Columbia dares flat-earthers: the $3-billion challenge to find the edge of the world

Columbia Sportswear CEO Tim Boyle has made a flippant challenge to “flat earthers” by inviting them to capture a photograph on the edge of the Earth. Anyone who succeeds will “win everything owned by Columbia.”

Titled #Expedition impossible and constructed in the form of a minute-long promotional video, in which Boyle provokes: “...just go and snap a picture, send it to us, and you get the assets of the company. All of it. No paperwork. No lawyers. No catches.”

Boyle takes a tour of the company's headquarters in Portland, Oregon, and offers a diverse range of assets as part of the package, including outdoor apparel, a photocopier, and taxidermy mounts of a deer and a beaver.

Reddit reaction

The absurd challenge is doing the rounds on social media too, with the chucklesome retorts on Reddit just as fun as the dare itself.

One Redditor, @dogsop, commented: “Pretty damn reckless to try to talk people into hanging over the edge just for a photo op. The deaths will be on the company's hands.”

Another replier, @eddculus, read right between the lines and caught the gist of what Columbia would gain out of such a hare-brained call-to-action:

“I mean, it's a clever marketing scheme, ultimately just challenging people to get out there to take awesome pictures on their adventures.”

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And on Instagram

Over on Columbia’s Instagram page, the response was also praiseworthy of Boyle’s throwing down of the gauntlet:

“This was not created with AI. This is great marketing,” claimed one user, as the ingenuity of the commercial team feels like in stark contrast to that of Valentino, who faced online vitriol for its AI-assisted campaign for its DeVain bag.

Another significant advantage of the commercial that went well was its participatory nature and sense of inclusion. One Instagrammer, instead of berating far-fetched beliefs, highlighted their curiosity:

“Great work Tim!! I’m a Round Earth-er but I’ll grab my jacket and take a look!! Big Columbia fan!!”

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