Cementing a differentiated position in the outdoors category globally while getting local consumers to re-evaluate and fall back in love with its brand lies at the heart of new brand positioning and vision work undertaken by Kathmandu. The outdoor goods manufacturer and retailer debuted its new brand positioning in 2021, 'We're out there', as well as its new purpose, to improve the wellbeing of the world through the outdoors.

Kathmandu's first chief customer officer, Eva Barrett, told CMO the triggers were the group's ambition to be a global brand, as well as need to re-establish an emotional connection with Australia and New Zealand (A/NZ) customers once more. "In A/NZ, we have very high awareness. People feel strongly about our brand, but we had become quite functional," she explained. "For example, I'm cold, therefore I need a jacket, as opposed to feeing an emotional connection to Kathmandu. It was clear what we had to do." As part of the brand strategy work, Barrett's team went back into the archives and history of the business to see what the story, passion and sparkle was when Kathmandu was first established more than 30 years ago. "Before going into new markets, we had to build out our clear reasons for being," she said. "It was about our forward-facing vision and purpose and how that is conveyed through our values through to behaviors of our staff. "The brand needed clarification.

Previously we talked about travel and adventure, but in itself that's not differentiating. We reviewed more than 40 global brands in our category as part of our research, and what was clear was that the outdoor category sits in two areas: it's very masculine and it's about climbing Everest, pain and suffering; or it's preachy, worthy and zen-like. That's the dichotomy." What's more, everyone in the outdoor category has a founder story and focuses on what consumers do in the outdoors and the activities, as opposed to how the outdoors makes them feel, Barrett said. "When we looked through the archives and spoke to teams, it was clear Kathmandu has always been about getting people out there in nature, where we feel better - your spiritual, mental wellbeing is better when you're out in nature. That's why this positioning felt right - it's where we came from originally," Barrett said. Supporting the positioning is a recently published study of 20,000 people which found those who spend two hours per week in green spaces are substantially more likely to report good health and psychological wellbeing. Kathmandu also conducted qualitative research in six markets to understand consumers demographically and attitudinally, delving into motivations for getting out into the outdoors, what they care about and what the category means to them. Attitudinally, people across countries were not different, Barrett said, adding it was the same with demographics. "Right now, we skew slightly towards an older demographic, but the biggest opportunity is with those younger, millennial consumers. But from a psychographic and attitudinal point of view, there were many crossovers between markets and demographics," she said.

What was also clear in those hyper-competitive markets such as Europe and the US, where Kathmandu doesn't have a footprint, was that a meaningful, differentiated brand was critical to driving growth, Barrett said. "Through our research, we could identify our white space and that's within that area of how the outdoors makes you feel, and that nature changes your brain for the better when you're outside," she said. "And in our archives, we could see this is who we are at heart. We just didn't articulate it enough as we were too focused on talking about travel and adventure. There is a much bigger purpose there." Helping Kathmandu with the authenticity of its positioning is its B Corp certification in 2019. The certification denotes organisations committed to using profits and growth to generate positive impact for employees, economies, communities, and the environment. "In coming months, we'll be announcing our community partnerships strategy, and we've recently gone out with our human slavery report denouncing this. There is a lot we are already doing in this space, which is why this new brand position felt right, and it's authentic," Barrett said. In the context of Kathmandu, brand differentiation comes from its sustainability credentials and New Zealand materials. The company became Australia's largest B Corp certified company in 2019, recognition of its long-term commitment to a more sustainable and inclusive economy. Barrett also points to a significant rise in customers asking the business about where it makes its clothes, the origin of materials used, and how it's proactively caring and supporting those in its supply chain. The robust strategy and legacy of the business, coupled with clarity on the consumer globally, all fed into the statement, 'We're out there'. This theme created a way to develop out Kathmandu's attitude and spirit and bring the purpose to life with customers short- and long-term. "It's also a double entendre - nature changes your brain for the better, but it also talks to freedom and spirit as a brand," Barrett said.

The positioning is being rolled out globally and across all stores through a fresh brand identity, and Kathmandu is also showcasing a range of jackets inspired by the vibrant colours of nature. An integrated advertising campaign featuring the new brand platform went live on 6 May 2021 through a mix of TV, radio, digital, PR and social. Barrett said it'll run the campaign at different times of the year overseas based on seasons. Kathmandu also promotes its loyalty club (the "Summit Club") and events program, which includes activities around running, hiking, and travelling. One of the innovations Barrett is most proud of in recent months is Kathmandu's partnership with Uber, announced in July 2020. The partnership was about ensuring customers facing restricted movement and lockdowns due to Covid19 could still get their favourite Kathmandu jacket within hours of purchase. "We were looking at ways to make the experience better," she says. "When we started to see problems with the traditional post network, that pivot was to what else can we do. So, we launched with Uber, and it's being rolled out nationally. We have seen a lot of pickup from that as it's easy for customers." During Covid19 lockdowns, Kathmandu turned to virtual events, and has been running a sustainability series on Instagram Live. Every week, this sees it get together with partners like Tim Jarvis (an environmental scientist and adventurist) and Ethically Kate (an educator, activist, and blogger who advocates for living and decision making that respects and protects people and the planet) for virtual discussions around sustainability topics. Elsewhere, the focus is on marketing technology so Kathmandu can achieve its vision of end-to-end customer experience management. "This is about ensuring we truly have the one view of customers so we are in the right place and the right time in a way that's relevant for them," Barrett says. "We already had a strong customer base through our loyalty club, so we have a good view and understanding of our core customers. A lot more work I'm doing with my team is understanding more - about what they do, and what they care about and how can we continue to inspire the love we get from them."

QUESTION:

Drawing on the customer-based brand equity pyramid, explain how Kathmandu's "we're out there" campaign relates to the "brand meaning" stage of brand development.