HOW TO READ THIS WHITE PAPER Please keep in mind that this white paper presents a perspective related to the author’s engagement within the German/European market. All research and collected datas within this paper need to be read with that understanding. PROLOGUE The first time I came across the term “outdoor“ was at the 2005 Munich ispo. At the time, I was the owner of a small distribution company, specializing in the board sports market. We saw ourselves as a subculture with a strong influence on the mass market. Suddenly there was the hall "outdoor" and everyone was talking about it. We had never before heard of this trend until now... I still remember a conversation I had with a friend from the boardsport scene, and how we made jokes about this new "outdoor" trend. Not so much about the sports included in the concept, but rather about the term "outdoor". We could not understand – neither then nor now – what "outdoor" really meant. Is it a place – I am outside? Is it an activity – I am moving outside? Or is it a statement – I live outside? In the end we did not care and we left it to the outdoor enthusiasts themselves to find the right definition. In 2013 I started working for a medium-sized outdoor company as a brand consultant. Back in the outdoor industry, back in the land of„Confusios“.The term "outdoor" was still very present and for me still as vague as before... The information I received about outdoor after my inquiries within the european-market, its terminology, motivations and cultural habitat was very unspecific in my understanding. I wanted the answer that was more concrete... So I set out to understand the meaning of the word “outdoor“.

1. MISUNDERSTANDING OUTDOOR
On the misinterpretation of the market, the uprooting of identities and the
true heroes of our time.
A White Paper by Julius Geis, © 2015
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2. TABLE OF CONTENT
00 Prologue
01 The identity of the outdoor market
02 The formula of the markets
03 The distribution according to the formula "X- potential"
04 The change and the crisis
05 Pandora's Box
06 The consequences of the misunderstanding
07 A new path
© Julius Geis – Brand aesthete 2015 – Seite von2 13
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3. HOW TO READ THIS WHITE PAPER
Please keep in mind that this white paper presents a perspective related to the author’s engagement
within the German/European market. All research and collected datas within this paper need to be read
with that understanding.
oo PROLOGUE
The first time I came across the term “outdoor“ was at the 2005 Munich ispo. At the time, I was the
owner of a small distribution company, specializing in the board sports market. We saw ourselves as a
subculture with a strong influence on the mass market. Suddenly there was the hall
"outdoor" and everyone was talking about it. We had never before heard of this trend until now...
I still remember a conversation I had with a friend from the boardsport scene, and how we made jokes
about this new "outdoor" trend. Not so much about the sports included in the concept, but rather about
the term "outdoor". We could not understand – neither then nor now – what "outdoor" really meant. Is it
a place – I am outside? Is it an activity – I am moving outside? Or is it a statement – I live outside? In
the end we did not care and we left it to the outdoor enthusiasts themselves to find the right definition.
In 2013 I started working for a medium-sized outdoor company as a brand consultant. Back in the
outdoor industry, back in the land of„Confusios“.The term "outdoor" was still very present and for me
still as vague as before... The information I received about outdoor after my inquiries within the
european-market, its terminology, motivations and cultural habitat was very unspecific in my
understanding. I wanted the answer that was more concrete… So I set out to understand the meaning of
the word “outdoor“.
© Julius Geis – Brand aesthete 2015 – Seite von3 13
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4. 01 THE IDENTITY OF THE OUTDOOR MARKET
First, I wanted to know the origin of the term "outdoor" and to do this I started to study other markets. In
an interview with an expert in the sports industry, I discovered a principle that was the simple, logical
answer for me. I learned that the sports market is divided according to indoor activities i.e. activities
that take place in buildings, such as in sports halls; and outdoor activities i.e. activities that take place
outdoors, such as on sports fields. Furthermore, the sports are also divided into categories, whereby
activities such as table tennis, squash and gymnastics are classified as indoor activities, while walking,
hiking and canoeing are considered outdoor activities.
The market term "outdoor" was created based on this principle and this terminology is solely used by the
industry and in commerce.
02 THE FORMULA OF MARKETS
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I
N
D
O
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R
vs. OUTDOOR
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5. With each passing year, the athletes interpretation of outdoor activities continued to grow and new
categories were added to the flat market. It made no difference whether these activities were chosen by
people for private or professional reasons. When the number of followers of a certain sport activity
increased, brand manufacturers responded and sooner or later the market met the demand with the
desired goods. This logical principle is subject to a simple formula that has a decisive influence on the
market: The good into the pot, the bad into the crop. That is how the market selects, and a very simple
formula suffices– a formula that decides whether a category is allowed to step out of the shadows and
take the stage on the market, or not.
So what is this formula?
CATEGORY > X-POTENTIAL
= CATEGORY-MARKET
CATEGORY < X-POTENTIAL
= GENERAL-MARKET
X-potential is the key that determines the advancement of a category. Potential – the great unknown
that is appreciated and valued by experts and trend scouts, and thus elementarily affecting the
happenings on the marketplace – just like the followers, who have in recent years had an exponentially
high impact on both brand trends and product trends.
I will briefly explain it using the example of football. Football could be classified as outdoor sports as
well as indoor sports. But since football is popular enough to have its own market, no assignment has
been made. Football (with all its facets) generates so much demand that the designated market has
named itself after the sport. In this case, the potential is therefore greater than X.
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