A Summary of my time at Peak
PEAK EXPERIENCES INDOOR CLIMBING
2020-25
Here's the gist
I ran brand and marketing for a climbing gym chain with 2,000+ members—designing everything from sold-out merch drops to a full website and CRM overhaul. The result? Higher engagement, stronger retention, and a brand that finally felt cohesive across every touchpoint.
Major Projects
Total Website Revamp
Our Squarespace site was outdated and didn't speak to our shifting audience—climbing went mainstream, so we needed to welcome office workers and families, not just dirtbag climbers. Rebuilt it to answer beginners' questions and highlight group events and kids' programs.
CRM Migration
Migrated 35K users from clunky old Rock Gym Pro to shiny new Capitan, a platform built by climbers for climbing gyms. Updated all website links, worked with developers on new features, and crafted messaging to guide long-term members through their first membership process change since 1998. Result: faster bookings from all users, happier staff, less rage-quitting half-way through the process.
Brand Touchpoints
Solidified
Brand Identity
Inherited some PNGs of our old logo, vague brand colors, and a link to an Adobe font— no real guidelines or consistency.
Cleaned up the logo without straying from the original design, licensed the font properly, and nailed down an actual color palette. Applied it across every channel: emails, signage, social media, ads, merch. Also standardized our photo editing to keep things cohesive despite wildly inconsistent gym lighting (fluorescents, natural light, artificial caves). The result: we finally looked like one brand instead of two different gyms with the same name.
Business cards
Simple, on-brand business cards that didn't end up in the trash. Clean design, essential info, and quality printing made them feel professional. Small detail, but it mattered when staff were networking at competitions or community events.
staff uniforms
Designed uniforms that actually looked good and felt cohesive with our brand. This wasn't just about slapping a logo on a shirt— it was about making staff feel proud to wear them (a difficult feat when the uniform is neon yellow) and creating a consistent, professional look across all locations. First impressions start at the front desk.
in-gym signage
Designed wayfinding signage and a color-coded route grading system that made navigation intuitive for everyone from first-timers to seasoned climbers. Also– I managed digital displays for pricing, events, and announcements, initially using Adobe Illustrator and then using a combo of Canva and 'Display Now' a Digital Signage display app.
Marketing Collateral
digital ads
Created and managed ad campaigns across social platforms, with a big focus on targeting parents for our youth programs. Wrote copy, designed creatives, and optimized for conversions to fill classes and bring in new families. Working closely with the youth programs coordintaor, we grew our youth programs by 300% in 2024!
Banners & Brochures
Created print materials for events, new member onboarding, and in-gym promotions that people actually picked up and read. Kept messaging clear and visual hierarchy strong so info was easy to scan. These became go-to resources for staff when explaining programs or answering common questions.
Creative Work
Limited Edition Merch
Developed a merch line that actually moved. Created regular staples that stuck around, plus limited drops that sold out fast. My designs put our gyms on the map for cool merch. People across the country still recognize and talk about our merch –– friends have told me they've seen Peak's designs at dozens of crags!
Stickers
Designed stickers that ended up on water bottles, laptops, and car bumpers all over town. They became a thing people actually asked for at the front desk. Free marketing that our community was genuinely excited to rep.
Reflection
This role taught me how to stretch limited resources, work cross-functionally with coaches and ops teams, and build brand systems that actually get used by people who aren't designers.
I love opportunities where scrappy problem-solving and attention to detail both matter.