Columbia takes it to the trail, not the mall
Columbia launched its new Softshell Interchange Jacket this month in a forest park in Inner Mongolia, not a mall in Shanghai.
The Hike Party at Arxan National Forest Park had two person teams racing a new "water land" format... speed hiking, rafting, then lure fishing... with the jacket revealed at a sunset gathering afterwards, next to a weather simulation installation called the Wind and Rain Lab.
What I like here is that the product showed up where it actually gets used. A softshell means a lot more after a day on the river than on a plinth in an atrium.
It also lines up with what Columbia says it wants. "Owning the trail" is one of the pillars of its refreshed ACCELERATE strategy.
This approach might not help Columbia achieve its double digit growth targets for China...
BUT it is the sort of deep investment into culture/community that helps brands maintain brand equity and ASP (average selling prices).
Research we've done on this and other categories shows time-and-again that the brands that stay invested into "CORE" communities are able to maintain price premiums longer.
Kudos to Columbia. It takes bravery to move out of the mall/city to do this!