Columbia, MO, July 8, 2020 – ust, maker of camping and outdoor essentials since 1936, has announced a major brand “refresh” with the goal of creating a company that brings the outdoors closer to people of all backgrounds and experience levels and encourages them to share their stories to inspire others. The first major step in this process is the launch of ust’s new website, ustgear.com, which features the brand’s updated aesthetic, new mission statement, and a variety of new content designed to give consumers an inside look into ust.
Over the past 80 years, ust has built a reputation for creating the most essential adventure and survival gear. Recently transitioning from its Jacksonville, Florida location to a new headquarters in Columbia, Missouri, ust also began an in-depth brand refresh process with the ultimate goal of inspiring and cultivating people’s love of all things outside. The team’s mission is to create reliable, problem-solving gear for adventurers who want to share their stories with the outdoor community.
“Storytelling will be at the core of everything we do on all levels,” says John Holdmeier, Brand Manager of ust. “Our employees and fans feel connected to us by seeing our outdoor stories and sharing their own. ust will continue to tell stories from the water, trail, camp, and mountain, as well as feature inspiring people, companies and worthy causes. We not only want to create gear that allows everyone to enjoy the outdoors, but also provide the infrastructure for people to join our community and share their voice and inspiration. We want to bring people together by creating a space for storytelling.”
To support this mission, ust recently launched its “Storyteller Series” on Instagram, featuring outdoor enthusiasts from various backgrounds. It also serves as a platform to promote organizations, adventures, and passion projects that are important to the ust Storytellers. In addition, ust has launched the “re:fresh” docuseries, which follows the brand refresh process, as well as “the shakedown,” a podcast that offers consumers an inside look at what’s happening within ust. These individual campaigns are meant to offer supporters different ways to connect and engage with the newly refreshed company.
“The previous version of ust was one of those gear brands that everyone has probably used at some point in their life, but never really knew the brand name “ says Holdmeier. “Our goal is to breathe new life into ust, and to create a lifestyle around the brand that speaks to adventurers of all levels and welcomes them into our community. We are intent on creating a brand that outdoor enthusiasts from all walks of life will get excited about and want to be a part of, and today marks the first step in that process.”
UST values sustainable and socially responsible supply chains, inclusion and diversity in the outdoor community, quality equipment and customer service, and supporting a network of outdoor storytellers to achieve its vision of inspiring and cultivating all people’s love for the outdoors. ust’s mission is to work relentlessly towards its goals and champion others who do the same.
For more information about ust and its new brand direction, please visit ustgear.com. For media inquiries and additional information regarding ust brand refresh, please contact Logan Waddell / logan@groundswellpr.com.
