Founder Billy Busch wanted to tap into his roots that come from his long family legacy of wildlife and land conservation to create a hunting apparel brand that makes you a ghost in the wild.
Word of mouth makes the best intros
Billy reached out to WERX to help take his well thought through plan of creating Geist to life. Over the prior year, Billy had been sketching and collecting samples of pieces he liked and pieces he could see improvements made from to bring a good assortment of ideas to the table. He had also been working with a graphic artist to create a compelling and unique camouflage pattern assortment. We were fired up ready to bring Geist to the world.
Designing for the inner ghost.
The collaboration began with the goal of taking what has been proven in the hunting market by brand leaders, and expanding upon it with out of the box thinking. We honed in on features unseen in the hunting market to create a collection that has its own vision language and feature set for the hunters looking for more and different.
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Audit, audit, audit.
Taking note of where category leaders were having success, while listening to consumers and Geist’s founders desire for better functionality and fabrication - we went to work to use our knowledge across multiple categories in tech apparel and gear to bring innovative and problem solving ideas to the table to explore.
If we were David, we know Goliath too well.
Hunting gear's barrier to entry is high. Higher than most apparel markets. You have your cult followings, die-hards, and day-ones. Our job was to soften these thought processes with pragmatic and functional beautiful design.
A confident beginning.
Lucky for us, Geist founder Billy Busch had been working through these market leaders products for the past two years. prior to engaging us he had compiled a notebook full of comment on where these products were missing the mark, and how they could be improved. In most cases, he had an idea of why they were failing and the desired outcome, just not a clear picture of how we were going to be able to get it done. This is where our work really started, and when the fun started.
Over the next 2 years, we worked very closely with Geist to work through the collection, piece by piece. From the base layers to heavy guide jacket & waders, hunting packs and gear bags, headwear and hand wear, the time was taken to create the functional performance of each piece from the ground up.
Next was the boot gaiter. Designed to fully integrate with the softshell bibs, the gaiters are removable and shaped to fit snugly around the boot, providing coverage while still allowing easy removal. They utilize a unique hook and loop system that is resistant to tear strength in one direction, while still being easily released when pulled in the opposite direction. This ensures that the gaiter stays securely in place, while still being easy to take off when needed.
It started with developing waterfowl waders using the technical 37.5™ branded fabric technology, creating the lightest and most breathable waders in the market while maintaining the durability and waterproofness that would be needed in the elements.
In the end we were able to look at a complete collection, boasting uniquely innovative features and solutions to keep hunters more comfortable and prepared to head out into the backcountry. This time, as a ghost in their surroundings.
Reshaping legacy.
Geist has set up an amazing warehouse and studio in Ventura California, boasting a showroom, archery range, and retail shop where people can come and experience the brand and learn about the product. They are off selling their products to hunting enthusiasts and those that appreciate the styles and camouflage patterns that we developed.
