Columbia Sportswear’s refreshed marketing strategy is turning heads again, this time with a bear poop-infused beer made with a Portland-based brewery that will be sold at Columbia’s booth at the Super Bowl — a first for the company.
The Big Game’s Sh*ttiest Beer Ad features the NFL’s Lance Moore, Daunte Culpepper, John Kuhn, and Mike Remmers who sing the praises of the limited-edition crisp lager created in collaboration with Breakside Brewery, made with water from the Bull Run River, malted grains from the Pacific Northwest, honey, huckleberry, and, apparently, a “hint” of sterilized bear scat collected trailside in Montana from American black bears.
The campaign, developed by agency adam&eve\TBWA, is designed to underscore the brand’s core message: nature isn’t always pretty, but Columbia gear helps you handle it. The beer will be available at Columbia’s booth during The Players Tailgate in Santa Clara, California, marking the first time the company has participated in Super Bowl festivities.
The “Nature Calls” campaign is the latest iteration of Columbia’s broader “Engineered for Whatever” platform, which launched earlier to revitalize the brand’s identity. The strategy moves away from the aspirational, perfectionist imagery often associated with competitors like The North Face or Patagonia.
Instead of showcasing a perfect day on the slopes, the new creative focuses on the harsh, unpredictable, and often annoying realities of being outside. The launch film, directed by Henry-Alex Rubin, features product testers enduring extreme scenarios that border on slapstick. And the recent “Expedition Impossible” challenged the Flat Earth community to find the “edge” of the earth.
“When we say engineered for whatever, we mean whatever,” Joe Boyle, brand president at Columbia Sportswear, told LBB online. “If Mother Nature hurls bear poop at us, we’ll ferment it into a frosty pint. From the inside of a bear to your mouth — we’re making nature’s crap easier to swallow.”
In its third-quarter report, the company posted net sales of $943.4 million, a modest 1% increase that beat expectations but highlighted underlying challenges, such as tariffs. While international growth is helping to offset weakness in the U.S. market, the company is bracing for potential impact from tariff increases, which could cost up to $160 million annually.
The ad will not be broadcast during the Super Bowl on Feb. 8.
“Why spend $8 [million] on a 30-[second] ad spot at the big game when you can just find bear poo, work with a water treatment facility and brewery, and do taste tests next Sunday at Levi’s Stadium,” said Columbia SVP, Head of Marketing Matt Sutton on LinkedIn.
