The 2026 ATA Show Week was unlike anything the archery and bowhunting industry had ever seen before. Held January 6–11 at the Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis, it was the most ambitious reimagining of the ATA's flagship event in its nearly 30-year history — expanding from a two-day, trade-only gathering into a six-day celebration that combined B2B business, consumer engagement, and national competition under one roof for the first time ever.
The result was a week that brought together an estimated 2,500 people with a connection to archery and bowhunting — from pro shop owners and major manufacturers to first-time spectators and competitive archers of all ages — marking a bold new chapter for the industry's biggest annual event.
The Week at a Glance
- Jan. 6: ARRO Hot Show (morning) and NABA Show (afternoon) — two retailer buying events that set the stage for the week ahead.
- Jan. 7–8: ATA Trade Show — the exclusive, members-only B2B event for manufacturers and retailers.
- Jan. 7 (evening): ATA Industry Celebration presented by Mossy Oak — New Product Launch Showcase awards ceremony and Industry Icon and Impact Award presentations.
- Jan. 9–10: Archery & Bowhunting Supershow — the first-ever public consumer expo, open to the general archery community.
- Jan. 9–11: NFAA Rushmore Rumble and S3DA Indoor Open — two national archery tournaments running alongside the Supershow.
ATA Trade Show: Business at Its Best
The members-only ATA Trade Show — the beating heart of the week — transitioned to a streamlined two-day format in 2026, designed to maximise value and focus. For retailers, it was their chance to demo new products, take advantage of Show-only pricing through the Super Deal Gift Card and Big Buck Tags coupon book, and write orders directly with hundreds of brands. For manufacturers, two efficient days of face-to-face time with qualified buyers delivered the kind of meaningful order-writing and product feedback that drives the year ahead.
Major brands — including Elite, PSE, Bear, TenPoint, Easton, Bowtech, and many others — filled the Show floor, with many using Indianapolis to debut their full 2026 product lines. "The ATA Show is a cornerstone event for our team," said Kimberly Saunders of Easton Technical Products. "It's where we connect directly with dealers, debut new products and share in the growing excitement of the archery community."
The evening of January 7 hosted the ATA Industry Celebration, presented by Mossy Oak — a networking reception where more than 1,300 members came together to honour the industry's best, including the New Product Launch Showcase winners, the Industry Icon Award recipient, and the Impact Award honourees.
New Product Launch Showcase Award Winners
The New Product Launch Showcase recognises companies for excellence in new product design, innovation, and their ability to meet customer demand. Hundreds of new products were entered across seven categories, with winners announced at the January 7 Industry Celebration.
- 🏆 Best in Show (1st Place): Stack It Peep — Specialty Archery
- 🥈 2nd Place: Bowtech Alliance — Pure Archery Group
- 🥉 3rd Place: Stick for Bear — Extreme Hunting 365
- Best New Bow: Bowtech Alliance — Pure Archery Group
- Best New Broadhead: Tyrant 3 Blade — Rage Broadheads
- Best New Release Aid: Alt Zero — T.R.U. Ball & AXCEL Archery
- Best New Technology: Y2 Wide Lens Cellular Trail Camera — Yellowstone.ai
- Best New Gear: Stick for Bear — Extreme Hunting 365
- Best New Accessory: Stack It Peep — Specialty Archery
"New product innovation is the key to driving sales and propelling the archery industry forward," said ATA President and CEO Jeff Poole. "I'm proud to recognize this year's New Product of the Year award winners from the hundreds of new products released at this year's ATA Show."
2026 Industry Icon Award: Rob Kaufhold
Rob Kaufhold, founder of Lancaster Archery Supply, was honoured as the 2026 ATA Industry Icon Award recipient — the most prestigious individual recognition in the archery trade. A nationally recognized competitive archer and four-time All-American at James Madison University, Kaufhold's competitive achievements include a U.S. National Outdoor Championship, multiple USA Archery World Field Team selections, four U.S. Olympic Festival appearances, and numerous national and regional records. In 1983, he founded Lancaster Archery Supply in a garage on his father's machine shop property in Lancaster, Pennsylvania — growing it into one of the most respected and widely recognised archery retail and educational institutions in the world.
2026 Impact Award Recipients: Marilyn Bentz & Barb Terry
The ATA Impact Award recognises individuals who use their voice and platform to inspire others to enjoy and participate in archery and bowhunting. The 2026 recipients were Marilyn Bentz and Barb Terry. A former two-term ATA Board member, Bentz has served as executive director of the National Bowhunter Education Foundation since 2003, leading global initiatives to grow safe and ethical bowhunting participation. Both women were celebrated for long and meaningful contributions to the sport at the Industry Celebration on January 7.
The First-Ever Archery & Bowhunting Supershow
Perhaps the single biggest development of ATA Show Week 2026 was the launch of the Archery & Bowhunting Supershow on January 9–10 — the first time in the ATA's history that the general public was invited inside the Show floor. For years, bowhunters and target archers had followed the ATA Show from a distance, relying on media coverage and product announcements. In 2026, they finally got to see — and touch — it all for themselves.
"Everybody at my bow shop has been dying for this to be open to the public so that we can see everything that they get to see," said attendee Scott Schnipke, capturing the excitement felt by many first-time Supershow visitors.
Brands used the two days to demo products directly with consumers — just days after having debuted them to dealers on the Trade Show floor — and actively drove attendees toward their local archery pro shops to make purchases. HHA Sports, for example, ran an on-the-spot promotion offering a 15% rebate check to any Supershow attendee who subsequently purchased an HHA sight from a participating retailer and emailed proof of purchase. By January 13 — just three days after the Show closed — HHA had already received multiple rebate submissions.
Key Takeaways
- The 2026 ATA Show Week was the most significant expansion in the event's nearly 30-year history, combining trade business, consumer access and national competition under one roof for the first time.
- Approximately 2,500 people attended across the combined week — a new benchmark for the event.
- Specialty Archery's Stack It Peep took Best in Show honours, beating out hundreds of new products from across the industry.
- Rob Kaufhold's Industry Icon Award was a moment of genuine emotion — a recognition of over four decades of transformative contribution to the sport and the business behind it.
- The Supershow's opening to the public marks a strategic shift in how the ATA sees its role: not just as an industry trade body, but as a true community builder for all archers and bowhunters.
- ATA Show Week will return to the Indiana Convention Center in January 2027, with the format set to build on the success of this inaugural expanded edition.