Somewhere Outside: Designing for Everything Between Leaving and Returning

There’s a certain kind of outdoor brand that feels overly resolved from the start. Too clean, too intentional, too aware of where it fits. Somewhere Outside moves differently. The Seoul-based label, with design led by Caizhu Jo, approaches the outdoors less as a fixed category and more as an open field shaped by design, movement, and everyday life.

What stands out isn’t just the garments, but the perspective behind them. Somewhere Outside pulls from technical outerwear, but just as easily from graphic design, subculture, and the small, often overlooked details of the city. The result is gear that feels functional without being rigid, expressive without trying too hard.

There’s a looseness to it. Proportions shift, graphics feel instinctive, and styling never leans too far into convention. It’s outdoor clothing that doesn’t take the usual path to get there.

For this edition of Chop Talk, we caught up with Caizhu to talk about personal influences, creative process, and how Somewhere Outside continues to build its own language between the outdoors and everything around it.

A lot of outdoor brands talk about performance first, but Somewhere Outside feels emotionally driven too. When you’re designing, what matters more to you: making someone feel prepared for the outdoors, or making them feel curious enough to go outside in the first place?

What matters most to me is the situation or story I want to express through design.

For example, if a chameleon appears in a graphic, I think it is important to also include elements related to its world—such as crickets or flies, which are its prey. The context matters.

The same applies to product design. If I add a pocket, I imagine a very specific scenario. For a biker, the pocket should be placed where gloves can be inserted and removed while still holding the handlebars. For an angler, it might be positioned so that a towel used to wipe their hands can be stored with less risk of contamination.

I always try to imagine concrete situations and real-world use.

As mentioned in the question, I do not think SOHC is about being perfectly prepared for every situation. There are already many brands that excel at performance and technical functionality.

Instead, we focus on what we do best. Whether through graphics or product design, we want people to ask "Why?" when they first encounter our products—and later discover the answer for themselves. We create products while imagining those moments when a question mark becomes an exclamation point.

Somewhere Outside pieces often feel slightly unfamiliar in proportion, graphics, or styling. They don’t really follow classic outdoor rules. What kinds of non-outdoor references have quietly shaped the brand the most?

It may already be apparent, but my preference for old punk and rock culture is deeply embedded in my work.

Graphically, it influences the way I draw lines and arrange visual elements. In terms of mood, I am drawn to a looser, rougher, and slightly rebellious feeling.

When these influences are combined with outdoor apparel, the result naturally feels unfamiliar. I think that sense of unfamiliarity is part of what makes SOHC distinctive.

Korean outdoor culture has evolved really fast over the last few years. From your perspective, what are international audiences still misunderstanding about the Korean approach to outdoor clothing and lifestyle?

When I think about Korean outdoor culture, I cannot separate it from the idea of trends.

This may be difficult for outsiders to fully understand, but in Korea, outdoor activities often become cultural phenomena. Climbing was everywhere in 2022, golf seemed to dominate in 2023, tennis became hugely popular in 2024, and many young people moved from one activity to the next. This year, many of them have probably become runners.

Sometimes I find it unfortunate that international outdoor brands observe these trends and launch flagship stores in Korea based on them. Unless they are very fortunate, it can be extremely difficult to build a business around a single outdoor discipline for a long period of time in Korea.

The culture moves quickly, and people's interests often shift just as quickly.

Your personal work and visual direction feel very connected to design culture outside of apparel too, especially graphic systems, typography, objects, and imagery. Do you see Somewhere Outside more as a fashion label, an outdoor brand, or an ongoing design project?

Personally, I consider SOHC an outdoor brand.

At this point, most brands make lightweight windbreakers or down jackets, so the distinction itself may not seem very meaningful. However, when I design, I set boundaries that I do not allow myself to cross. Those boundaries constantly function as constraints during the creative process.

The line I try not to cross is the point where the brand becomes purely fashion-oriented.

For that reason, SOHC clearly places more weight on outdoor culture, outdoor moods, and outdoor perspectives. That is where our center of gravity lies. 

A lot of technical apparel today feels overly optimized and almost too serious. Somewhere Outside has functionality, but there’s also humor and looseness to it. How do you personally decide when “enough function” is enough?

To truly talk about functionality, I think it requires fabric development or custom material production.

We use materials such as Gore-Tex, but even if a small brand uses those fabrics, I am not sure it means much to consumers. It may feel significant to us, but not necessarily to the people wearing the product.

What matters more to me is the process.

This is not something I consider a point of pride—it is simply what I believe should be expected. I spend time researching, comparing, and testing fabrics and components until I find what I believe is the best option available.

The level of functionality in a product is determined by how much attention and care the designer is willing to invest. Because of that, my standard is simple: unless something is impossible, we do everything we can.

That is the level of satisfaction I aim for. 

Outside of design and clothing, what are you personally into right now? Could be anything, music, books, objects, places, even something small you’ve been obsessed with lately. How do those interests find their way into your work, if at all?

More than anything, I have a consistent interest in people.

Why do people think and behave the way they do? Why are they happy or unhappy? What do they admire, and what do they despise? Are these things shaped by the times we live in, or are they fundamentally unchanging?

These are questions I constantly think about.

Whether I am watching an animated film, a movie, or reading a book, I tend to consider it meaningful if it offers clues to those questions.

Fashion, of course, cannot be separated from people.

Clothing is not an object that exists on its own—it is completed when someone wears it. Because of that, I believe designers need to understand people deeply.

We should be grateful to those who choose to buy what we create.

We should give them enjoyment. We should make them proud. When someone says they wear or own something we designed, we should never make them feel embarrassed.

I approach my work with the belief that if I become careless, I am ultimately letting down the people who trusted us enough to purchase SOHC.

I think that attitude inevitably finds its way into both the design and the products we create.