Stormy Kromer is a company built on heritage and tradition. The brand has a cult-like following, and its customers are loyal in a truly unique way. We’re talking tattoo-level-loyal (we aren’t kidding, people love their Kromers). Our team has been tapping into UGC (user-generated content), of course, but we knew there was even bigger potential).
Enter Kromer Country, a community of adventurers, outdoor enthusiasts, farmers, hunters, ranchers and everything in between. The mission is to focus on bringing readers closer to the great outdoors, sharing stories of the iconic Stormy Kromer brand through the eyes of people who wear and love their products.
It is more than a platform, it is a community of individuals who are passionate about outdoor adventure and have a thirst for exploration, and want to make the most out of every experience.Â
Kromer Country is a unique blend of storytelling and product showcase. It isn’t just talking about the Stormy Kromer brand — it brings it to life through real experiences of the community members.Â
Welcome to Kromer Country.
Ambassadors
For Kromer Country to be a success we needed people already living the Stormy Kromer lifestyle. That’s where our ambassadors come in.Â
It’d be ironic to say the ambassadors found us, but that’s how it started. Since the brand has such a deep history, they’ve been regularly tagged in content ranging from hunters and fishermen, wilderness experts, ranchers, bikers, hikers, you name it. We took stock of the adventurers who regularly tagged Stormy Kromer in their posts and asked them if they wanted to be an ambassador
Then, we had to lay out the guidelines. For Kromer Country, that means representing not only the SK brand but also the culture. What does that look like? We can sum it up in a word: action. Our ambassadors do it all: they hike, hunt, and adventure, often with their dogs (our favorite). We ask them to share any photos of them enjoying the outdoors with Stormy Kromer included. In exchange for sharing these moments with us, they get awesome discounts, gifts, and other perks.
Currently, Kromer Country is 19 ambassadors strong and represents folks from Colorado, Michigan, South Carolina, Minnesota, Wyoming, and more. We’re proud of how far the ambassador program has come, fueled by the incredible SK community. Let’s say we’re even more excited about how it’s going to grow.
Social Media
There’s no better place to show off content than social media, and we struck gold with ours. The perks of UGC are having a wide variety of products, locations, people, and stories. Kromer Country is a place to share all the cool stuff our community was doing. Whether through photos, videos, or blog highlights, social is where Kromer Country lives and breathes.
It doesn’t get more exciting than highlighting the work of photographers and cap aficionados, so the SK grid is full of these photos, blog highlights, and more.
Storytelling
Our incredible team produced some kickass ideas for topics in one of our many brainstorming sessions for this project. There needed to be a combination of features on our ambassadors, contributors with unique expertise, and a variety of guides on the focused on the interests of the Kromer community. The main topics include Made Like You, Travel, Tips, Food, and the U.P.
Those categories fall under the large umbrella of living outside: backpacking tips, open-flame cooking, best rivers for canoeing, etc. Once we started our contributor outreach, the topics covered expanded significantly. From the rocks of Lake Superior to the tale of Crystal Mountain Resort’s K9 Ambassador, our contributors, and ambassadors have completely exceeded our expectations in sharing the stories at the heart of Kromer Country.
Hearing stories from adventurers (and proud Stormy Kromer customers) across the country has solidified the importance of this community. We planted the seed, found the right niches, and have watched this community give greater meaning to an iconic wool cap.
Design Meets Plaid
Stormy Kromer has a distinct iconic look. Kromer Country needed to capture the independence, wit, and grit of the upper Midwest. We wanted to showcase the beloved red & black plaid that defines the brand while keeping things clean and simple. Our design reflects the outdoorsy and adventurous spirit of this community, incorporating nature-focused elements. By skillfully using borders, Stormy’s colors, and carefully chosen graphics and fonts, we crafted a cohesive and coordinated look that embodies the spirit of Kromer Country. Stay clean, simple, and true to our roots while embracing the grit of the Midwest.
We wanted the Kromer Country to feel like an extension of the Stormy Kromer site while maintaining its individuality.Â
We built a custom site with a drag-and-drop editor so the internal Stormy team could make edits on the fly. The site features several links to and from the Stormy Kromer main domain to tie the two together. It also has tracking configured to see who clicked on what to get where between the two domains. And, of course, the whole thing’s built around all of the wonderful ambassadors who sent content our way. We couldn’t have done it without them.
We’re grateful to the community of outdoor enthusiasts who don’t just wear the Stormy Kromer brand but live and breathe the values it stands for.Â
There won’t be a shortage of adventurous content anytime soon. We’re just getting started.
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