John Keats, Thomas Hardy and… outdoor gear

If you’ve never been to a trade show, it’s hard to imagine the maelstrom of activity, sights and sounds which constitute the three days of the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in Denver. Huge booths, bright lights, thousands of people, the noise of promotional parties – it’s all pretty overwhelming.

It’s noteworthy that even without guest DJs or giveaways, the Sea to Summit booth is usually pretty busy (and occasionally manically busy).

For now, I just wanted to share one impression which has stayed with me long after the memories of the madding crowd (with apologies to Thomas Hardy) have begun to fade.

One of our appointments was with a media person who writes for a website, one of a couple of dozen presentations we made to journalists. What makes this appointment stand out in my mind was this – it became clear very quickly that this person believes in buying good gear once. This is a refreshing attitude in a world which has become driven by ever cheaper, short-lived consumer articles. Buy the right piece of gear the first time, and – while it may cost you more on that occasion – it will last longer and often perform better than inexpensive ‘alternatives’. The proof that many don’t live by this maxim is that a lot of outdoor users have closets or garages full of gear that they bought, then replaced and no longer use, perhaps several times over. In the process, they have spent more than what the right piece of gear would have cost.

That’s not the way we build gear at Sea to Summit. We honestly look for the most appropriate type of fabric and the most functional hardware, and we construct things to the highest standards in the industry. We do this because we want our products to last, and to work well for a consumer each and every time they use it. And not end up gathering dust in a gear storage area – or worse, in a landfill.

John Keats once wrote, “A thing of beauty is a joy forever”. He might not have specifically had Sea to Summit in mind, but then again, who’s to say that he didn’t envision Air Sprung Cell sleeping mats, Big River Dry Bags, TPU Accessory Cases and X-Bowls?

Would you like to know what makes a piece of Sea to Summit gear work as well as it does?

Just ask.

B