Laura was a first time camper at out first Snow Peak Way in 2022, coming alone, but the following year she brought along her family for the SPW23. On an eventful weekend in the sun, Charlie managed to sit down with her and have a conversation about Snow Peak and her camping journey.
Charlie: So what have you been up to in the last year since the last Snow Peak Way?
Laura: Okay, I've been learning, a lot of learning, a lot of discovery and a lot of asking for help. After the event last year I start looking into the different tents. At the SPW23, there was a guy that we were sitting talking to, he said look for three major things when you're looking for a tent for a family: Walking without bending, no plastic because it smells when it's very sunny and something that you can build easily by yourself and it can last over the years.
So I kept browsing the website and when I spoke with staff, they recommended the Landlock. I kept going with the Landlock and taking a look at it. And then I saw the Elfield. When you guys got the big restock I think at the beginning of the spring and I thought, this is more like us. I didn't see the girls growing up and going off camping in the Landlock but I saw them in this one, just the two of them. So when the Elfield became available, boom, I just ordered it online.
Then I tried to open it at home and then I realised it wasn't going to happen. So I came in and I saw you, right? And you and Lyam kindly helped me set it up for the first time, and I took my notes and all that. This is where we had our first camping trip, it was somewhere around here. We went there with the tent and that was it.
We loved the experience with the tent. We said yes, we want to do more of this.
And so what we did is we got the sleeping bag, then we got bits and pieces for the cooking for the Takibi.
Charlie: You have the Takibi?
Laura: Yeah. And then Mark came into the store. It was in July and he said, you know what, we need the proper barbecue. Because when we went camping for the first time with the tent, the barbecue that they gave us was actually burning the grass, it was too low. Mark loves the fact that you can lift it up. It's his obsession in the barbecues. So he got his barbecue. We came into the shop. What else did we do? We tried to find what we had at home that we could reuse. Tried to understand the entire needs that you have. So that's what we've been up to for the last year. And we've been camping a second time now. It was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. So the whole family had a good time. Amazing, yeah. Amazing.
Charlie: Did you have any favourite workshops at the SPW this year?
Laura: The girls loved the tie-dyeing. The girls got three pairs of socks dyed over there with the Stain Shade dye. They also did the natural dye one, with the flowers. Mark got into it as well with the woodwork, I think we have got about eight brushes now.
One of my girls won the Egg and Spork race and got a blue Titanium mug. She is so excited to go in to store and personalise it. This is what makes you guys different, right? You can personalise the titanium goods by anodising them. The level of attention that you guys have to the requirement of individual people and what people need is lovely. It makes a difference. You know, everybody can put together the most sophisticated, beautiful products. It takes research, it takes development, it takes effort. But eventually you can get there, right?
What makes the difference between you and other top of the range products, I think is customer service. It's the way you go beyond your product.
I also loved having more people here at the Snow Peak Way this year. Yeah, more people are better. I loved it and you meet so many interesting people. I think it's feeling of safety that you give when you're camping here. That makes a big difference.
Snow Peak Way 2024 with be held at Shire Camping in Warwickshire from August 30th - September 1st. Tickets available soon.
Photos from SPW23 by Markus Brown
