07 Oct Columbia Sportswear Brings Back Gert Boyle
Columbia Sportswear’s chairman Gert Boyle, 91, will return to star in the brand’s advertising campaign. Boyle was the focus of the “One Tough Mother” and “Mother Boyle” advertising campaigns in the past and last appeared in a commercial in in 2005.
The new campaign, with the tagline “Tested Tough,” emphasizes the durability of Columbia products, according to Adweek. The Adweek report is here: http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/after-decade-away-columbias-one-tough-mother-makes-her-comeback-167348
“The company had moved away from brand storytelling,” said chief marketing officer Stuart Redsun. “It was only focusing on a technology or a product, and you could tell from talking to consumers that no one really knew what the brand stood for.”
“I never left,” said Gert Boyle in an interview with Adweek. “I’ve been coming to work at Columbia every day for more than 50 years. They just hadn’t pointed the camera at me in a while for some reason. But I do like the distraction. I can get a bit bored chasing down our salesmen about their expense report receipts. I mean, $4.50 for a cup of coffee? Did it come with a new car?”
The Adweek article is here: http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/qa-gert-boyle-first-lady-oregon-making-ads-and-being-center-attention-167312.