Austria based Atomic had dabbled in the snowboard market for over 10 years, yet their annual sales were under $1m annually. They realized to make the investment worthwhile, they had to let North America run the show. Their first step was by hiring someone who knew the market inside and out, an industry veteran named Luke Edgar. His first step was to hire Scott to creative direct the entire rebrand / project.

It was no small task. Virtually everything had to be reworked. Full rebrand, full product line, ad campaigns, marketing materials, promotional products, everything.

The results were staggering. After just one season, people tracked us down at the SIA show to shake our hand for the great job done. Within three seasons, Atomic was a top-10 brand with a tenfold increase in sales.

The Logo

The first thing we did was update the logo. The in-house creative director for skiing didn’t understand why we thought it should updated until we showed him a base comp & he saw there was no way the existing logo could be recognizable in photos. While they didn’t allow a huge departure from their original, the revise allowed for future model-specific treatments, making it more visible in marketing materials & at least in our eyes, not as “ski racing”.

A huge part in a successful snowboard line is having great graphics & visuals. Pushing not only the brand but the industry as a whole in this department, while working together, Atomic was at the forefront of the graphic game, earning numerous Transworld Snowboarding “Good Wood” Awards along the way.

We can’t say there wasn’t head scratching or “Just trust us” statements when the inevitable questions were asked, we can say that trade show season generally ended with handshakes. sales increases & general celebrations once the shops / public was able to finally see the line we created.

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In addition to the rebrand & board graphics, Atomic asked for Valhalla’s help working on a number of products from snowboard boots to an accessory line. Our work was all encompassing, resulting in excellent consumer feedback and outstanding sales growth.

Advertising

The ad campaigns created for Atomic were a crucial part of their success. While they had run ads in the past, they were so off-point that nobody even noticed they were there. Action sports & youth culture is a finicky market, if a brand strays too far from the “action shot / portrait / product” formula, it’s viewed as an outsider & essentially black balled by core enthusiasts, influencers and in turn, from the culture itself.

To establish Atomic as a true Snowboarding brand, we intentionally started the rebrand with ad campaigns that were almost “too far”. Bright colors, striking imagery & interesting copy highlighted the team while serving notice that Atomic meant business.

Freestyle Campaign

Freeride Campaign

The second season campaign was split into two separate campaigns. The freestyle crowd got a self-promotion campaign in Transworld Snowboarding magazine with riders in front of projected action shots.

At the forefront of the “earn your turns” mindset, this campaign ran in Frequency Snowboard Journal and featured imagery meant to inspire riders to explore terrain outside the resorts.

Season 3 Campaign

Season 4 Campaign

Campaigns for the third season started to play on the riders personalities. One was a painter, another a spaz, a third loved golf & the fourth loved hip-hop music. Extra points if you can figure out who’s who & where the references came from (hint).

Even with excellent sales, budget restraints had started to kick in by our 4th season and photoshoots were no longer an option. Our last campaign for the brand utilized mostly existing photos with the riders sending in their portrait taken by a friend with a point & shoot.

Cool marketing & promotional goods are essential to a brand’s success in the youth culture marketplace. Branded skull lights to customized VewMasters and everything in-between, Atomic’s marketing & promotional goods were on point!