From Campfield—whose jyubako cabins, tent suites, and bring-your-own-setup field sites enable guests to experience Snow Peak’s elevated style of comfort camping as well as Japanese customs like onsen—to the stores themselves, which host interactive displays, Snow Peak aims to immerse customers in the brand’s values.
A great example is Snow Peak’s relationship to the campfire or bonfire—takibi in Japanese. “The heartbeat of any campsite is the gathering around the fire,” said Reis.
In Japan, quality time by the campfire—cooking good food, sharing stories, enjoying leisure time in nature—is a central part of the camping experience. Here, that “takibi time” concept is shared not just through products, like the Takibi Fire & Grill, but also experiences. The Portland location’s attached Takibi restaurant (which opened in 2021) offers hearth-fired dishes like black cod to provide a taste of campfire cooking in the middle of town. Centering the campfire was also a key part of choosing where to place Long Beach Campfield, as there are fewer fire bans along the coast during peak camping months.
“We can actually enjoy our style of camping year-round to its fullest,” Reis explained.
Reis added the Pacific Northwest feels like a natural fit thanks to the people, who live with one foot in civilization and one in nature, and also for what Snow Peak can bring to the local culture.
Courtesy Snow Peak
“I think the PNW is a place where a lot of innovation happens,” he said, calling out the region’s reputation as a hub for major tech companies like Amazon. “We’re connecting faster, we’re connecting with more people. But on the flip side . . . we’re belonging less. Our sense of well-being, our sense of being grounded, our sense of place in the world. All those things are getting eroded by a move toward productivity or efficiency. I think we’re trying to counteract and be a counterbalance to that . . . having a way to get you into nature to find that sense of belonging.”
Hence why Snow Peak focuses more on camping than activity-specific offerings. “[The US is] an activity-focused marketplace. Kayaking, downhill mountain biking, whatever the activity is. That’s the focus, whereas camping is the way to extend your stay. But in our way of going out camping, camping is the main event. Where you gather around the fire, have drinks with friends, cook a good meal, let your kids run around but always come home to a really, really good basecamp.”
Reis is mum on upcoming expansion plans, but with more and more people discovering the brand over the past few years, it’s clear Snow Peak wants to keep growing its presence in North America. “We’ve had a lot of people come visit us from all over, so we’ll see where our customers take us.”