Explore Together: Darren Shooter on the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition

Off-road legend meets outdoor icon – that’s the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition in a nutshell. For a more detailed take and insights into the collaboration between the automaker and the apparel brand, Darren Shooter, Senior Design Director at The North Face, shares the story with us.

Interview & Bilder
Marko Knab • ramp.pictures

Mister Shooter, can you please talk us through the creation process, how it all came along with the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition?

The North Face and Jeep Design Teams first met two years ago in the Jeep design studio in Turin. Both our studios are based in a similar area on either side of Mont Blanc, so we came together initially to have an open, brain-storming meeting and share some stories about our brands history & design philosophies. By the end of the meeting, the energy between our teams was incredible and we found that our brands values and cultures were incredibly aligned. The North Face mantra of ‘NEVER STOP EXPLORING’ and Jeep’s mantra of ‘GO ANYWHERE, DO ANYTHING’ felt perfectly matched around our shared passion for exploration.

What happened then?

Very soon after our first get-together, Daniele Calonaci, Head of Design, Jeep Europe, and I met again to start designing the Jeep Avenger 4xe together. We collaborated to find the perfect balance of both our brands iconic DNA, focusing on Jeep’s pioneering technology & innovation, fused with The North Face iconic, Summit Gold colour accents, topographic design lines and recognizable features from the Nuptse Jacket & Borealis Backpack on the seats.

Credit: The North Face

What did you learn during this collaboration, working together always opens up new horizons, does it?

I learned a lot throughout the collaboration with Jeep, as I have never worked with the automobile industry before. The biggest (and most surprising) thing that I discovered is that the creative process for car design is very similar to designing technical clothing. From initial moods & concept, through the material & colour selection, the process felt very familiar.

How important is trust – both in life in general and while in the mountains?

Trust is the most important value to me as a person and as a professional. If you can’t trust someone, you can’t properly connect with them. In the mountains, trust in your team is critical as it’s a matter of life or death. When exploring the highest peaks and your roped to another person, you need to be able to 100% trust that they are going to keep you safe and look out for you in difficult times.

1/5

Why is it so important to stay open minded, striving to explore new grounds? Both as a designer, but also outdoors?

I believe that everyone should always try and stay open minded as by learning & exploring, this is how we grow. It’s very easy to always focus on what we know, but by stepping outside of the box, we can start to see things differently and understand new perspectives. This is true as a designer and also while travelling or exploring the outdoors. When exploring new places, meeting new people, experiencing different cultures and trying new things, your world becomes more exciting.

Where exactly do we find the spirit of the exploration in the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition?

He has been created to empower people to explore further, whether in the city or in nature. The 4xe all-wheel drive technology has incredible off-road technology, so people can explore further than ever before.

What shared values of The North face and Jeep can one find when looking at the car?

When The North Face and Jeep first came together to start on our creative journey together, we wanted to create a phrase that captured the spirit of many of our shared brand values. Values including; exploration, adventure, iconic design and a love for the outdoors. The phrase we came up with was EXPLORE TOGETHER / EXPLORE TO GET THERE. I believe that these values have been captured in the high attention to design detail in the Avenger, especially the topographical map details on the inside and outside of the vehicle and the limited edition The North Face gift set with a tent, a water bottle and a gear box that comes with this special edition.

1/3

Your favorite feature of the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition?

There are so many amazing details on the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition and it’s very hard to pick just one! I love how the vehicle captures the design energy & spirit of both brands in a perfect balance. If I had to choose one detail to highlight as my favorite, I think that it would have to be the seats. The highly durable & washable front seats have a horizontal, padded texture that is inspired by The North Face iconic Nuptse Jacket which was built for the mountains in 1992 and has now adopted by the city to this day. Also, the back of the seats has a fantastic storage system made from elastic ‘bungee’ cords. This detail is taken from our famous Borealis Backpack, and the functionality has transferred really well into the Avenger.

→ Find out more about the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition in the report about the launch on Mont Blanc. Read it now in ramp #66 “Drive My Car”.

Marko Knab

Journalist & Photographer

Life writes the best stories - and Marko Knab tells them in text and picture form. His focus: people & their very own stories and cars, motorsports and travel stories. He already worked for Motorsport-Total.com while completing his Bachelor's degree in German Language, followed by a brief stint at a local daily newspaper and a Master's degree in literature and cultural theory - and ramp.

ramp #66
Drive My Car

Explore Together: Darren Shooter on the Jeep Avenger 4xe The North Face Edition

ramp #66
Drive My Car

Ein japanisches Dreistundenfilmkunstdrama, das sich scheinbar sehr ereignislos gibt, dabei endlose Autofahrten abbildet und irgendwie von einer Theateraufführung handelt, ist nicht unbedingt das, was auf Anhieb neugierig macht. Sollte es aber. Uns haben diese 179 Minuten unmittelbar zu diesem Hefttitel angeregt.

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