From launching the magazine internationally to building long-term cultural impact, Gensler reflects on what it takes to create a brand that lasts.

Why Launch Vanish Outdoor Magazine Now

Q: Over the last year we’ve seen the debut of Vanish Outdoor Magazine. Why now?

The goal is the same as day one—to inspire people to engage with nature.

Right now, we’re focused on showcasing cutting-edge, avant-garde creators who are pushing the boundaries of design and culture. It’s an honor to work with these people and share their vision.

Fashion is a big part of that because it’s such a personal and intimate form of design—but we’re also expanding beyond that. Overlanding, hospitality, food, art—anything that connects back to culture and the outdoors.

Building a Global Outdoor Culture Platform

Q: Vanish has been very active globally. How important is that physical presence?

It’s everything. The world is too digital.

You can see photos of Paris or Tokyo online all day, but it will never compare to actually being there. Vanish is a brand built on real-world experience—feet on the ground.

We launched in Florence at Pitti Uomo, then moved through Paris Fashion Week and six other European cities—Berlin, Copenhagen, Antwerp, Rome, Milan, and London. From there, we went to New York, then Japan, China, and Korea.

If you want to be a global brand, you have to physically be global.

I’m also lucky to have an incredible team. None of this happens without them.

A Brand Built for the Long Term

We’re focused on creating timeless issues—not chasing trends or hype, but highlighting the work of people who are genuinely pushing culture forward.

Vanish is a slow-built brand. We care about reality over hype. Digital platforms help us connect with people, but the goal is always deeper—real experiences, real engagement with nature.

What’s Next for Vanish Outdoor Magazine

Q: What’s next for Vanish?

We have new issues coming out and some big surprises planned.

We’re working on high-level collaborations across Asia and Europe, and expanding into new markets with strong partners.

At this point in my career, I’ve learned to say less and deliver more.

Stay tuned.

Sources of Inspiration

Q: What inspires you the most today?

First, my daughter, Zoe. She’s incredibly creative, and it’s inspiring to watch her grow into her own person.

My mother, Sharon, is about to turn 80, and her strength and grace have always been a huge influence on me.

Beyond that—love. It can give you energy one moment and break you the next, but it’s essential to everything I do.

Creatively, I’m constantly inspired by the brands and people we feature. I feel lucky to be part of this culture, and I’m always thinking about how I can contribute something meaningful back to it.

Who Vanish Is For

Q: Who is Vanish Outdoor Magazine for?

We want to speak to everyone, but naturally we attract a very visual and creative audience—people who care about aesthetics and what’s next.

Our audience is curious. They value quality, craftsmanship, and time in nature. They travel, they explore, and they’re interested in culture beyond trends.

It’s not about chasing fashion—it’s about understanding design and utility at a deeper level.

Brands and Culture on the Radar

Q: What brands are inspiring you right now?

There are so many that it’s hard to narrow it down.

I’m always inspired by Jeff and Karina Griffin and what they’ve built, as well as Hiroshi Nozawa and Norbit. There’s an incredible amount of innovation coming out of China right now—brands like Uppervoid, Raxxy, Hamcus, and others are really pushing things forward.

Japan continues to set the tone globally. Brands like Comfy Outdoor Garment, Nanga, White Mountaineering, Mountain Research, Kapital, and Visvim—there’s just an incredible energy coming out of Tokyo.

I’m also inspired by retailers that create real experiences. That’s something New York is missing right now—retail that authentically represents this culture and pushes it forward.

Dream Collaborations

Q: Are there brands you’d love to work with?

Definitely Nike ACG. The level of innovation and cultural impact is undeniable.

I’m also really interested in Ineos—their vehicle platform has huge potential to expand into a broader overland ecosystem.

And Leica. I’d love to revisit what I started there years ago and take it even further.

Outdoor Culture in New York City

Q: What does outdoor culture look like in NYC?

It’s more real than people think.

Sure, there’s a lot of people dressing like they’re heading to Everest just to grab coffee—but there’s also a real outdoor community here.

There’s surfing, kayaking, boating, and an incredible fishing scene. Spring bass fishing in Jamaica Bay or along the Hudson and East River is next level. Even Central Park has its own ecosystem.

It’s all there—you just have to look for it.

Career Highlights

Q: Looking back, what are some of your proudest career moments?

Rebuilding Leica was a big one. It meant a lot to people, and we were able to bring it back in a meaningful way.

Working on projects with Hennessy, Roc-A-Fella, and early collaborations in music and fashion also shaped my perspective.

Helping bring Mystery Ranch into new cultural spaces, building the Borderlands project, and creating FishThing during COVID—those are all moments that stand out.

But honestly, the most meaningful moments are the ones where you see the impact on people and culture over time.

This concludes our three-part David Gensler interview exploring the origins, philosophy, and future of Vanish Outdoor Magazine.

→ Read Part 1
→ Read Part 2

The post David Gensler Interview (Part 3): What’s Next for Vanish Outdoor Magazine appeared first on VANISH TODAY.

From fishing obsessions to the role of technology, Gensler shares a candid perspective on what it means to build an authentic brand today.

Q: Vanish Outdoor Magazine has a very different aesthetic from most outdoor publications. Was that intentional?

I’m not sure. I mean, you always set out to be different and unique, but I don’t think it was overly planned.

A lot of it comes from Brooklyn, my travels, and just my personal taste. I wanted to create something that felt relatable to the people and peers I care about—and, honestly, something that might offend a few people from the traditional outdoor industry, which I always found a bit predictable and boring.

Q: How did COVID impact Vanish and your personal direction?

COVID was a pivotal moment. I left New York City and moved to Pennsylvania to be near my mom and away from the city.

I fished over 200 days in a row during that time, and it completely changed my perspective. I realized I would never fully trap myself in the city again.

I was hooked—literally—and that’s when I started executing a long-term plan for how Vanish would grow and become a global brand.

Q: What are your biggest outdoor passions?

Fishing is first and last. I’m obsessed. I’ll beat anyone—just kidding. That’s just my way of getting invited on more fishing trips.

I also love overlanding, road trips, anything in the mountains, and even gardening. It’s all connected.

Q: You split your time between business and design. Which matters more?

My time is split between management and creative, but design is the most important.

Design is the connective point with the audience. At the end of the day, people don’t connect with “business”—they connect with design, art, and culture.

That said, business, strategy, and management are critical. They’re what allow you to scale your ideas and reach more people. But what people actually love—that emotional connection—comes from design.

Q: Outdoor culture is growing rapidly. Where do you see it going next?

I don’t think outdoor culture is going anywhere. Nature doesn’t fade, and humanity’s need for nature doesn’t fade either.

If anything, I think we’ll see more brands and businesses focusing on the outdoors as a reaction to how digital our lives have become.

The more digital the world gets, the more essential nature becomes.

What I do think will change is the shift toward authenticity. There will always be brands trying to ride trends, but the ones that truly engage with the outdoors in a real way will last.

Authenticity always wins in the end.

Q: Vanish—and you personally—seem to have a complicated relationship with technology. Is that fair?

Yeah, absolutely. I don’t hate technology—I hate how addictive it can be and how much it can pull people away from reality.

I think we need to educate ourselves—and especially younger generations—about the importance of time away from devices. Deep time in nature.

It’s about balance. That balance is hard to achieve, especially when modern work depends on technology, but it’s something we have to actively pursue.

Nature connects us back to something fundamental—to the origins of humanity itself.

Q: You mentioned authenticity. How do you define it?

Authenticity is messy. It’s imperfect. It’s obsessive.

For me, it means focusing on your own vision and not being overly influenced by what others are doing.

At the same time, you need to be aware of the world around you—you have to understand the landscape—but still remain detached enough to do your own thing.

That tension is where authenticity lives.

Continue the David Gensler Interview:

Part 1 of the Interview.

This is Part 2 of our interview with David Gensler, founder of Vanish Outdoor Magazine.

In Part 3, Gensler discusses the global expansion of Vanish, the launch of the magazine, and what’s next for the brand.

→ Continue to Part 3 of the David Gensler interview

The post David Gensler Interview (Part 2): Design, Authenticity, and the Future of Outdoor Culture appeared first on VANISH TODAY.

And its expansion into hiking and outdoors reflects a broader shift toward integrating technical function into fashion-led systems. Merrell, by contrast, has spent more than four decades defining and refining footwear specifically for the trail, establishing itself through durability, traction, and accessibility, with legacy models like the Moab and Jungle Moc representing category benchmarks.

The duos first collaboration, released as a limited footwear capsule in April 2026, does not attempt to resolve those differences so much as enhance them and create synergy in a world that needed them. The premise is simple and direct: design for the conditions most people actually encounter—short walks, transitional environments, and unstructured time outside—while retaining the material and technical standards associated with performance footwear. Rather than extending trail product outward, dumbing it down or diluting it for casual use, the collection positions everyday movement as the primary, beautiful design constraint.

The capsule centers on two models that map the spectrum differently. The Cham Storm GORE-TEX Sneaker ($180) builds from Merrell’s Chameleon lineage, a platform historically defined by adaptability across varied terrain. Here, the construction is lightened through a textile and TPU upper that maintains support while reducing overall weight and rigidity. A GORE-TEX membrane provides waterproofing with breathability, preserving its utility across variable conditions, while a toggle lace system simplifies adjustment for intermittent use. Visually, the shoe departs from conventional trail footwear through the introduction of floral patterning and FP Movement’s buti motifs, shifting the aesthetic register without altering the underlying performance framework.

Secondly, the Hut Moc 2 Packable Slip-On Sneaker ($90) moves in a unique, different direction, emphasizing compressibility, portability, light weight, and ease of wear. Designed to be packed, clipped, or carried (see photo above), it incorporates a zip connection system and carabiner attachment, allowing the pair to function as a mobile, secondary layer of protection from the elements, when beaches get rocky or when foot meets pavement. Dual-stretch panels enable slip-on access, while the quilted upper and patterned lining introduce a softer, more tactile dimension. It is less concerned with terrain-specific performance than with continuity, life surrounds the primary activity and fills the intervals between it.

What links both models is a shared orientation toward proximity. Framed around the idea of “micro-breaks,” the collection treats outdoor access as something immediate and repeatable rather than planned or destination-based or exclusive. This marks a subtle but meaningful shift in how technical footwear is positioned: not as equipment reserved for defined outings, something exclusive or confusing, but as a constant interface between interior and exterior space, welcoming all people outdoors.

For FP Movement, the collaboration extends its movement-driven framework into more technically demanding product categories without abandoning its emphasis on expression and accessibility. For Merrell, it represents a recalibration of context, of course maintaining its performance foundation, but opening the category to new aesthetic and behavioral interpretations.

The result is not a reinvention of outdoor footwear, but a refinement. By collapsing the distance between specialized gear and everyday wear, the collaboration suggests a model where technical product operates continuously, adapting to a version of the outdoors that begins immediately, just beyond the threshold of adventure and everyday life.

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Before there was a product, there was a piece of gear—an alpaca sweater purchased from a local artisan during a 2015 backpacking trip through the Andes, worn repeatedly, relied upon, and, in time, difficult to replace once back in the United States. What registered was not novelty, but absence: despite its performance, alpaca remained largely unknown within the broader apparel landscape. That gap between utility and recognition became the entry point.

Kris Cody went back to Peru, reconnected with the original maker, and began assembling the early structure of what would become PAKA—less a conventional supply chain than a set of relationships, anchored in place and built incrementally from the ground up.

From there, the company’s framework establishes itself quickly: alpaca, sourced from herds in the high Andes; alpaqueros, whose livelihoods are tied to those animals; and Quechua weavers, whose work translates fiber into finished form.

Where most brands smooth over these transitions, PAKA marks them. Each garment carries a handwoven Inca ID—a small textile signature identifying the individual artisan responsible for its making—a small insistence that authorship remains attached.

Growth does not alter that framework so much as test it. By 2025, the company is operating at a scale that would typically require a degree of separation: tens of thousands of kilograms of alpaca fiber moving annually through a supply chain that touches thousands of families across Peru. What distinguishes this phase is not simply volume, but the attempt to formalize what had previously been embedded—relationships becoming systems, practices becoming policy.

That transition was made explicit with the establishment of the PAKA Foundation in 2025, a registered 501(c)(3) that consolidates the brand’s social and environmental initiatives into a defined structure, funded by one percent of annual revenue and designed to extend beyond the logic of early-stage growth.

Running parallel to this, PAKA operates as a Certified B Corporation, placing its material and social commitments within an external framework that evaluates governance, environmental performance, and community impact against a defined standard. The impact report that accompanies this moment reads like a document concerned with tracing consequence as much as intent.

At the base of that accounting is the animal itself. Alpacas, adapted to one of the most severe and variable climates on the planet, produce the fiber that underwrites the entire system, yet remain vulnerable to the same environmental pressures that define their resilience: drought, disease, and limited access to veterinary infrastructure among them.

In response, PAKA’s 2025 programs focus on herd stability at scale: more than 60,000 alpacas supported through coordinated health interventions—vitaminization, parasite control, medical treatment—paired with educational workshops intended to extend that care beyond a single season. The work is incremental and technical, but its implications are cumulative. Healthier animals yield stronger fiber; stronger fiber sustains product integrity; product integrity feeds back into the economic viability of the communities that raise them.

That same logic extends into breeding. With limited access to high-quality males, many herds face reduced genetic diversity, leading to weaker animals and diminished long-term value. The distribution of 40 breeding males across participating communities, alongside training in herd management, is framed not as intervention but as a recalibration within the system as an attempt to restore balance.

If the animals represent the beginning of the chain, the alpaqueros define continuity. Working at elevations that can exceed 15,000 feet abs, these communities operate within constraints that are environmental as much as economic such as thin air, limited infrastructure, and restricted access to diverse nutrition. Alpaca farming in this context is less an industry than a condition of life, its stability subject to forces well beyond market demand.

The report outlines a set of responses that move laterally across those constraints. Year-round purchasing agreements for alpaca fiber attempt to smooth income volatility; nutritional programs address anemia and dietary imbalance; school renovations—classrooms, kitchens, sanitation—reframe education as both infrastructure and outcome. Parallel efforts, including the construction and rehabilitation of greenhouses, aim to reintroduce a measure of food security into an environment where it is otherwise difficult to sustain.

In aggregate, these initiatives reach approximately 7,300 families in 2025, accompanied by the provision of more than 16,000 meals and expanded access to fresh produce through localized agriculture. The scale is significant, but the emphasis remains grounded: not transformation in the abstract, but continuity under pressure.

Further along the chain, the fiber passes into the hands of Quechua weavers, whose work carries a different form of fragility. Here, the risk is not environmental but cultural—the gradual erosion of techniques that have historically been transmitted through practice rather than preservation.

Through its partnership with the Centro de Textiles Tradicionales del Cusco, PAKA supports a network of more than 300 female artisans, structuring their involvement in ways that bind economic stability to cultural retention. Regular work, access to materials, and incremental improvements to tools and working conditions address immediate needs, while biweekly gatherings, shared meals, collective production, the presence of children, create a space where knowledge continues to circulate.

The Inca ID, attached to each finished garment, is the visible trace of that system, but the system itself is less easily condensed: a distributed network of labor and memory, sustained not by singular intervention but by repetition.

The extension into education follows a similar logic, though its timeline is longer. Through the PAKA Scholars initiative, 15 university scholarships were funded in 2025, bringing the total to 24, with four graduates completing their studies that year. The focus—young women in Cusco facing structural barriers to higher education—positions the program as both corrective and generative.

The addition of an Entrepreneurial Fund in 2025, supporting graduates in the creation of their own businesses, suggests a shift outward from sustaining existing systems to enabling new forms of participation within them.

Running parallel to these social structures is a material accounting that is equally precise. In 2025, 98 percent of the fibers used in PAKA products are natural, organic, and/or recycled, with 60 percent derived from natural sources including alpaca, organic cotton, and merino wool. Traceable alpaca fiber accounts for 45.4 percent of total use, linking finished garments back to specific points of origin within the supply chain.
The remaining figures are presented with similar clarity: virgin synthetics reduced to 1.7 percent, with a stated aim of elimination as alternatives become viable; zero intentionally added PFAS across 2025 products. There is little rhetorical framing around these numbers. They function instead as boundaries—evidence of a system attempting to define its own limits.

Nearly a decade on, what PAKA has built is most akin to a set of interdependencies held in tension: animal health and material quality, cultural preservation and economic stability, growth and proximity. The company describes this as a “chain of care,” extending from the high Andes outward into everyday use.

What the 2025 impact report makes clear is that such a chain does not sustain itself. It requires structure, repetition, and, increasingly, formalization. The creation of the PAKA Foundation—and its alignment with external standards such as B Corp certification—marks that recognition, the point at which origin, no longer sufficient as narrative, is translated into something durable enough to withstand scale.

As the company approaches its ten-year mark, the underlying question remains unresolved: how to continue expanding without dissolving the relationships that give the material its meaning.

Field Notes: PAKA Founder Kris Cody

In conversation, Cody returns to the same underlying premise: building from source, and attempting to hold that position as the company expands.

On the original vision and early constraints…

“The original idea was simple: create the best alpaca gear and connect people to where their things come from. At the time, I don’t think I had a clear picture of how big that vision could evolve. As PAKA is my first-ever company and brand, I was naive when I launched the brand out of my dorm room for what this journey would require—not to mention doing something that’d never been done before. There’s a saying that most founders likely wouldn’t start a company if they fully realized the reality of the journey. Bootstrapping PAKA without investment was extremely difficult. That being said, I think it’s what has made PAKA as special as it is—staying true and honest to where we started, and doing it our way.”

On differentiation and material innovation…

“I think a big part of it is authenticity. Everything we do is rooted in a real story and relationships. We are far from the boardroom.
On the product side, we’re focused on proving that natural fibers can make the best apparel. Alpaca is still less known and relatively underutilized, and we’re continuing to push what’s possible there with products like Breathe (the first alpaca activewear) and PAKAFILL (our patented outerwear insulation made with traceable alpaca fiber). We have a lot more in the pipeline.”

On the favorites that hold up in daily use…

“My favorite pieces are the basics—Men’s Boxer Briefs, Trail ¾ Crew Socks, and Essential Tee—I wear them every single day. We worked hard to get these core pieces right, and they have a lot of engineering in the fabric most people will never even notice. They’re pieces you don’t normally think about, but once you have them there’s no going back to anything else.”

On the future of sustainable performance apparel…

“I believe the future is natural. Nature has evolved with all the performance we need, and we’ve traded that over the past century for oil-based apparel (⅔ of all clothing currently made is synthetic). At PAKA, we’re reimagining and refining natural fibers for modern use. We’re also seeing a big shift with our customers wanting materials that feel better, last longer, and have real meaning/intention behind them.”

On what he’s most proud of…

“Our community—our customers, partners, and PAKA in-house team make this a dream place. And not compromising and staying true to our values.”

On returning to source…

“Spending time at the source inspires me more than anything else. I was just down in Peru last week visiting Quechua weavers at high-altitudes in the Andes, and then traveled out to the Peruvian jungle to visit the farms and people behind our organic Pima cotton. I came back energized and inspired with ideas for both our product and brand. There’s a simplicity that we always try to honor—timeless, functional products made to discover our world and connect you to the people, place, and material. PAKA serves as a vessel to connect people to origin.”

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ON THE FRINGES OF THE SOUTH OF ENGLAND, IN A PLACE CALLED HARTLAND, EXISTS TWO WORLDS IN ONE: GRIFFIN STUDIO, THE PRACTICE OF JEFF AND KARINA GRIFFIN, INNOVATORS IN TECHNICAL OUTWEAR, AND THEIR HOME AND ECO-REATREAT LOVELAND FARM – A PLACE WHERE URBAN AND NATURE EXIST TOGETHER, INSPIRING A RECONNECTION TO THE VASTNESS OF NATURE AND ITS WILD DRUMBEAT.

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The Firebird anchors the collection, as it should. But it’s not the Firebird you’ve seen before. New prints — polka-dot, gingham, seasonal pastels and neutrals — move it out of the archive and into actual rotation. Subtle tailoring adds structure without disrupting the silhouette’s ease, and details like double waistbands, peplum shapes, and funnel-neck shirting show up across pieces that first-drop fans will recognize in evolved form. Heavyweight cotton blends and contrasting trims and fabrications give the whole edit a cross-seasonal quality — meaning you’re not boxing it into one moment on the calendar.

The standouts make the case. A polka-dot track jacket and pants set in beige takes the classic two-piece format and runs it through a retro print that lands playful without tipping into costume. The pinstripe track jacket threads a similar needle — sporty construction, tailored detail, the kind of layer that reads as intentional whether it’s going over a slip dress or sweats. And a nylon mix co-ord in soft pink delivers the tonal update the Firebird silhouette has been waiting for: same heritage bones, noticeably fresher energy.

Three pieces, three different registers. The collection doesn’t ask you to commit to one version of the aesthetic.
“This third collection moves the adidas Originals x ASOS collaboration into a more expressive space,” said Vanessa Spence, Executive Vice President, Brand and Creative at ASOS. “With the expansion into the U.S. market, we are able to invite even more people in to embrace the collection and make it their own.”

For U.S. shoppers, this is the first chance to access what European and UK markets have had two rounds to work through. By the third drop, the collaboration has visibly sharpened. What’s available now feels less like licensed product and more like something both brands actually had a stake in getting right. The full collection is available now, exclusively on ASOS — on-site and in the app.

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As part of the recent Vanish tour of Asia, the Vanish team were lucky enough to be invited over to the Beams HQ (overseeing a diverse portfolio of more than 30 brands and creative projects) to meet the chief buyer at Beams Plus and esteemed vintage outdoor clothing collector Shigeru Kaneko.

Given a warm welcome by the Beams staff, Team Vanish were able to learn all about the brand’s incredible 50 year history thanks in part to a permanent in-house timeline exhibition.

Though impossible to document all of their impressive achievements over the years, the products on display nonetheless provided a fascinating insight into the brand. Showcasing a number of key evolutionary moments and significant releases, from the brand’s inception in 1976 (originally called ‘American Life shop Beams’) right through to today’s globe spanning empire. Leaving us in no doubt that though Beams has been inspired by timeless looks such as American Ivy League and classic English tailoring, that their name is now equally synonymous with classic style, albeit with a signature Japanese obsession for detail and premium quality.

Following this impressive history lesson, the Vanish team met up with Shigeru Kaneko, who as well as being the chief buyer of Beams Plus, is also widely respected around the world for his seriously impressive collection of vintage outdoor clothing. Having released his Outdoor Expedition Book 99 last year (Vol. 9 in the “I AM BEAMS” series), an ongoing global exhibition tour (Expedition Club) followed.

Clearly a very busy man, Shigeru kindly took time out to pick some of his rarest and most impressive down parkas specifically for the Vanish team to check out. Consisting predominantly of North American brands from the second half of the twentieth century alongside the incredibly rare down parkas were a number of vintage Eddie Bauer down hand warmers and face masks that have now become something of a Shigeru trademark in his legendary collection. Alongside Eddie Bauer the archival outerwear included brands such as Gerry, The North Face, Pointfive, Moncler, REI, Blacks, Wilderness Experience, Snow Lion, Adventure 16 and Mountain Equipment. The latter two brands and their down jackets having both provided direct design inspiration for recent Beams Plus collaborations with END Clothing and Palace Skateboards, respectively.

Meeting Shigeru and experiencing the collection was an unforgettable experience and a particular highlight in what has been an incredible trip to one of the most exciting and design savvy cities in the world…a visit which was topped off by the always affable Shigeru donning his beloved Gerry U.S.A.F. Survival suit for us and letting us take some shots of him in this incredible piece of military expedition history from 1959.

Vanish would like to say a huge thank you to Shigeru Kaneko and Mizuki Maeda for taking time out of their busy schedules to show us around, as well as all the staff at Beams HQ and the Beams Plus store in Harajuku.

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Running is now borrowing the same ethos, but mind you gravel running isn’t trail running — it’s less technical, less gear-intensive, less committed to a specific landscape: it’s the park path, the service road, the crushed granite connector between the neighborhood and the foothills, and long country roads. Forget routes, finish lines and pace. Brands including Craft, adidas and Mount to Coast have entered the space, but Salomon — with its roots in the French Alps and fingerprints already on a gravel cycling aesthetic — is betting they can own the category.

Most running shoes are optimized for one surface type or another, and the compromise feels exactly that. But the Aero Glide 4 GRVL is Salomon’s argument that the compromise no longer has to feel like one. The shoe’s midsole is energyFOAM EVO, a supercritical TPU compound that delivers more rebound over time rather than packing out after a few hundred miles. The stack/drop is substantial — 41mm at the heel, 33mm at the forefoot, with an 8mm drop — enough to absorb the cumulative impact of a city-to-trail-and-back effort without dulling the feedback that makes a run feel alive. At 9.5 ounces for men, 8.1 for women, it carries that cushion easily.

The outsole draws its geometry from gravel bike tires, which is apt: cyclists figured out long ago that a tread pattern optimized for loose, variable surfaces still rolls cleanly on pavement. Salomon’s contaGRIP compound applies the same logic on foot — woodchips, asphalt, sandy seafront paths, dusty dirt roads — transitioning without the runner having to think about it. That last part matters. A shoe that makes you second-guess your footing is a shoe that pulls you out of the run.

The upper is where the 4 GRVL stakes its claim. A seamless construction pairs with sensiFIT technology and a padded tongue and collar to create a locked-in, glove-like hold — reinforced further by a protective mudguard and a more precise foothold than the standard road version. The quickLACE neo system, a single-pull cord with a gusseted tongue, locks it down in one motion and tucks away clean. The result is something that feels trail-worthy without the stiffness that often comes with that credential.

The gravel running movement asks a simple question: what if the run you actually take on your own on the dusty road alone is better than the one you planned and fought for? The Aero Glide 4 GRVL is built to answer…comfortable enough to run long, confident enough to run anywhere, and still compete when you want to.

$160; salomon.com

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From Brooklyn to the mountains, Gensler’s perspective has shaped Vanish into what many now consider the outdoor avant-garde—a platform redefining how we engage with the outdoors.

Q: Could you introduce yourself?

I’m David Gensler, a strategist and designer currently living in New York, working on my brand, Vanish.

Q: Can you tell us about the background of Vanish Outdoor Magazine? When and why did you start it?

It was 2013, and I was walking to an Agenda trade show with the show’s founder—and my friend—Aaron Levant. I had just rebuilt the Leica Camera brand and helped facilitate the sale of Hasselblad to DJI. I was planning to take a break in my career to spend time in nature—fishing, being in the mountains, slowing things down.

The show was filled with outdoor brands like Poler, and something clicked. That night, I dreamt up Vanish as a platform to inspire people to engage with nature. At that moment, I wanted a kind of “Hypebeast for outdoor culture”—but it didn’t exist. So I created it.

At the same time, I was constantly looking at GO OUT magazine from Japan. I remember thinking, I’m either going to have to learn Japanese… or create my own outdoor culture magazine.

Q: You were living in Brooklyn at the time. Will Vanish Outdoor Magazine always sit between urban culture and nature?

Yeah, I spent most of my adult life—and early career—in Brooklyn. I love New York City, but my soul craves nature too much to have both feet planted in the city all the time.

Vanish will always exist between those two worlds. One foot in urban culture, the other in the outdoors—that’s our DNA.

Q: How has the Vanish brand evolved over the years?

For a long time, I was doing it solo. I was involved in other major projects, so I wasn’t fully focused on Vanish—but it was always my main passion.

Over time, I started dedicating more energy to it. I was also spending more time in nature personally, which naturally fed into the brand.

Then in 2017, I randomly met my partner, Dana Gleason, in Bozeman, Montana—and he kind of kicked my ass into gear.

Q: What do you mean by that?

He asked me what Vanish was, and I said, “We are the invasive species of the outdoor industry. We don’t fit in, and we don’t feel like we belong.”

He laughed and said, “You don’t. But that’s exactly why we need you.”

That stuck with me. I took that energy and got focused. We started experimenting—products, brand extensions like FishThing (angling culture), Landscape (hats), and collaborations with The North Face and Mystery Ranch.

In 2019, we partnered with ISPO to launch The Borderlands. It was a massive exhibition—a three-tiered city we built out of industrial scaffolding, featuring brands from around the world that represented our vision of cutting-edge outdoor culture and design.

It was a defining moment for Vanish Outdoor Magazine.

And then, not long after, COVID hit.

Interview by Reuben C

Continue the David Gensler Interview. This David Gensler interview explores how Vanish Outdoor Magazine is redefining outdoor culture.

This is Part 1 of our interview with David Gensler, founder of Vanish Outdoor Magazine.

In Part 2, Gensler explores design, authenticity, technology, and the future of outdoor culture.

→ Continue to Part 2 of the David Gensler interview

The post David Gensler Interview: Building Vanish Outdoor Magazine and the Future of Outdoor Culture appeared first on VANISH TODAY.

Unifying function and fashion, rugged and refined, craftsmanship and performance, FLOWER MOUNTAIN strives for balance in this world. Their world is in pursuit of harmonizing with nature, tuned to it’s every season, its every ebb and flow, which is reflected back in the curve of every shoe they make – mountains and flowers expressing the beauty found in nature flowing through each of their designs. This is a genuine expression of a Japanese project.

They dedicate their brand to those who refuse to settle for the ordinary.

The post Vanish Outdoor Magazine Issue Zero: Flower Mountain appeared first on VANISH TODAY.