Mizu SS21 Great Outdoors Preview

Brand: Mizu
Interviewee: Jussi Oksanen, Co-Founder and Brand Lead

What are the main marketing stories behind your new bottles & flasks for next season?
Our marketing story has stayed true to its original mission when I started Mizu back in 2008 while filming snowboard movies in Alaska… I realized I had to do something about all the single-use plastic water bottles piling up in my truck and everywhere around me and play a role in reducing our plastic footprint on this planet. Next season we are realizing our goal of making that easier than ever for our consumers by expanding our product line into the food category, cutting back on yet another area where single-use plastic is prevalent.

How has Covid affected your SS21 sell in plans? (delays/range cancellations/carry over…)
No effect – we’re still launching the same products we had planned on the same schedule we had planned.

Sustainability is a major reason why customers purchase bottles & flasks, what practices are you bringing in to produce more sustainably?
Since our company was built on the mission to help reduce damage to the environment, we’ve been focused on running in the most sustainable way possible since day one, so we’re not “bringing in” anything new – but we’re always on the lookout for ways to get better.

What new trends can customers expect from bottles & flasks?
Filtration. Filtration. Filtration. Mizu was the first (and is still the only) major water bottle brand that has an effective filtration system. When we launched the Mizu 360 filtration systems in 2017 it was to close the loop on any need for disposable water bottles. A reusable water bottle is great, but when you’re out and about and concerned about the water quality you are refilling it with, our filters have you covered. The Mizu 360 filtration system allows a Mizu user to go literally anywhere in the world and be able to drink water without having to purchase a reusable water bottle. I travel a lot and find myself far from reliable water sources on a regular basis — it’s nice to know I can drink clean water wherever that is!

What new technologies/features are you bringing into your bottles & flasks collection? Which materials are you using?
I think that because we are so mission-driven at Mizu, we don’t just think in terms of “bottles and flasks”, or simply expanding our product line just to grow the business by selling things with the Mizu logo on them. We truly think in terms of providing the human race with reliable reusable products that will allow them to live an adventurous active life while significantly reducing the amount of single-use waste they create along the way. We saw a need for an expanded product line into reusable products for food (we know our customers love to hike, camp, and adventure anywhere and everywhere) and so our goal was to provide them with products that can go along for the ride!

What is new in your collection for next season?
Lunch Box, Cutting Board, New Cutlery Set, and our new seasonal color is “Sand” – inspired by our local California beaches.

How are you segmenting your collection and what are the main price points in your collection?
As far as price points go, and since our products are all guaranteed for life, Mizu makes only the highest quality products from the best available raw materials. In terms of segmentation, we make vacuum insulated products for controlling the temperature of contents (whether that’s hot or icy cold), and we also make high-quality single-wall products for people that may wish to trade the thermal properties for lighter weight and higher volume. So single wall vs. insulated is one way we segment the line. We then also think of our products in categories defined by use. These categories include hydration (which includes filtration), coffee, bar (beer, wine, and alcohol), and food.

Please name and describe highlight items from your SS21 collection.
Mizu Lunch Box – A water and air-tight stainless steel container that will keep your lunch items sealed, fresh, and protected from getting crushed. The seal will also keep any contents from leaking out and onto other items like many of the zip-up alternatives. It is available with or without a bamboo cutting board that fits inside or can be bought separately. Perfect for everything from school, work, or outback adventuring.

Mizu Urban Cutlery Set – The Mizu Outdoor Cutlery set has been in our line for several years to give consumers a great reusable option over plastic cutlery. It has quickly become one of our top-selling items, so we’ve added the Urban Cutlery Set which has colorful handles, the addition of a straw and straw brush, and a color matching cloth pouch. The colors all tie in with Mizu’s Lunch Box and Mizu’s cups and mug colors so consumers can build matching sets of these everyday reusable items. I always keep one of these in the glove box of each car (got to have your reusables if you pick up a takeout and eat it at the beach!) and make sure one is in my backpack when hiking or camping.