Adventure Scientists Inspires Croakies to Improve Brand's Environmental Impacts

By: Chris McCullough

I first met Adventure Scientists Executive Director and Founder Gregg Treinish in January 2013 while working for Seattle-based K2 Sports. Gregg had been a longtime user and advocate of K2’s Madshus touring ski brand. From our first meeting it was quickly evident that Gregg, a visionary with an insatiable appetite for adventure, was someone with a mission, need, and a network. We offered him product support and strove to share his organization’s message across our brand platforms.

​Three years later I joined Croakies, a Jackson Hole and Bozeman-based outdoor accessories brand. Our manufacturing facility is just down the street from the Adventure Scientists headquarters in Bozeman, and we were pleased to recognize another opportunity for brand and organizational alignment. We began by weaving Adventure Scientists into our existing Conservation product collection, as well as outfitting the organization and their adventure volunteers with the latest Croakies gear to support their work. After some organizational introspection we then investigated solutions to improve our product and supply chain. That’s where the hard work began.

Thanks to Adventure Scientists’ microplastics work, we are all more aware of the negative impacts that discarded plastic poses to the entire ecosystem, including the water we drink and the food chain. Through open dialogue and honest feedback, we were able to keep some waste out of our waterways and landfills by improving our manufacturing practices without compromising the quality of our industry-leading sublimated graphic prints.

We are proud to say that now all of our new Croakies belts, dog collars, and leashes are made from recycled polyester webbing, made from 100% recycled plastic bottles, with the goal of keeping nearly 200,000 water bottles out of landfills every year. Hopefully this is the first of many initiatives geared at providing a better looking product that’s also better for our planet.

At the end of the day, one of the most powerful resources a company can have is transparency and collaborative communication. The relationship we’ve built with Adventure Scientists is a testament to the power of those interactions. We all need to support organizations like Adventure Scientists helping to unlock environmental solutions so that together we can leave this planet better than we found it.

​Chris McCullough is the Vice President of Marketing for outdoor accessories brand, Croakies. Beginning this Spring 2017, Croakies will be donating $1 from every Adventure Scientists branded Croakie sale to the organization. Stay tuned as the Adventure Scientists Croakies line is made available on croakies.com in the coming weeks.

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