Don’t Get Them a YETI

This holiday season, YETI has partnered with Wieden+Kennedy Portland on a new film that spotlights the unintended consequences of gifting a YETI product to someone you love. Don’t Get Them a YETI is a playful cautionary tale that warns would-be gift givers that once someone owns a YETI, a world of adventurous highs and lows awaits and it might be more than they bargained for. Directed by Daniel Wolfe and Jess Kohl of Love Song, with voiceover by Oscar- and Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and Yellowstone actor Ryan Bingham, the hero film begins with a YETI Tundra Cooler flying off a truck and skidding through the mud. This sparks a chaotic fever dream in the mind of the lead character, who imagines everything that could go wrong: bites, burns, rashes, wet dogs and endless slideshows. The witty voiceover piles on reason after reason why gifting a YETI is a terrible idea. Yet every disaster looks strangely exhilarating. By the end, she decides that the worst idea is also the best. She is buying the YETI.

The campaign leans into a core truth about the brand. YETI is not just gear. It is a gateway, a catalyst and a commitment to whatever adventures come with it. The brand even lets its own products take a beating on screen, confident that they can handle it. From mud to rodeos to the back of a bush plane, YETI is built for people who go too far and for the loved ones who encourage them. Don’t Get Them a YETI flips the familiar holiday script. Instead of focusing on gift guides and wrapping paper, it asks what you are truly giving when you give someone a YETI: permission to go all in on what they love. The campaign marks the first collaboration between YETI and W+K Portland, who will lead new creative platforms and media services across linear, connected and digital channels to strengthen the brand’s presence and expand its reach. The work launches in the peak holiday shopping window and will run through Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The sixty-second version debuts in Big Ten College Football on 15 November, with the thirty-second version appearing throughout major sports, music and entertainment moments including College Football, NFL, NBA, NHL, the CMA Awards and the series premiere of Landman on Paramount Plus. It will also appear across Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, Paramount Plus, Hulu, Disney and Peacock during the holiday season.