Main Page - Purple Orange

YOU WANT A PARTNER
NOT ANOTHER AGENCY.

WE GET THAT.

WHO
WE
ARE

Founded in 2009 in Jackson Hole, WY, Purple Orange LLC produces small batch, high quality brand communications mixed with creativity, modern mediums and a respected authentic voice. Our professional influences range from publishing, large and small agency work, and former in-house marketing; we like to think we see the whole picture for our clients. Specializing in active lifestyle and natural living, our clients have spanned industry-leading performance apparel brands, food and beverage, consumer tech, and non-profit work.

[CLIENT: Peak Design]

MEANINGFUL COMMUNICATIONS

We Believe Good PR Is About Meaningful Communication.

It’s no longer enough to make a good product. People — especially millennials — want to feel positive connections to the brands and products they use.

We look for ways to distill the complex, create stories that connect, and share them with journalists who trust us.

Climate Neutral is a non-profit organization that independently certifies that all the greenhouse gas required to operate a company are measured and off-set by verified carbon-reduction credits.

Purple Orange set up this feature cover-story with Climate Neutral co-Founders Peak Design and BioLite and celebrity athlete Alex Honnold with the OR DAILY (the official magazine of Outdoor Retailer) to help launch the organization in June of 2019 at the Outdoor Retailer Show.

WE GO BEYOND THE EMAIL

We create beautiful visuals to elevate our pitch. We set up experiences that make your brand shine. And most importantly, we build better media relationships with honest, timely, creative ideas.

FEELING THE POWER
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Power Practical wanted to tell the world about how they have harnessed a unique relationship with Amazon to turn around their company and boom sales. We developed this infographic after digging deep into raw numbers to help visualize the story:

At the end of 2015, Power Practical, a small manufacturer of rugged electronic solutions, was facing an existential crisis. The company was getting squeezed by traditional wholesale margins and made the dramatic decision to drop all brick-and-mortar dealers and sell exclusively through Amazon and the company’s website.

Two years later — and with the help of Amazon — Power Practical has grown its “Luminoodle” business 82% YEAR-OVER-YEAR and has climbed into the top 1% of all Amazon sellers by dollar volume.
BEYOND THE BAR
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We know it all too well… there is nothing more aspirational than a beautifully executed cook book (even if you can’t boil an egg). When it came to promoting natural food brand GoMacro, we wanted to penetrate the editorial conversation on a deeper level. While we are well aware that editorial coverage of packaged food products is only x-amount, we also knew that there was a whole other editorial universe of recipes and how-to guides when it comes to food.

That is why we connected GoMacro with popular vegan food blogger and recipe creator Lee Tilgman to help the world look at nutrition bars in a different way: as ingredients. Being a family owned and farm-inspired food brand, publishing a mini recipe guide using GoMacro bars as ingredients drove home many core brand messages and provided us with unique content that editors and bloggers have adored.
WITHOUT COMPRESSION
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CEP Compression had always thought about selling performance compression by helping people better understand the technology’s benefits. We decided to switch it up and instead of telling the benefits of compression, rather tell a visual story about what happens WITHOUT compression.
FITS
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We laid out and art-directed this infographic to better illustrate FITS difficult-to-explain technology story in a beautiful, engaging visual graphic.
PEAK DESIGN
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Peak Design wanted the world to know about its pioneering growth trajectory leveraging the power of crowdfunding through Kickstarter. After diving into the numbers, an impressive story emerged that needed to be captured visually. Purple Orange built this infographic for the purpose of the story-pitch. The story was picked up by many national outlets, including Forbes Magazine which profiled the company’s journey over a 2-page feature article.
ROLLERBLADE
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Rollerblade USA wanted to shed its silly mid-90’s brand perception and foster serious dialog around inline skating’s benefits for the common commuter. We dug deep and illustrated these facts that support inline skating as an inexpensive, efficient, and convenient way to travel sans fossil fuel. The infographic was deliberately built as an editorial tool, to be used as a supportive graphic by media, hence no overt branding. Ultimately, this story & graphic was picked up by Fast Company and an NBC morning show in Minneapolis.

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OLD FASHION FACE-TO-FACE
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Despite all the modes of digital communication these days, old fashion face-to-face is often still the best. Depending on your goals, we can set up a big bash VIP media party, schedule individual deskside appointments with your dream editors, or brainstorm something that helps your brand stand out at an important tradeshow. It all depends what’s best for you.
BRANDED MEDIA TRIPS
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“We want to stop telling people how it works and show them.” — Andy Cohrane, Oru Kayak

This is what Oru Kayak told us when they approached Purple Orange to handle their PR. The company that gave birth to a completely new breed of kayak wanted to get journalists out on the water — regularly. So together we compiled an ambitious event program (nearly once a month), traveling to bucket-list locations around the world with Oru kayaks and top-tier journalists in tow.

The result? Amazing PR that truly captures the adventure and joy of traveling in an Oru Kayak.
NYC MARATHON TRAINING
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In an effort to create a more meaningful experience to wear performance compression socks, Purple Orange partnered with Rock ‘n Roll Marathon Series to help a group of New York based journalists train and finish a half marathon race. As part of the 3-month training program, Purple Orange arranged to have a local NY-based trainer work one-on-one with the journalists to help prepare them for the race. We also provided complimentarily running shoes, apparel, sports nutrition, and wearable tech watches to follow their progress.

[photo: a journalist goes for a spin with marathon man Meb Keflezighi]
WINTER BREAK
+ MORE

Purple Orange’s annual Winter Break media event provides the perfect platform to experience some of the most innovative brands in modern snowsports. From sports nutrition, to winter apparel, skis, boots, and the latest in outdoor tech, top journalists from around the country have the opportunity to ski with product designers, play with next year’s gear, and experience the unique western heritage that Jackson Hole has to offer.
250,000 LBS OF TRASH
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United By Blue picks up a lot of trash; one pound for every product they sell. We brought in a handful of NYC editors to join us for an evening event at the company’s hip old town Philadelphia HQ, and to join the company as they hosted a local waterway cleanup effort expected to clear the 250K threshold.

So did United By Blue reach the quarter million benchmark? Read about it for yourself in The Guardian.

[CLIENT: Oru Kayak]

OUR WORK

CASE STUDIES

WORLD CUP ICE
+ MORE

In 2019, the American Alpine Club accepted the mammoth responsibility to host the first-ever World Cup Ice Climbing Finals competition to be held in the United States. The event, held in downtown Denver, was also the first time any such ice climbing competition had been held in a major US metropolitan city.

Using PR as the primary vehicle for promotion, Purple Orange organized a promotional campaign starting 9-months in advance of the event. In partnership with Visit Denver, Purple Orange led a massive regional and national media campaign that included The Associated Press, Outside Magazine, Popular Mechanics, Climbing Magazine, Rock + Ice, The Wall Street Journal, SELF, and dozens more. Altogether we brought the sport of ice climbing to living rooms and newsstands across the United States and drove the largest-ever recorded live attendance for any climbing competition in world history.

The Purple Orange team has done outstanding work producing stories both in our industry and also non-endemic media that we haven’t previously been able to tap into. What really stands out is the time they have spent to get to know the Club and our goals. Purple Orange is not just another public relations firm, they take the time to fully immerse themselves their clients’ world.
— WHITNEY BRADBERRY AAC MARKETING DIRECTOR

+ First World Cup Ice Climbing Finals ever held in USA
+ Generated the largest live audience for any climbing competition in history
+ Recruited over 60 journalists to attend event
+ Total Unique Articles / TV segments: 150+
+ Equivalent Advertisement Value: $627,092.14
+ Estimated Audience Reach: 370,797,277
CLIMATE NEUTRAL
+ MORE

In the spring of 2019, Climate Change was on everyone’s minds, but few ideas were being presented that contributed immediate and actionable steps to address the global crisis. Climate Neutral emerged with a skeleton staff and two passionate co-Founders to present a straightforward roadmap for businesses to take responsibility for their corporate carbon footprints.

Soft-launched at Summer Outdoor Retailer, Climate Neutral walked into the show without any awareness and walked out of it as the talk of the 25,000+ person trade show. Purple Orange helped organize the first major panel discussion of the trade show; moderated by celebrity climber Alex Honnold. Purple Orange also secured the Day 1 cover and feature-story of the OR Daily (the tradeshow’s official and primary news source).

By the end of the year, Climate Neutral had gained significant traction in the US business community for being a thought-leader within corporate carbon responsibility. Purple Orange secured major story coverage in Inc Magazine, Fast Company, Men’s Journal, Outside Magazine, CBS News, and more, which propelled ClimateNeutral.org to the top of the search results, and more importantly, helped them amass more than 100 businesses committed to measuring, reducing, and off-setting their carbon footprints.

+ Non-profit Launch 2019
+ 2019 Campaign Impressions: 287,417,120
+ Total Articles: 68
+ Raised $160K+ in grassroots support
+ Attracted 100+ businesses by end of year-1
+ Recruited celebrity climber Alex Honnold
PEAK DESIGN
+ MORE

Peak Design launched on Kickstarter in 2010, just one year after the crowdfunding platform was founded. At the time, the brand raised nearly $360K in funding — not a huge amount by modern standards, but in 2010 it tallied as the second most funded campaign to-date. Since then, Peak Design has come back to the platform once a year, for 9 years straight, each time bringing real innovation and fueling the company’s fan-base.

Today, Peak Design has transformed itself from a one-trick pony to the most envied brand in all of crowdfunding. Peak Design finished their 2019 campaign with over $12M in crowdfunding and more than 27,000 pre-sale customers. Total all Peak Design’s campaigns, and you’ll find they are they most crowdfunded brand in business.

Purple Orange has been the AOR for Peak Design since 2012. With limited product samples and racing against the clock, each year Purple Orange has delivered the kind of national media attention that drives revenue.

+ AOR: 2012 – current
+ Funds Raised Through Crowdfunding: $32.4M
+ Earned Media Impressions in 2019: 2,686,116,336
+ Total Media articles acquired in 2019: 815
+ Product Awards Acquired in 2019: 9

RECENT WORK

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CLIENTS

57Hours
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BioLite
+ MORE
Climate Neutral
+ MORE
+ MORE
Oru Kayak
+ MORE
Peak Design
+ MORE
Sea to Summit
+ MORE
Somewear Labs
+ MORE
Swiftwick
+ MORE
+ MORE
+ MORE

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY ABOUT US.

We suspect that most of our clients would describe their relationship with us as extension of their in-house marketing team — not your typical agency relationship.

Purple Orange has their fingers on the pulse of their client’s heartbeats — with a keen understanding of their stories and what makes them tick. For United By Blue they have brought us ample opportunity, exposure, and value in unexpected ways.

—Brian Linton

President & Founder United By Blue
From the inception of our relationship, Chris and his team have been consistently producing work that results in unequivocal return on investment. They execute time and time again, and do it with a smile on their face and high fives to celebrate.

—Peter Dering

Persident & Founder Peak Design
Purple Orange killed it for us. They transformed our fundraising dinner into the buzz of the nation, securing national TV and print coverage through the Associated Press and scoring the cover of Outside Magazine.

—Erik Lambert

American Alpine Club Information & Marketing Director
Purple Orange is a progressive partner in strategy development, nimble and fast on execution, and thorough and timely on follow-up.

—Kalinda Bogue

Marketing Director Rollerblade USA
Purple Orange demonstrated a real understanding of our unique audience and complex product offering; without that, any PR effort to support our brand would have been meaningless.

—Todd Jones

Co-Founder TGR

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[IMAGE: Purple Orange Founder, Chris Dickey, sniffing out deep turns in Jackson, WY // PHOTO: Andy Cochrane]

OUR PEOPLE

As former Marketing Directors & Journalists we have a pretty good idea of what you might be looking for in an agency: an outstanding work portfolio, creative approach toward problem solving, timely and diligent reporting and — perhaps most importantly — thoughtful and fun people to work with.

CHRIS DICKEY
Founder + Principal

Chris applies a liberal arts perspective to Purple Orange as a result of a diverse marketing background spanning manufacturing, publishing, and agency work. Early on, Chris served as the first Marketing and Sales Director for then-startup NEMO Equipment, then onto Alpinist Magazine in the role of Marketing and Circulation Director before finally transitioning into agency work with both Stanwood and Partners and Carmichael Lynch.

Chris has helped some of the largest names in the outdoor and active lifestyle industry successfully execute North American brand communication campaigns including Arc’teryx Equipment, Atomic Skis, Jack Links Beef Jerky, and Rollerblade USA.

Chris currently lives in Jackson Hole, WY where he can mountain bike at lunch and climb and ski in the Tetons year round. He is a published writer, award- winning filmmaker, and blogger.
MATT HERRON
Managing Director

Matt loves to craft a great story and keep up with the ever changing media landscape. Outside of the Purple Orange office you can find Matt on a river, in the mountains, or on Tuesday evenings at Jackson’s Wort Hotel playing his fiddle.

An east coast kid with dreams of the west, Matt Herron graduated from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA with a degree in International Political Econo mics and a desire to meet people, hear stories and to see new places. Prior to settling into PR, Matt dipped his toes as an international wind energy consultant, community organizer for the Wyoming Wilderness Association, and science assistant in Antarctica.
ABBY SCHWAMM
Account Director

Abby joined the Purple Orange team after relocating to Jackson from New York City. Having spent the six years in Manhattan as a freelance photographer and marketing consultant, Abby decided to make a big move to a small town out West. Abby graduated from Emory University in 2012 with a degree in psychology and visual arts, and has since taken on a variety of creative roles.

Outside of work, Abby can be found adventuring in Grand Teton National Park, usually horseback riding, hiking, or on the river. She is currently training for her third New York City Marathon.
TORIE DYE
Account Director

Torie grew up in Ohio and spent her childhood enjoying the midwestern outdoors, but always dreamed of moving West. After graduating from the University of South Carolina with a Retail Management degree, Torie moved to Jackson, WY where she found herself leading & managing the development and marketing of the apparel line for the action sports media house Teton Gravity Research (TGR).

Following TGR, Torie took her passions for the outdoor industry and channeled them into an apparel buying role at the famous Jackson Hole mountaineering and ski shop, Skinny Skis. At Purple Orange Torie enjoys her role as brand evangelist and media wrangler. When she’s not pitching headlamps you can find her skiing, on the river, hiking, falling off a mountain bike; or on a rainy day, reading a book somewhere.
ISABEL HERRING
Account Manager

Isabel is originally from North Carolina, and grew up near the coast. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in marketing and advertising. Even though she had never been out west except for connections through the Denver Airport, after college Isabel moved to Jackson Hole for to work at a dude ranch in order to see a new part of the country; she has called Wyoming home ever since. Isabel worked at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in vacation rentals during her first full year in the area.

Outside of the office, Isabel enjoys spending her days hiking in the national park, rafting on the snake river, camping, or going on road trips to explore the west.
MADDIE JARRARD
Account Coordinator

Maddie brings a journalistic perspective to narrative building and brand storytelling at Purple Orange. She’s always loved working in the outdoors industry–after graduating from Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism, she freelanced for Backpacker, Sierra and the Outdoor Journal. Now, she enjoys crafting sharp and authentic stories for the brands that are helping to get people outside.

Maddie grew up in Nashville and is a Southerner at heart, but after four years in Illinois (read: the flattest state in the union) she decided to move West to live in the mountains. When she’s not in the office you can find her at the crag, out hiking, or tending to her endeavor of an indoor garden.
PAT CHADWICK
SEO Specialist + Digital Services Lead

Pat brings over 15-years experience in both the creative and analytical sides of digital marketing, first a PR professional in the tech industry, and later as a digital content editor at a top-10 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 digital marketing agency. In recent years, Chadwick has helped clients navigate Google’s ever-changing algorithm to get products and stories discovered through popular organic search queries.

Joining the Purple Orange team gives Pat a professional outlet for his outdoor adventuring, which brought him to Jackson Hole for a winter and never let him leave. In the evenings, he can often be found on stage as a singer-songwriter and guitarist.
LUCY
Office Dog

As the official entertainer of the office, Lucy fails at her job nearly every day but has somehow never been fired. Lucy is known for epic nap-taking, pestering delivery men, and often sulks when not side by side when her favorite people. To Lucy’s credit, she is a fantastic backcountry ski and mountain bike partner; always eager to set the boot pack and go for another lap on the single track.

[PURPLE ORANGE HQ: JACKSON HOLE, WY]

TALK
TO US

Our communications reflect an authentic voice. We’re a boutique agency extremely dedicated to our clients but without the small agency resume. Our background spans national PR & ad agencies, publishing, and in-house marketing & sales.

Give us a shout and let us impress you.

WHY WE WOULD WORK WITH US

1
Our communications reflect an authentic voice. We’re a boutique agency extremely dedicated to our clients but without the small agency resume. Our background spans national PR & ad agencies, publishing, and in-house marketing & sales.
2
Go beyond round-ups and gear-guides. We look for unique opportunities to tell your story and increase your media share-of-voice. You don’t need a PR agency to get you coverage in the annual gear-guide: you need a PR agency to get you coverage when there isn’t a gear guide.
3
Creative, meaningful communications. We’re always seeking progressive, meaningful platforms to connect with our audiences: sometimes we leverage athletes and circulate branded content, other times we submit op-ed essays or create visually engaging infographics. Bottom line is that you’re not a cookie-cutter brand and we won’t treat you like one.
4
Because your business means something to us… Enough said.