Behind-the-Scenes with CamelBak's Color and Trend Forecasting Expert

Do you match your bottle to your bike frame? Do you prefer a pack with a pop of color or opt for something more neutral? You likely don’t make those decisions off the cuff and neither do we. 

A lot goes into choosing the right colors for your gear. In fact, our design team spends countless hours carefully considering what feelings and emotions these colors evoke, and how they can help inspire you to find your flow in the outdoors. One person in particular is in charge of all things color here at CamelBak, so we sat down with her to learn a little more about what goes into selecting our favorite hues.

Binnewies says that she loves to draw inspiration from nature when she's choosing colors. She often goes for walks in the park or hikes in the mountains to see what colors are around her. She also takes inspiration from flowers, plants, and other natural elements.

In addition to drawing inspiration from nature, Binnewies also conducts research to learn about what colors are popular and what colors are trending. She looks at fashion magazines, art galleries, and other sources of inspiration to see what colors are being used in different industries.

Binnewies also predicts future trends when she's choosing colors. She looks at things like social media, pop culture, and current events to see what colors are likely to be popular in the future.

How Binnewies Uses Color to Inspire People to Get Outside

Binnewies says that she wants to use color to inspire people to get outside. She believes that color can be a powerful tool for creating a sense of adventure and excitement. She also believes that color can help people connect with nature.

Binnewies doesn’t just draw that inspiration from the outdoors, a big part of her job is to research and conduct interviews and surveys of athletes and amateurs alike. 

“I talk to our community and athletes, and I really try to get into their heads. I want to understand their emotional mindsets. It’s important to learn what drives them,” Binnewies says. “I take what I learn and bring that into the colors we use to try and evoke that same sense of wonder and inspiration they feel when they’re out there. The goal is always simple. Just get people stoked to be outside.”

One of the most difficult tasks Binnewies has is trying to predict the future. She’s often planning years in advance, and it’s tough enough to imagine what the world will look like tomorrow, let alone in 2025. Binnewies casts a wide net to try and get a pulse on what’s happening in the world, and what we can expect people to gravitate toward in the future. 

“I’m looking at everything from art to fashion to music and then figuring out how that will trickle into the outdoor community,” she says. “I also pay attention to what’s going on in the sports world — especially biking and running. Because I’m doing these five year color trend plans, I really need to think about how these colors will resonate with people.”

Along the way, Binnewies and the team sometimes discover something unexpected. They find that although we might have a preconceived notion of what people want, a few conversations with cyclists can change everything. 

“We used to think people wanted to match the bottle to their jersey, but one interesting thing we learned over the years of working with our athletes was that although that might sometimes be true, it’s really all about the bike. The bike is the tool. The bike rules,” Binnewies says. “So people either want something to completely match their bike frame, or they want it to disappear into the background to let the bike stand alone and really shine. We’re cyclists ourselves so we go into this process with our own ideas about what we like, but it’s really cool to have this kind of insight as we start to determine our color strategy.”

Once the research is completed and the data has been analyzed, the next step is to determine the initial concept and create a cohesive color palette out of the inspiration she’s sourced. We asked Binnewies to describe her creative process when developing new gear and reviewing potential colorways: 

“We have this big open creative design studio where all of our designers build prototypes, where all the samples are shipped, and where we do our color reviews. I have a little tiny room off that space that I use as my sort of war room. A lot of my job involves traveling to different markets to see what’s happening in art, fashion, and textiles. I have pin boards up all over the walls filled with photography. I buy inspirational samples too. We were in a vintage kitchenware shop in London and I found this amazing old saucepan, and we took it back, cut it in half, and used that as inspiration. When we did the Point Reyes collection, I was picking flowers from this coastal succulent that blooms in the spring and I was matching the colors of the petals to their Pantone color. Sometimes it’s an actual piece of nature, sometimes it’s a found object.”

“I also look at athletic events like the Sea Otter Classic and ask myself, ‘what are some trends we’re seeing in bike frame colors?’ or ‘What are runners wearing at the UTMB World Series?’ From there I pull all my images and inspiration together. Once it's all concepted in my head, then I go into my Pantone color library and start to pull color standards that will fit what I’m envisioning. That’s when it gets more tactile. I lay out all the palettes I’m evaluating and start pulling together color combinations.”

“But simultaneously, I’m also working through bigger questions like, ‘what are the main themes of the year?’ For example, something we’re seeing over the next few years is a trend of people preferring two families of color: either very calming, mindful, soothing colors to try and alleviate the stress of the world, or bright, bold, invigorating colors that inspire them to get back out into the world. That’s something that’s reflected in the palette of our Baja collection.”

“We have these really calming dusk and lagoon blues that are grounded in the sky and the deep sea. They’re colors that are really reassuring. But then we also have the wild strawberry color which is a spicy agua fresca that’s pretty wild and bright and joyful.” 

Color can have a huge psychological impact on us and it’s something Binnewies is hyper-aware of when she and her team are trying to hone in on just the right hue.

“Color has a really deep emotional influence on people. It’s easy to get swept up in color trends. But there’s subtle meaning and psychological significance behind a lot of colors. Blues generally remind us of the water and sky which are generally universally thought of as calm. There have been studies that show the color red increases heart rate. It’s something to think about as we decide where and when it gets applied. Since CamelBak gear is used by athletes all over the world, there are cultural implications of color that we consider too.”