So, have you…seen CBJ lately? Have you noticed our evolution?
When I first took over Climbing Business Journal from Mountain Mariana (formerly Mike Helt) in 2019, I didn’t know exactly what was in store. But I knew—with my 23 years of experience and passionate dedication to climbing—I could help guide CBJ into the future. We took a hard look at what the industry needed, and we committed ourselves to providing it. Immediately we increased the frequency of articles and revamped both the website and gym map. Revenue grew, the team grew, and our resources that empower the professionals of the indoor climbing industry grew. Everything we do is designed to uplift and propel our industry forward.
About three years ago we redoubled these efforts, quietly investing in a ton of new initiatives. I wrote this article to shine a light on this evolution CBJ has made, in case you missed any of it.
Why did we make these investments? To inspire you, the professionals of our industry, to bring your own perspectives and innovations to the places where you work, as well as to increase our collective knowledge, paving the way for tomorrow. Why do we care about those objectives? Because we are dedicated climbers too, and we know firsthand how climbing can enrich people’s lives.
Stories to Inspire
While a love of climbing brings us all together, there are so many shades and directions for that passion, whether you’re talking about climbing gyms, the routes and shapes on the walls, or the people who work in these spaces. It was always a key focus for CBJ to share stories from around the industry, but about three years ago we accelerated the pace, and now we are proud to provide you with all this content for FREE:
- Gym highlights (weekly, with over 200 published)
- Podcast interviews (bi-weekly, with over 60 published)
- Fresh hold shapes (monthly, with over 60 published)
- Latest products and services (quarterly, with over 20 published)
Meaningful Education
We have always published articles that educate readers on diverse topics, and we encourage our sponsors to share their own knowledge.
In 2023 we stepped it up by hosting live webinars. There is just something a bit deeper when learning through a presentation or discussion with like-minded professionals, especially when you join live. We currently have two webinar series, and the recordings are posted to our website:
- Climbing Gym Management (bi-monthly or so, with over 20 published)—these webinars cover topics for owners, managers, marketers and program developers
- Setters Only! (monthly with over 10 published) – these discussions tackle topics important to routesetters, from career progression to comp setting and much more
The News From Across Our Industry
For over a decade, we’ve been delivering the latest CBJ content to you every Monday morning, but we couldn’t stop there. Our weekly Climb Insider, born in those months at home during early COVID, has grown into what I honestly believe is the single most useful email in our industry for professionals.
That is my goal when I put it together for you each week. My kids know it as “Dad’s Wednesday night thing,” where I comb through hundreds of websites, blogs, social profiles and YouTube channels, with an eye for the latest news and perspectives that really affect our industry and community. It’s not always about indoor climbing, because our industry does not stop at your front entrance. But it is always about what is happening around us and the issues that affect our businesses and customers. (If you’re not subscribed, you’re missing out).
For gym managers and routesetters who want the freshest beta relevant to their roles, we started two targeted monthly curations, pulling top content from the weekly Insider for gym managers and routesetters. Setter Beta and Manager Beta deliver only what these audiences need.
Data That Informs Your Business
Since 2013 our annual Gyms & Trends Report has highlighted growth and innovations coming from the front lines of newly opened climbing gyms. The data in this report—derived from our industry-leading map—has been quoted by WSJ, NYT and BBC, and the charts are go-to resources that are frequently included in business plans for aspiring gym owners.
People constantly ask us for more industry data—often data that does not yet exist. So, a few years ago we decided to roll up our sleeves and work to fill the void. This next section includes many of our largest investments over the last few years, and a big salute goes to Joe Robinson who leads our data efforts.
The first initiative we homed in on was expanding our annual report to include a Gyms & Trends Dashboard—an interactive, filterable resource that puts more data at your fingertips. It takes the report’s static charts and allows you to customize the output, so that it’s more tailored and meaningful to your particular situation. This dashboard is in its second incarnation.
Then we tackled a monster, combining our map data with Census and other public data to build a new report and set of integrated dashboards. Our Market Analysis Report & Dashboard was designed to help you evaluate markets for new locations and marketing budgets.
One perennial question facing every manager is how much to pay your staff, so we dived into that project next. Our Compensation Report and companion Compensation Dashboard are the most in-depth analyses and resources ever made available to our industry on this topic. We chose not to make them too exclusive, because we wanted this data to empower staff and managers alike, so they are included with any paid membership, not just the top tiers.
Finally, we looked at routesetting and knew more data was needed there as well, so we leveraged our popular Grip List Survey to collect the data. Routesetting Trends is an annual glimpse into the profession, shedding light on issues like safety, training, turnover and more.
A Place That Pulls It All Together
Our website is the central node for all we do. Last December we launched our 3.0 site, and it is fulfilling our dream to provide a centralized resource and cohesive user experience. With one login you can access your job posts and resume (which are free, and always will be) and also the exclusive content or data that comes with your membership.
I’m particularly excited about these features:
- Seamless access to member-exclusives
- “Sub accounts” to extend member benefits to others on your team
- Integrated “featured jobs”
Since we were founded, the vast majority of our work has been given away for free. It’s been our pride and joy, and rest assured that a whole lot of it will continue to be free.
In closing, a heart-felt thank you to all the teams of people and businesses that have chosen CBJ for membership and sponsorship. You fuel us, and we are eternally grateful.
Scott Rennak
CBJ Publisher & Owner
scott@climbingbusinessjournal.com
P.S. If you value CBJ and appreciate these investments we’ve made, please become a member.
