Over the course of its 45-year history, Michigan-based footwear company Merrell has grown through the strength of its product, according to CMO Richard McLeod.
McLeod, who joined Merrell in January 2025 with extensive footwear experience from his previous role at Foot Locker, said he spotted potential to drive the next phase of growth for the business.
“Where I saw the opportunity was: how do you start to drive an emotional connection with the consumer, a younger consumer and a new consumer?” McLeod said in an interview with SESO.
In March, Merrell launched the “It Starts Outside” global brand platform, a first for the company, which demonstrates the simple but powerfully transformative act of stepping outside, whether it’s to lie in the grass after a long day, or hitting the trails for a run. Leading up to the launch, the company was tweaking its sales strategy and other areas behind the scenes.
That work is already yielding results. Wolverine Worldwide reported that Merrell’s full-year 2025 revenue reached $648.9 million, an 8.4% increase over the previous year. The brand extended its market share gains in the U.S. hiking category, and its direct-to-consumer channel returned to growth in the fourth quarter.
“We see these results as a validation of the choices we’ve made,” McLeod said. “It’s about committing to a vision, staying close to our consumers and delivering products and stories that genuinely resonate.”
McLeod shared more about how his team conceived of the “It Starts Outside” platform, how the company laid the foundation for continued growth in 2026 and how Merrell will start to show up differently to reach a broader consumer base.
Photo courtesy of Merrell.
Reaching City-Dwellers
One area ripe for expansion was the lifestyle category. McLeod said that 57% of Merrell’s target “experience-seekers” live in cities. By creating products that fit a lifestyle context, the company could expand its audience without alienating core outdoor enthusiasts.
“As we look to meet people where they are, it’s clear that the definition of the outdoors is evolving,” McLeod said. “Designing footwear for urban explorers is just as critical as serving dedicated hikers. This approach is about bringing Merrell’s authenticity to every aspect of consumers’ lives.”
Through 2025, Merrell saw high demand for items that merged comfort with unique designs. The Moab Slide Woven became a standout success, frequently selling out. Collaborations also played a role in reaching new demographics. The partnership with Dime — one of McLeod’s personal favorites — on the Chameleon model introduced vibrant pink and orange colorways, offering a fresh take on a classic silhouette.
While lifestyle products gained traction, Merrell continued to invest in its performance roots. In February, Merrell launched the Agility Peak 6, a max-cushion trail runner designed for technical terrain. The shoe incorporates an updated FloatPro foam midsole, FLEXconnect technology for adaptive stability, and a Vibram Megagrip outsole featuring 5-millimeter traction lugs.
To authenticate its performance gear, Merrell expanded its partnership as the global title sponsor of the Skyrunner World Series. The 2026 circuit includes 19 races and introduces the Beast of Big Creek in Washington, bringing the premier mountain running series back to the United States.
“We believe that supporting events like the Skyrunner World Series amplifies our commitment to the trail running community,” McLeod said. “It’s about more than visibility — it’s about investing in the sport and fostering connections between athletes, fans, and the outdoors.”
Photo courtesy of Merrell.
Laying the Foundation for Growth
Merrell’s recent financial success stems from intentional adjustments rather than a complete overhaul, McLeod said. The company clarified its purpose and established a structured brand house guide for external communications. This approach provided the consistency needed to connect with consumers across various channels.
“As we refined our brand architecture and messaging, we saw an immediate impact on how our consumers recognized and engaged with Merrell,” McLeod said. “Our focus was on clarity — making sure every touchpoint reflected our purpose and made it simple for consumers to understand what we stand for.”
The sales strategy relied on clear segmentation. Merrell maintained a defined approach for different tiers of wholesale retail, ensuring the brand connected with the right consumers in the appropriate environments.
“As we optimized our sales channels, it was essential to be deliberate about where and how we showed up,” McLeod noted. “Each market segment requires a tailored solution — our focus is always on delivering the right experience to the right consumer at the right moment.”
Photo courtesy of Merrell.
Launching the “It Starts Outside” Platform
To unify its messaging, Merrell introduced its first global brand platform, “It Starts Outside.” The campaign pushes against the industry convention that the outdoors must involve extreme conditions or epic mountain summits. Instead, it highlights the simple act of stepping outside your door.
“As a platform, ‘It Starts Outside’ broadens the aperture of who can connect to the outside without alienating your core consumer,” McLeod said. “What we’re not saying is you can’t go run Yosemite. What we are saying is it’s just as simple as walking outside your door, right? So whether that’s the backyard, whether that’s walking in the park, you know, whether it’s running a trail … it’s more democratized in terms of the role of the outside in everybody’s everyday life.”
Merrell’s marketing team tested multiple concepts with 2,500 consumers across four global markets. The themes of resetting and reconnecting consistently resonated the most. Screen time is playing a greater role in many people’s lives, and research shows that spending just 17 minutes outside can boost creativity by 60%, McLeod said, referring to an article in Fast Company.
“We know that people are craving moments to reset and reconnect in their everyday lives,” McLeod said. “Our role is to remove barriers and empower them to find those moments, whether it’s a walk around the neighborhood or time spent on the trail. That’s the spirit we want ‘It Starts Outside’ to capture.”
The platform’s creative vignettes emphasize accessible, everyday transformations. One story features Olympian Alexi Pappas running alongside visually impaired marathoner Lisa Thompson. Their partnership centers on trust and communication rather than competitive prestige, perfectly capturing the spirit of the campaign.
As part of the new platform, the company launched the Merrell Outside: Futures Project. Developed alongside the Virgil Abloh “Post-Modern” Scholarship Fund and Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design, the initiative aims to democratize footwear design. The program provides an apprenticeship track and a nature-driven design curriculum for underrepresented talent.
“It’s really the way that underpins what the project’s about — democratizing, not just the outside, not just the outdoors, but who designs it,” McLeod said. “It’s important as we launch that we continue to demonstrate our purpose, and we really bring kind of the full breadth of what ‘It Starts Outside’ means together, not only from an emotional standpoint, but from a design standpoint.”
Photo courtesy of Merrell.
Shaping the Brand for 2026 and Beyond
Merrell plans to show up differently as it navigates the rest of 2026, aiming to demonstrate how to style the footwear in contemporary ways, reacting to the needs of its consumers.
“We’re not chasing trends, but if we think more about it through the lens of our experience seeker consumer — what are their needs, what are their dislikes, what are their wants? What we try and do is demonstrate, certainly for our creative through our activations, how to style and how to think about the brand through different settings,” McLeod said. “That requires us to be flexible in terms of how we show up as a brand, and then how we style the brand.”
With outdoor participation higher than ever, McLeod said Merrell’s focus will be on meeting every participant where they’re at.
“As we continue to evolve the Merrell brand, we want to give our community even more reasons to be excited about what’s next,” McLeod shared. “From new product innovations to partnerships that inspire, it’s about delivering value and discovery with every launch.”
