Kathmandu launches new global campaign ‘Come Find Us. We’re Out There’ via Motion Sickness
Come find us. We’re out there. – Kathmandu’s new evergreen brand campaign – explores the transformative power of nature, including the endorphin increasing experience of being in the wilderness. Wanderlust cliches aside, Come find us. We’re out there. is an invitation to feel that thing that happens inside, when we go outside.
The first collaboration between Kathmandu and creative agency Motion Sickness establishes a new direction for the brand.
Says Jo O’Sullivan, general manager of marketing, Kathmandu: “Come Find Us. We’re Out There. sets a new tone for our brand, leaning into what made us fall in love with the outdoors over 30 years ago. It’s the peace, connection and meaning we discover while out there, and this campaign invites our community to join us in experiencing that together.”
The campaign was shot entirely on Aotea Great Barrier Island and in partnership with the locals. Leaning into Kathmandu’s new Zealand heritage, the Island showcases the ruggedness and realness of New Zealand’s wild spaces, and the people embody being ‘out there’ in its truest sense: off the grid, amongst the elements, and in harmony with the land.
Says Hilary Ngan Kee, head of strategy, Motion Sickness: “This is an iconic brand from the bottom of the world, and the new campaign lays the foundation for the future. We’re just getting started, with exciting plans to activate this new direction in unique ways over the next few years. We’re excited to see where the Kathmandu brand can go.”
The hero film is guided by Aotearoa radio icon Kim Hill, whose unmistakable voice carries audiences on a journey into nature, pondering and unpacking how being outside changes us. Accompanying Hill’s voice over is bespoke sound design constructed from live recordings on the island, by talented Auckland-based music producers
Says Sam Stuchbury, ECD Motion Sickness: “Kathmandu, Great Barrier Island, and Kim Hill all have a special place in many Kiwi hearts. The combination felt like a magic formula for resetting the brand.. The north star for this campaign was making nature, and the experience of it, our hero. It’s about being out there, getting mud between your toes, and knowing you have a good pair of Kathmandu socks to warm them up in.”
Complementing the film is two suites of imagery, shot by US-based photographer, Jerry Buttles. The hero suite was inspired by timeless National Geographic covers, framing people amongst vast and varied landscapes of Aotea Great Barrier, and shot on a mixture of 35mm film, 120mm film and medium format digital.
The second suite features nine Aotea locals (of 150 who applied to be part of the campaign), wearing new season Kathmandu gear. Shot at the Island’s local hall, Kathmandu’s latest range is styled with the talent’s personal pieces, including a well-seasoned pair of Red Bands.
Says O’Sullivan: “This is a significant moment in Kathmandu’s brand history, and one we are proud to share. Aotearoa, and all it represents, is the essence of Kathmandu’s story, and we are excited to celebrate our heritage in all we do moving forward. New Zealand’s wilderness continues to inspire us not only to get out there more often, but also to create thoughtfully designed, sustainably made gear to help our community do the same.”
Come find us. We’re out there. is now live across New Zealand TV, out of home, online and social media platforms.
Client: Kathmandu
CEO: Megan Welch
General Manager: Jo O’Sullivan
Creative Manager: Stephen McCarthy
Creative Agency: Motion Sickness
Executive Creative Director: Sam Stuchbury
Senior Creative: Will Macdonald
Senior Creative: Melina Fiolitakis
Creative Copywriter: Freddy Riddiford
Senior Designer: Hamish Steptoe
General Manager: Alex McManus
Account Director: Joe Fraei
Head of Strategy: Hilary Ngan Kee
Head of Production: Joseph McAlpine
Head of Post Production: Jolin Lee
Video Production Company: FINCH
Sound Design & Composition: CAY Works
Photographer (Hero Campaign): Jerry Buttles
Photo Assist (Campaign): Ant Low
Photographer (Eccom): Holly Sarah Burgess
Photography (Additional): Nicole Brannen
Wardrobe Stylist: Helen Young Loveridge
Wardrobe Assist: Estelle Schuler
24 Comments
Much needed reset after the, ‘hey aren’t we wacky’ campaign that tried to rebrand them as a ‘cool’ brand for the kids. Motion Sickness nail it again.
That campaign was incredible. This is a wallpaper manifesto. But I hope you had fun working on it…
Honestly looks like they did
How did you go from summer never sleeps to a manifesto ad so quickly. Did they just make the strategy write up from the pitch?
Summer never sleeps was an abject failure for the brand on every level. But hey, it won awards so it must be good right?
Missed the mark on this one team. Preferred the wacky for the kids direction.
This just feels like it’s in the middle between weird and ordinary. It doesn’t have the infectious fun of the Special work. I like the outdoor lines but yeah overall feels like the brand has had the volume turned down. A less interesting version of their previous work is a strange move.
For special. No real loss losing Kathmandu seeing this is what the new marketing team wanted after such a great campaign
Motion Sickness have grown and now do average ads like the rest of them.
#howitstartedhowitsgoing
The last direction tanked sale of the brand. Fun fact, kids don’t have any money.
You kept Special’s line though? You wacky folk at MS.
These are vanilla, forgettable and bland. Reeks of Client directing the Creative. At least the last one was memorable and isn’t that what adverstising is all about?
Nope. If it’s memorable but doesn’t help sales or brand awareness then it doesn’t really do anything except stroke egos and win awards
These will also not move the brand nor affect sales.
Retail is in a tailspin and putting if squarely on the last ads is a little tough.
If you want to do that, then judge these by an increase in sales. Right before summer, year on year, these will tank harder.
They don’t create any clear air for the brand, if anything they move it closer to macpac it’s nearest competitor.
But hey. Let’s see! I can be wrong sometimes.
It was the best part of the ad.
are better than the weird meaningless stuff they were doing. Are they great? no. but they are most definitely an improvement.
So forgettable comms help drive awareness and sales? News to me!
Katmandu is the brand that people who wear pyjamas to the supermarket wear when they go to McDonalds for a sit down dinner.
where as the energy gone ? and that voice over is just wack
Exactly. Totally lost the spirit and sense of adventure of this brand. From a crazy discordant lurch to be down with the cool kids which was so off base it was cringe (how many ‘out there ‘ tag lines are out there anyway?) and now this, which is slightly better but still not hitting the mark and trying a bit too hard. Love Kim Hill but not for this.
The previous creative at least made the gear look cool. This one you can’t see the gear and is pretty flat in terms of positioning – there’s nothing to buy OR to buy into
The product is not as good as it used to be.
That’s why loyal customers are going elsewhere.
Love Kim Hill though. Jealous you got to work with her.
I like it. It’s relevant. It makes much better sense of ‘We’re Out There’, which was a brilliant line by Special, but their execution was never going to work, we might as well all admit. It may have looked cool and edgy but it felt utterly at odds with the brand without a massive re-design of the entire clothing range. This new spin by Motion Sickness keeps the good vibes but makes the brand feel cohesive. Congrats!
its not flashy… and yes, the manifesto is a bit much
but the fifteens are fun and it feels much more honest and on brand than Special’s stuff