Spite of Adversity.” Boeheim will share his successful coaching and leadership methods that have brought an NCAA championship to Syracuse University. He will also share his experiences as the assistant head coach of the gold-medal winning 2008 USA Olympic basketball team. He is an expert at bringing together a group of individuals to form a team that can overcome the toughest obstacles.

Another Syracuse alumnus, former Baltimore Colts Pro Bowl defensive lineman Joe Ehrmann, headlines Wednesday’s program with two unique sessions, one to bring the Conference/Summit to a climactic conclusion and a second, optional, session that will be geared to football coaches and athletic directors who may be customers of NSGA-member dealers.

Ehrmann, Founder of Building Men and Women for Others, Inc., is the subject of New York Times Best Seller Season of Life and Parade Magazine’s “Most Important Coach in America.”

He will share his mission to inform, inspire and initiate individual, communal and societal change through sports and coaching. Joe’s InSideOut Coaching philosophy will help you maximize the power and platform of sports to increase your business.

After the close of the Conference/Summit, team dealers, college and high school coaches, and athletic directors are invited to attend and participate in Ehrmann’s one-of-a-kind clinic, which will allow attendees to become more impactful through building healthy relationships. Joe will share and empower attendees with his revolutionary, yet straightforward message that redefines sports and reframes coaching to positively impact student athletes, school administrators, athletic directors and coaches for a lifetime.

“Each of these speakers is a gifted communicator who has made lasting contributions in his chosen field,” said NSGA Chairman of the Board Bob Dickman, general manager of the Sport Supply Group Team Dealer Division. “Alone, each would be the highlight of the event; to have all three at one Conference is not to be missed.”

NSGA has made it easier to attend the 2009 Conference & Summit. “We negotiated a hotel room rate that froze prices at 2006 rates,” said NSGA President & CEO Matt Carlson. “We also kept the registration fees at the same level as the 2008 Conference & Summit.

“Smart retailers may consider being more selective with their travel plans, but the Conference/Summit will allow them to energize themselves to face a difficult business environment, to connect with industry partners, and take advantage of a great educational event,” Carlson said. “There is no time better than the present to arm yourself and your company for uncertain times, which is why NSGA went to great lengths to provide a great program designed to strengthen your business during this difficult economy.”

Team Dealer Summit co-sponsors are Mueller Sports Medicine, Russell Athletic Group (Russell Athletic, Bike, Spalding, Huffy Sports, Moving Comfort, Brooks Sports and American Athletic, Inc.), The SportsOneSource Group, Sporting Goods Dealer Team Business and the NSGA Team Dealer Division.

Conference & Summit sponsors include ADT Security Services, Inc., Champion Athleticwear, Cruzin Cooler, Edifice Information Management, Gatorade, GE Money Sport Finance Program, Glenview Health Systems, W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc., Messe Műnchen GmbH (ISPO), Mizuno USA, Inc., Mueller Sports Medicine, Inc., M.J. Soffe Co., Inc., New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc., NIKE, Inc., The NPD Group, Inc., NSGA Team Dealer Division, Russell Athletic Group (Russell Athletic, Brooks Sports, Spalding, Bike, Moving Comfort, Huffy Sports, American Athletic, Inc.); SGD TEAM Business; Sporting Goods Business; The SportsOneSource Group, Wild Sales, LLC – Tailgate Toss; and Wilson Sporting Goods Co.

Scholarship Providers include Alleson Athletic; All Star Division/Ampac Enterprises, Inc.; American Sporting Goods Corp.; Bison, Inc.; Irwin Broh & Associates; Champion Athleticwear; Cramer Products, Inc.; Holloway Sportswear, Inc.; Leisure Trends Group; McDavid Sports; Rawlings Sporting Goods Co., Inc.; Russell Athletic Group (Russell Athletic, Brooks Sports, Spalding, Bike, Moving Comfort, Huffy Sports, American Athletic, Inc.); Skechers USA; Spira Footwear; Sportline, Inc.; Twin City Knitting Co., Inc.; and Wilson Sporting Goods Co

A complete schedule of speakers, panel discussions, workshops, networking time and social activities will be included in brochures that will be mailed in January and posted on the NSGA website (www.nsga.org).

For more information, please contact Sue Wenderski or Chuck Suritz at NSGA, (800) 815-5422, or e-mail: info@nsga.org.

About NSGA:
NSGA, which has served the sporting goods industry since 1929, organizes and hosts the annual NSGA Management Conference & Team Dealer Summit, the sporting goods industry’s premier educational and networking event (Next: May 3-6, 2009, at the Westin La Cantera Resort in San Antonio, Texas).

For more information on NSGA member services, visit the Association home page (www.nsga.org); call Rhonda Onuszko at NSGA, (847) 296-6742, Ext. 131; e-mail: ronuszko@nsga.org; or fax (847) 391-9827.