This is an excellent piece. I don't know how much "exposure" the WESTRN is getting out there in the world but I hope y'all know that those of us who get to read it here appreciate the time and effort it takes to deliver excellent writing like this!
I worked in the apparel testing industry for over a decade. I've seen everything from the state of the art test facilities that would blow your mind to borderline sweat shop operations that would break your heart. Not all apparel companies are the same that's for sure.
That being said I've gotten to watch the hunting apparel world explode with new technologies and sustainable initiatives that as both a researcher and a consumer I'm happy to say is heading in the right direction. We've come a long way since hunting in Walmart Mossy Oak T-shirts and an old pair of Wranglers.
I'm glad to see many of these top companies doing the right thing... even if they're doing it quietly.
Sep 6Liked by Gabriela Zaldumbide, Nicole Qualtieri, Katie Hill
Excellent piece.
The fact that we can buy systems that improve the hunting/fishing experience while being sustainable is an engineering marvel. It is not betraying the hunting world or selling out to the green world to support those products and that type of innovation in the hunting apparel space. The conservation umbrella is expansive and includes elements of environmentalism and sustainability. Those terms were often seen as elitist, preservationist bingo words used by those who thought they were more enlightened than hunters, so many hunters rejected that insufferable attitude but also rejected good ideas and commonalities not to mention the historical imperative of habitat stewardship in hunting.
"I am better than you because I support sustainable clothing" vs. "I am better than you because I don't" is a tired, lazy competition in which hunters can't afford to participate. We don't have the numbers and we should know better since we spend so much time outside.
The pride for this piece tips the scales. What's better in life than uncovering something *positive* in a world where so many journalists seek the negative?
Katie's intuition is spot on. She's a growing force in the outdoor industry, and I highly recommend everyone pays attention here and to her future contributions in the outdoor space. Eyes open, heart open, onward!
This is an excellent piece. I don't know how much "exposure" the WESTRN is getting out there in the world but I hope y'all know that those of us who get to read it here appreciate the time and effort it takes to deliver excellent writing like this!
I worked in the apparel testing industry for over a decade. I've seen everything from the state of the art test facilities that would blow your mind to borderline sweat shop operations that would break your heart. Not all apparel companies are the same that's for sure.
That being said I've gotten to watch the hunting apparel world explode with new technologies and sustainable initiatives that as both a researcher and a consumer I'm happy to say is heading in the right direction. We've come a long way since hunting in Walmart Mossy Oak T-shirts and an old pair of Wranglers.
I'm glad to see many of these top companies doing the right thing... even if they're doing it quietly.
Excellent piece.
The fact that we can buy systems that improve the hunting/fishing experience while being sustainable is an engineering marvel. It is not betraying the hunting world or selling out to the green world to support those products and that type of innovation in the hunting apparel space. The conservation umbrella is expansive and includes elements of environmentalism and sustainability. Those terms were often seen as elitist, preservationist bingo words used by those who thought they were more enlightened than hunters, so many hunters rejected that insufferable attitude but also rejected good ideas and commonalities not to mention the historical imperative of habitat stewardship in hunting.
"I am better than you because I support sustainable clothing" vs. "I am better than you because I don't" is a tired, lazy competition in which hunters can't afford to participate. We don't have the numbers and we should know better since we spend so much time outside.
The pride for this piece tips the scales. What's better in life than uncovering something *positive* in a world where so many journalists seek the negative?
Katie's intuition is spot on. She's a growing force in the outdoor industry, and I highly recommend everyone pays attention here and to her future contributions in the outdoor space. Eyes open, heart open, onward!