GREENVILLE, SC (BRAIN) Tuesday June 26 2012 4:29 PM MT— Robin Bylenga, owner of Pedal Chic and co-founder of SpokesWomen, is working with the Outdoor Industries Women’s Coalition (OIWC) to plan a second annual happy hour for industry women at this year’s Interbike.
The happy hour will take place on the show floor in the women’s lounge Wednesday, Sept. 19, from 4-6 p.m. Bylenga will hand out literature, serve beer and create a “networking, social atmosphere.” Bylenga predicts a turnout of around 100 women, more than double last year’s.
A formal meeting with coffee and bagels will be held Thursday morning, Sept. 20, before the show. “I’m really excited to put all our heads together and build the bones of this organization,” said Bylenga.
Founded by Frannie Huff and nine other industry women in 1996, OIWC is a nonprofit group with a mission to provide “advocacy, education and resources for women in the outdoor, bike and snowsports industries.” OIWC boasts more than 1,500 individual members and 88 corporate members.
Bylenga and April Lemly, founder of the “Chicks on Bikes Radio” show, co-founded SpokesWomen in 2011. The grass-roots movement is a networking group that empowers, educates, promotes and supports professional women in the cycling world. “People understand that the women’s market is the way of the future,” said Bylenga. “We want to take this opportunity to announce ourselves as a viable entity.”
Bylenga and fellow SpokesWomen teamed up with the OIWC this year in response to the success of their first happy hour last year. “We got enormous positive feedback from women in the industry and sort of just grew organically. As women in a man’s world, we want to support each other,” said Bylenga.
The organization is in need of funding for the event. Primal Wear and League of American Bicyclists have already signed on as sponsors. For more information, contact Robin Bylenga at robin@pedalchic.com.
