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Mountain Journal

Environment, news, culture from the Australian Alps

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outdoors

Peak Oil Company: ‘durable clothing and equipment for the Australian outdoors’.

Almost all outdoor gear used to be made in Australia. That is now a rarity, although a couple of companies continue to produce things here (there is a probably outdated list of these companies available here). Outdoor gear advertising is largely synonymous with generic high impact lifestyles – fly here, go there, have the latest stuff, charge that line – rather than being connected to a place or community (sure there are exceptions, but the ‘global brands’ do dominate the market here in Australia).

That’s why small scale, locally owned gear companies are so important (as are, of course, locally owned shops – you can find a list of them here).

Some Australian brands like Snow Gum, One Planet or Mountain Designs, have been around for decades. There are also a growing number of micro brands starting up and one of these is Peak Oil Company, whose primary mission is ‘making durable clothing and equipment for the Australian outdoors, without using petrochemicals’.

Continue reading “Peak Oil Company: ‘durable clothing and equipment for the Australian outdoors’.”

ONE PLANET’s decades of making outdoor art

ONE PLANET is a long established Australian outdoor brand. In this story, Megan Holbeck reflects on some of the 40 year history of the company, and its involvement in a design exhibition in Melbourne in 2023.

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The Zorali story

If you spend any time out walking or camping in national parks or other natural places, you will have noticed the rapid rise in the presence of Zorali gear over the past few years. The brand has a particular aesthetic, a commitment to sustainability, and has been active in encouraging people to get into the Big Outdoors.

With the loss of several key Australian brands over the last decade or so (for instance Snow Gum going under, Mountain Designs going online only) and strong awareness campaigns from US based brands such as Patagonia, Arc’terex, The North Face and so on, there are fewer Australian companies active in the outdoors business landscape nowadays. So Zorali, which is epitomised by its cheerful and energetic founders Elise and Cam, is a welcome addition to the outdoors scene.

Who are they and what is their mission? Here is a bit of a chat with founder Cam.

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Kelly Van Den Berg. A life outdoors

As part of the Mountain Journal magazine, we publish a series of interviews each edition with people who have had life long connections to the mountains. The section in the 2024 magazine, Around the Fire – chats with mountain people, has some great interviews, profiles and stories, including this one on Kelly Van Den Berg.

You can read the magazine as a PDF here. https://themountainjournal.com/2024/03/19/mountain-journal-magazine-4-now-online/

Print versions will be available shortly.

Continue reading “Kelly Van Den Berg. A life outdoors”

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