{"id":317453,"date":"2026-03-02T06:33:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T06:33:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/317453\/"},"modified":"2026-03-02T06:33:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T06:33:08","slug":"merrell-launches-it-starts-outside-brand-platform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/317453\/","title":{"rendered":"Merrell Launches ‘It Starts Outside’ Brand Platform"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tMerrell<\/a> is kicking off its 45th anniversary year with the debut of its first-ever global brand platform.<\/p>\n

\n\tCalled \u201cIt Starts Outside,\u201d the Wolverine Worldwide<\/a>-owned outdoor brand noted that the new series is \u201crooted in the belief that even a few steps outdoors can shift how people think, feel and move.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tRichard McLeod, chief marketing officer of Merrell<\/a>, told FN in an interview that \u201cIt Starts Outside\u201d aims to reframe the outdoors not just as remote, technical terrain, but as something accessible.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cBy reframing \u2018outside\u2019 as something accessible and everyday, from a front yard to a city street to a trailhead, we\u2019re broadening who sees themselves in the category,\u201d McLeod said. \u201cOur job isn\u2019t to redefine the outdoors, it\u2019s to redefine who feels invited, and what better way to celebrate our anniversary milestone than intentionally making sure everyone knows they are invited to the celebration.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCreated in partnership<\/a> with Uncommon Creative Studio, the campaign features three shortform vignettes that help to illustrate the many ways people access the outdoors in their daily lives. Some of these moments featured in the vignettes include Merrell athlete and Olympian Alexi Pappas hiking alongside visually impaired marathon runner Lisa Thompson to find community, to disconnecting from the noise of constant technological connection.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Merrell,<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tA still from Merrell\u2019s \u201cIt Starts Outside\u201d campaign.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Merrell<\/p>\n

\n\tMcLeod noted that Pappas\u2019 involvement in the project \u201creinforces that heritage while also expressing the deeper impact of the outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cAs an Olympian, writer and filmmaker, Alexi understands that the trail is more than terrain, it\u2019s a space where people can reset, reconnect and rediscover what\u2019s possible,\u201d the CMO said. \u201cAlexi\u2019s partnership with blind marathoner Lisa Thompson brings that to life in a powerful way. For Lisa, the outside is a space of discovery, confidence and expanded possibility. That story reflects what hiking has always represented at its best, not just physical endurance, but renewal, resilience and human connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThroughout the year, McLeod added<\/a> that Merrell will extend this type of storytelling across channels, building out more human-interest stories while continuing to spotlight the brand\u2019s core hike franchises.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Merrell,<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tA still from Merrell\u2019s \u201cIt Starts Outside\u201d campaign.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Merrell<\/p>\n

\n\tAnother layer to this project comes the launch of the \u201cMerrell Outside: Futures Project,\u201d with the goal to expand access and opportunity for aspiring designers, who will take inspiration from the outdoors as their \u201ccreative engine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe new project was developed with the Virgil Abloh \u201cPost-Modern\u201d Scholarship Fund administered by the Fashion Scholarship Fund and Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design, which McLeod called \u201cnatural partners\u201d for this initiative.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThese organizations are focused on expanding access to design education and opportunity for underrepresented talent, particularly in footwear,\u201d the CMO said. \u201cThat mission aligned directly with our belief that democratizing the outdoors must also mean democratizing who designs for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Merrell,<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tA still from Merrell\u2019s \u201cIt Starts Outside\u201d campaign.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Merrell<\/p>\n

\n\tPeter Arnold<\/a>, executive director at Fashion Scholarship Fund, reiterated in a statement that Abloh\u2019s vision was to create pathways for talented individuals who have historically been excluded from creative industries.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cPartnering with Merrell expands access, education, and real-world opportunity for emerging designers,\u201d Arnold said.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut ultimately, this initiative is all about what comes next. \u201cBy investing in next-generation creative talent, particularly those historically underrepresented in footwear and outdoor design, we\u2019re expanding who gets to shape what the outside looks like in the future,\u201d McLeod added.<\/p>\n

\n\tMerrell noted that its new \u201cIt Starts Outside\u201d campaign will roll out globally across social, digital, and connected TV this month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Merrell is kicking off its 45th anniversary year with the debut of its first-ever global brand platform. Called…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":317454,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[158347,146,85,46,158348,158349],"class_list":["post-317453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-campaigns","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-merrell","tag-wolverine-worldwide"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/317453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=317453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/317453\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/317454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=317453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=317453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=317453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}