The Business Case for Nature: Why Protecting Biodiversity Builds Brand Trust. You can’t sell the outdoors and not stand up for it. For years, carbon has dominated the sustainability conversation, how much we emit, how we reduce, and how we offset. But a new focus is emerging, one that’s closer to the heart of outdoor and lifestyle brands: biodiversity. In The NXT Outdoor Consumer Germany 2025, protecting biodiversity ranked as the single most important cause consumers want

From Insight to Impact: Building a Winning Game Strategy. How empathy and structure turn insights into growth. Most brands collect insights. Few know what to do with them. Data fills decks, but not decisions. That’s where strategy breaks, in the gap between knowing and acting. The Winning Game Strategy is my framework to close that gap, a structured way to align brand, team, and communication around what truly drives people. According to The NXT Consumer Germany 2025 Above T

Sustainability doesn’t just sell products; it builds preference, making sure you are in the space to be selcted in-store. Every brand asks the same question: Does sustainability sell? The short answer: not directly.The better answer: yes, when it builds brand strength first. Research from the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute shows that only 5% of buyers are “in market” at any given time. The other 95% are future customers. That’s where sustainability works best, as a long-term br

Amid economic uncertainty and tech disruption, one thing remains clear: nature is rising on the brand agenda. Deloitte’s 2025 Global C-Suite Sustainability Report offers a timely reality check and a roadmap. Here what every brand strategist, marketer, and CEO should take from this year’s Deloitte's 2025 C-suite Sustainability Report The next wave of business value: The global report is based on research of 2,100 C-suite executives and where the next wave of value lies, acco

The Sustainability Paradox: When Caring Becomes a Coping Mechanism Why consumers feel trapped between caring too much and doing too little. Above the Clouds Future Series Sustainability used to be about action now, for many consumers, it’s about anxiety. They care deeply about the planet but feel overwhelmed by the complexity of living responsibly. In The NXT Consumer Germany 2025, this contradiction came through loud and clear.

Most sustainability communication fails, not because people don’t care, but because brands keep talking to the wrong audience, in the wrong moment, with the wrong tone. Sustainability communication isn’t a PowerPoint. It’s an emotion. And if you want to move people, you must connect before you convince. People aren’t tired of sustainability. They’re tired of bad communication.

Creating Demand through Marketing To earn value, we must first create it. To create value, we must understand the consumer. It sounds simple. But for most brands, it’s not. We talk endlessly about capturing demand. About nurturing leads. About staying top-of-mind. But that’s not driving business; that’s chasing it. But real growth happens earlier. It happens when we create new value. When we challenge what value even means in the first place.

For a long time, “sustainability” has been treated as a product feature or a brand/campaign theme. But when diving into The NXT Consumer Germany 2025, the dream sustainability brand from a consumer perspective looks very different. It’s no longer defined by how green it sounds, but by how human and inclusive it feels. Today, consumers decode sustainability through a wider lens. When asked what makes a “sustainable dream brand,” Germans don’t start with carbon footprints or

What if you could unlock months of strategic work in just a few weeks? That’s the idea behind My Creative & Strategic Sprints, a fast, focused, and insight-driven process that helps brands make smarter decisions without the weight of a full-scale strategy project. Because let’s be honest, not every brand needs a 100-page strategy deck or a six-month agency retainer. Sometimes what you need is clarity: a way to align your team, sharpen your direction, and turn ideas into acti

Most brands know the outdoor consumer isn’t one group, yet the way they segment is still too simplistic: urban vs. nature, lifestyle vs. activity, everyday vs. hardcore. These divisions ignore the deeper drivers, emotions, and behaviours that truly shape decisions. Without understanding those nuances, strategies lose relevance and brands lose credibility.

Future Fatigue: How brands can help consumers out of climate paralysis

from the Transformation Conference with Scandinavian MIND during Copenhagen Fashion Week and CIFF · Copenhagen International Fashion Fair to the EuroSIMA European  #SurfSummit in Seignosse, the Scandinavian Outdoor Group (SOG) Networking Days in Stockholm, and the European Outdoor Group (EOG) #OutdoorImpactSummit in Munich together with EOCA European Outdoor Conservation Association.

In this contribution for "Beyond Nonsense," Fredrik Ekström, founder of Above The Clouds, explains why German consumers are demanding proof over promises. Drawing on The NXT Consumer Germany 2025, he shows how outdoor and sporting goods brands must move from slogans to substance if they want to earn lasting trust.

Ipsos 2025 reports that 70% of consumers now prefer to buy products made in their own country. A huge shift, especially for global lifestyle brands. In our Above The Clouds x studioMMO4—The NXT Consumer Germany—report, when people were asked what characterizes a “sustainability dream brand,” only 3% mentioned that local production characterizes a brand towards being a sustainability dream brand.

In this contribution for "Beyond Nonsense," Fredrik Ekström, founder of Above The Clouds, explores how second-hand has shifted from a sustainability paradox to a mainstream business case. Drawing on fresh data from his “The NXT Consumer Germany 2025”, he shows why resale is no longer just a niche choice but a growth engine for sporting goods and outdoor brands.

Together with The Federation of Norwegian Industries, we gathered around 50 journalists, experts, and outdoor profiles for an evening dedicated to #innovation, #sustainability, and #outdoor #culture. Eight Norwegian brands presented their latest innovations—from unbreakable snowshoes developed for NATO by Rottefella AS and the new Traverse fjellpulke designed for expeditions and families by Fjellpulken FÂR Norway AS , to heritage knives and axes from Øyo AS since 1882, or ReB

Challenge / Objective GORE-TEX needed to increase understanding in the behaviors and aspirations of the NXT Sustainable Outdoor Consumer on a global basis. The insights were aimed to support the Global Brand Team in creating the 2027 strategic plan, messaging, and campaigns.  Solution / What I did Deep dive in Above The Clouds NXT reports Nordic and Germany. Examples and directions are based on three greenish outdoor personas: The Adventure Seeker, The Nature Guardian, and Th

CASE TRETORN: Brand Shaping Activation. Antarctica Parka & Ocean Net Fabric Challenge/Objective Tretorn was about to launch a new product The Antarctica Parka, with a new fabric, OCEAN NET, made of ocean waste plastic, aimed to reshape the brand through sustainable innovation, lifestyle storytelling, and culture. Solution / What I did Created the concept “Tretorn Antarctica”  to launch the new Ocean-Shell® fabric  and parka collection. Developed a full go-to-market  plan with

Challenge/Objective Houdini wanted to strengthen its position as the No. 1 progressive outdoor brand. The goal was to clarify brand DNA, align global marketing, and create a brand marketing framework that connected purpose and exploration. Solution / What I did Developed the Winning Game Strategy —a global framework defining three audience tiers: Brand Shapers, Brand Builders, and Brand Carriers. Redefined the brand DNA and tone of voice to reflect Houdini’s ethos of adventur

Challenge / Objective Aqua Dental needed to stand out in the Swedish dental market as a credible, knowledge-driven, and forward-thinking private operator. As a challenger brand competing against government-funded clinics, they wanted to strengthen their expert positioning and earn media attention.  The goal was to create something that went beyond a marketing campaign, an insight-driven platform that could fuel long-term communication Solution / What I did Developed Tandhäls