“NO EUROPEAN OUTDOOR BRAND HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN THE US MARKET. HOW ARE YOU PLANNING ON DOING IT?”
That’s a tough question to field at your very first meeting with one of the largest retailers in the US. It was also a turning point for Helly Hansen - a moment of realization they needed to re-position the brand to build relevance and resonance within the US market.
Founded in 1887, Helly Hansen is a Scandinavian brand with a rich history of innovation. They manufactured the first waterproof jacket, created the first performance base layer and standardized the 3-layer system of dress. Initially founded as a workwear brand, Helly Hansen developed three business units: Survival, Work and Sport. In doing so, they offered apparel that protected their users from the harshest environments on earth.
They are one of the most loved brands in Europe, yet they struggled to break into the US outdoor/ski market, which was dominated by North American brands. The brand opened a US design office and re-designed their line specifically for the US market. They signed a high profile team of US athletes and sponsored US films - replicating the standard sports marketing model for North American brands. Ultimately though, they saw very little impact on US sales and globally, sales dipped as the product and marketing efforts were no longer relevant to their core European market. As a result, global sales were down.
The brand needed to build relevance within the US market while still resonating with it's global customer base - this would be our challenge.
PHASE 1 - POSITIONING
We did a 360 degree audit of our brand, talking to customers, consumers, brand loyalists and haters. We wanted to get a clear picture of how the brand was perceived in the market against it’s competitors. Here’s what we found:
People who wore Helly Hansen loved the brand because of the product. But those who had little experience with the product could not relate to the brand. Simply put, they didn’t understand what the brand stood for or how it was different from any of the other North American brands.
This led us to build our positioning around two key tenets of the brand. These would become central to all product design and marketing communications going forward:
SCANDINAVIAN DESIGN
The design world looks to Scandinavia as a global leader in clean, purposeful design.
Furthermore, the rugged Scandinavian coastline and in climate weather makes for a perfect design and testing lab.
Moving forward, Helly Hansen would leverage their Scandinavian roots rather than hide them. In doing so, they would offer a clear distinction from their competitors and be able to tell an engaging story, 135 years in the making.
BUILT FOR PROFESSIONALS
Since it’s inception, Helly Hansen has built products for professionals, working in the harshest environments on earth. In fact, Helly Hansen is one of the most trusted and respected brands in the workwear industry.
Going forward, Helly Hansen’s sport division would borrow from the brand’s professional legacy. All messaging would focus on the similar materials, design and stringent testing between the sport product and the gear that keeps professionals safe and protected in some of the most inhospitable places on earth..
PHASE TWO - CREATIVE EXPRESSION
Our messaging focused around CONFIDENCE - the key emotional benefit our guest would receive from wearing the product. Confident in the technical qualities and durability of the product but also confident in the design and style.
Rather than using athletes in our communications, we used professional mountain guides and ski patrollers - those who over 150 days in the mountains each year.
PHASE THREE - IMPLEMENTATION
Resort Uniform Program:
To bring the new brand positioning to life, we created a strategic partnership program with over 70 ski resorts, including Aspen, Vail, Heavenly and Park City.
This program provided ski resorts with custom designed product, built and tested for years of professional use in the harshest mountain environments. Additionally, there was a marketing component built in, co-operatively built around the individual needs/goals of the resort.
The resort partnership program became the focus of all winter marketing efforts and contributed to a dramatic increase in brand awareness across the US.
Northwestern Partnership:
To create brand awareness that transcended the core outdoor/ski industry, we formed a strategic partnership with the Discovery Channel and the crew of the Northwestern on the popular TV show “Deadliest Catch”. The crew would wear Helly Hansen throughout 3 seasons. Additionally, the brand benefited through a merchandizing program that opened up new distribution channels.
RESULTS:
Within five years of rolling out this positioning, Helly Hansen:
- Became the 2nd largest Outdoor company in Canada
- Doubled their growth in the US (they are now the fastest growing ski brand in North America)
- Became the #1 global uniform provider to ski resorts and guiding operations
- Generates $100M through it's Professional Services program