Brand Narrative/Intros
2007 Anniversary
64 Pages, 14,000 Words
As the voice of the Cloudveil brand for nearly a decade, I was asked to research and write their history. Through interviews with founders Steve Sullivan and Brian Cousins I told their startup story of building an outerwear brand in Jackson Hole. The brand book received widespread industry recognition, including a glowing review from Wild Snow's Lou Dawson.
Link to full book
EVERY BRAND HAS A HISTORY. Spiced with setback and triumph, founding stories all tell a strangely familiar tale. Conviction, ideas and vision inspire the genesis, yet people and place are what instill in a brand its sense of character. The details of its nurturing distinguish one story from the next, and it is only when we examine each chapter that we understand the reality behind the tale. Ultimately, this upbringing is what defines the resonance of its mark.
Cloudveil was founded in Jackson, Wyoming by two souls drawn to the mountains. Surrounded by peaks that shot skyward, the founders discovered a potent source of inspiration. Without these pinnacles, this story would lack depth, their concept would seem short on scale and the individual narrative would lose perspective. This powerful motivation – linking their dream with this dramatic Teton setting – made what they envisioned real.
This same connection has drawn many to Cloudveil. People believed daily contact made a difference, and a loyal network of shops, friends and advocates gravitated to the movement. A groundswell grew the grassroots effort into a global brand, yet the sincerity of this defining message still strikes a chord. Now, in year 10, as Cloudveil’s mountain ethos resonates on a grand scale, it is clear that inspiration made a name for the brand.
Ideas were in the air, but the real spark for Cloudveil was ignited in early spring of 1996. A friend returning from Chamonix brought Steve a pair of stretch-woven climbing pants that allowed cooling air to circulate but were constructed from a tough textile that shed precipitation, prevented overheating and hit the right performance mix for mountain athletes. Steve immediately started taking the pant climbing in the Tetons and it performed expertly in the alpine. That summer, while on a solo ascent of the Middle Teton’s Northwest Couloir, Steve left his shell pants home for the first time and realized this Swiss material had serious potential.
By the spring of ‘96, Brian and Steve had turned in their shop keys at Skinny Skis. Brian moved to Boulder for what would become a one-year stint and took a job at Pearl Izumi, an established aerobic-sports brand, to acquire an inside perspective on the apparel business. Steve started pouring drinks at the Calico, a Teton Village Road establishment famous with its ski-bum clientele, to free his days for product testing and conducting industry research.
Climbers react to the Tetons with love at first sight. Clean granite faces, classic alpine routes and towering summits make the range a powerful draw. Short approaches from Teton Park trailheads or the boat dock at Jenny Lake also make getting on prized routes less of an epic.
The Grand Teton – our local high point – is so close that climbing it can be accomplished on any good weekend. Like many who have made a name in these mountains, we realize the luck of our location, and take advantage of the phenomenal access at every opportunity.
At the top of the list are park classics such as the Exum Ridge on the Grand, the CMC Route on Moran, and the Koven on Owen. The Serendipity Arête, the Symmetry Spire, and Italian Cracks are all in our local alpinist exicon, while simple scrambles up the South, the Middle, or the Enclosure present invigorating third-class diversions. For quick hits we access the Rock Springs buttresses or dink around at the Jenny Lake Boulders. But no Teton climb is complete without appreciating the effort with a beer on the Dornan’s deck.
The Tetons, however staggering in their scope, are only one helping on our multipitch menu. For sport, we saunter to Rodeo Wall or rally to Lander for fine limestone in a warmer climate. During long weekends, world-class crack systems in the Cirque of the Towers or remote alpine climbs elsewhere in the Wind River Range pulls us east. When the deep freeze hits, we climb ice in Teton Canyon or down in Dubois. But whatever route we select, there is no doubt our home is as close to paradise as any climber is likely to experience.
Making high-performance fabrics a foundation of the line was an expensive risk, but core customers were hungry for excellence. For those with mountain expertise, the stretch-woven concept made immediate sense: The shell didn’t wet out, the pockets fit skins comfortably and the fabric survived tangles with brush. Word of mouth – at the trailhead, on the tailgate and at the bar – propelled sales of the Serendipity and Symmetry. The brand’s other focused products, which shared a common thread of groundbreaking textiles, gained notice as a result. In fact, every design Cloudveil generated reinforced the company’s inside line on backcountry culture.
A movement is defined by who is drawn to the cause, and through their nature Cloudveil attracted people eager to challenge the status quo. A real alternative to catchy slogans, pretty pictures and ripoff-and-duplicated shells, the brand connected with activists from deep within mountain culture. This link brought expertise – in the form of sales, marketing, design and athletes – into the fold at just the right times. The owners felt that, more than just luck, it was fate that drew these individuals to the company cause. Serendipitous no doubt, but seeing an inspiring shift approach critical mass proved a powerful attractive force. Whatever their reason, without these talented people – who sacrificed market value to make a collective contribution – Cloudveil would not have the same character.
Pure energy carried Cloudveil to this stage, but financing quickly become the fuel in short supply. Growth had outpaced even Steve and Brian’s expectations, and when they hit the sevenfigure mark in personal debt it turned serious. No longer would six-month loans from the local bank or investment from friends and family satisfy their need for capital. Complexity had rapidly crept into what had started as a cottage industry aimed at selling a few hundred shells to serious backcountry skiers. With a hefty personal investment on the line and not wanting to let their zealous supporters down, they had no choice but to learn to survive.
By year four, total sales volume had surpassed $2 million, and cash was being consumed ravenously. Payment for one season arrived long after factories needed payment for the next season’s goods. Lead times, factory minimums and forecasting orders well in advance made the financial side even harder to predict. The first solution for funding production was a revolving line of credit from the Jackson State Bank, which supplied dollars only if stringent metrics were in place. This early relationship instilled a sense of financial discipline and professional planning into the business. No longer able to run with just basic bookkeeping, Brian spent many sleepless nights figuring out how to maintain a positive balance and keep fuel in the tank.
Like Jackson Hole, Cloudveil always been populated by serious skiers. Most employees hold a season ski pass, head out-of-bounds to tap open-gate terrain and hike for untracked turns when not on the clock. Even Snow King – the local hill that rises from town and hosts the famous Town Downhill – is hit regularly for a steep lunchtime fix. With the on-area aspect ingrained in Cloudveil, introducing a true downhill-driven snowsports line was a natural extension and the next step in taking Cloudveil beyond self-ascent culture.
The irony wasn’t lost on Steve and Brian that they had come full circle. Ten short years after conceiving Cloudveil on a shop floor five blocks away, they would enter into the next chapter of the business by opening the doors on their own flagship store. Cloudveil’s successful story proved a testament to the strength of partnership, friendship and shared vision. With the Tetons still part of their program and the brand maturing into its own, the pair proved it possible to realize a dream without sacrificing an exceptional mountain view.
“I love when you have likeminded people getting together to do something meaningful. It’s an amazing thing – whether it’s two people like it was in the early days or the 80 people in our extended family today. It’s just so cool to get all those people in one room and they are there to do business and you created that business for them, you created that opportunity. That’s a really cool feeling, that’s really powerful.” –Sulli
