Yesterday, I joined 80 outdoor industry leaders on Capitol Hill for the Outdoor Industry Association’s Capitol Summit—a powerful day of advocacy, action, and storytelling aimed at protecting the future of our industry, our public lands, and small businesses like Wild Rye that keep the outdoor economy running.

Dressed out of my comfort zone in my best Capital Barbie fit, I walked the halls of Congress not just as the founder of Wild Rye, but as a voice for the thousands of small businesses across the country who are being disproportionately impacted by harmful tariffs and policy decisions that ignore economic reality.

The Outdoor Economy Is Not a Niche—It’s a Powerhouse

Let’s get this straight: the outdoor industry is not a side hustle economy. It’s a major economic driver.

• 🏞️ The outdoor recreation economy contributes $1.2 trillion annually to the U.S. economy
  
  
  

• 📊 It makes up 2.3% of U.S. GDP—more than oil and gas, and on par with broadcasting and telecommunications
  
  
  

• 👷 It supports 5 million American jobs across the country
  
  
  

And yet, the outdoor sector is being hit especially hard by tariffs that are not only outdated, but actively damaging to the businesses trying to grow, hire, and innovate.

Small Businesses Are Bearing the Brunt

I was proud to share how tariffs are threatening Wild Rye—but we’re just one of thousands of small businesses at risk.

Here’s what many people don’t realize:

• 👟 Apparel, footwear, and travel goods already account for 51% of all tariffs collected by the U.S. government—even though they’re just a small share of overall imports
  
  

• 🧾 99% of U.S. businesses are small, and we employ 46% of the American workforce
  
  

• 🧵 Small businesses like ours typically don’t have the cash flow or scale to diversify supply chains. That means we absorb the full impact of tariffs.
  
  

Most of the performance materials that Wild Rye and the broader outdoor industry innovate with aren’t produced domestically—and yet we’re punished for relying on global supply chains that are, frankly, essential to innovation. These extra costs raise prices, slow hiring, and block investment in the things that matter most—like sustainable materials, high quality products and inclusive product development. 

A Day of Advocacy and Action

I personally teamed up with a dream team of Outdoor Industry leaders - Jeff Tooze (Vice President, Global Customs & Trade at Columbia), Trey Sicotte (President of Mountain Hardwear), Wes Allen (Owner of Sunlight Sports), and Andrew Sayre (Membership Director for OIA) - and we met with lawmakers and staff from Oregon, Idaho, and California, including both of Idaho’s senator teams. We shared our stories—stories of grit, resilience, and creativity under pressure.

We ended the day in the Senate gallery, watching the vote on a resolution to block the April 2 IEEPA tariffs. The resolution didn’t pass—but cracks are showing. The pressure is building.

Across every meeting, one thing was clear: everyone agrees this isn’t being handled correctly. But the people holding the pen still aren’t listening. That has to change.

A Few Takeaways from Our Time in D.C.

🚨 This is an existential threat. Not just to the outdoor industry—but to the entire small business economy. If we don’t act now, we’ll see a slowdown or halt in innovation, hundreds of thousands of lost jobs, and long-term economic damage.

📉 The burden is not shared equally. Industries like ours already pay a disproportionate share of tariffs. Meanwhile, large corporations with diversified supply chains are better positioned to weather the storm.

💡 There is momentum—but it needs fuel. While we didn’t get the outcome we hoped for on the IEEPA vote, there’s a growing recognition that this issue is urgent and unjust. The alliances behind these policies are beginning to fracture. The door is cracking open—we need to push.

The silver lining? We’re part of the best industry in the world. This is a true team effort. The outdoor industry is united—100% aligned and fighting together. The big brands want small brands like ours to succeed. They’ve gone out of their way to share resources, offer expertise, and spent their time on the Hill amplifying our story.

What You Can Do

If you’re a small business or a consumer who understands the value of high quality gear: tell your story. Email your state representatives. Call their offices. Speak from the heart, but lead with facts. Your lawmakers work for you—and most of them want to hear from constituents like you. If you want an example of a letter I sent that caught my representative's attention, please don’t hesitate to use this as a template. 

Now is the time to take action. Our voices matter. And we’re just getting started.

Huge thanks to the Outdoor Industry Association for organizing such a powerful day—and to every lawmaker who took the time to listen.

If you care about the outdoors, small business, or fair trade—join us.