Prior Experience

Proven Results for Current & Recent Clients

Proven results across categories, channels, and industries

From on-going fractional marketing director services to focused projects on campaign creation, content strategy, and new market approach, Sound Brand Works is an extension of your team - sharpening your brand for growth. Whether as a project or on-going work, we treat your business as a partner, not a transactional relationship, and we go the extra mile when representing your brand in the market.

Work History & Expertise

President, Board of Directors

Director of Marketing

Global Brand Manager, K2 Outdoor

Founded by Graham Gephart, an 18-year outdoor industry marketing and content veteran, Sound Brand Works brings deep professional and personal experience in marketing, media, brand, retail, and non-profit leadership to its clients.

Early roles in film production and magazine editing and publishing with Unparalleled Productions and Couloir Publications brought Graham to the outdoor industry, and instilled a foundation of content creation that followed his career.

A move to Seattle in 2006 brought Graham into brand marketing, and led to 13 years in marketing leadership roles spanning both brand and retail at K2 Sports, Helly Hansen, and evo. From building the creative aspects of copywriting, photography, and film production to the business management experience of budget development, go-to-market strategy, analytics measurement, channel management, experiential programming, team development, and strategic planning, Graham has developed the breadth and depth of marketing experience to help guide your brand through its challenges and opportunities.

In addition to his private-sector experience, Graham has experience with non-profit leadership as the President of the Board of Directors for the Northwest Avalanche Center, where he led its 19-person board and the Executive Director on strategic guidance, financial oversight, and mission fulfillment over two terms as an officer.

Client & Colleague Testimonials

Greg Williams

Vice president, media
backbone media

Over the past 25 years, Backbone Media has been very selective when partnering with external partners to support projects. We view Graham as an extension of our team and never hesitate to engage with him. Recently, we worked through a multiphase, high-level content strategy project with an important client, which they are currently executing. Graham is very thorough in his work and has always seamlessly integrated with our clients and internal teams. We trust that Graham will treat all projects with the utmost professionalism, confidentiality, and expertise.

Nathan Decker

Director of e-commerce, evo

I worked closely with Graham for four years and saw first-hand his impact at evo. He possesses the ability to arrive at creative, compelling, inspirational strategy backed by analysis and data-driven insights. The customer journey is complex and the right approach for a given problem or opportunity is not always clear. Graham finds clarity, bringing a wide breadth of knowledge to bear, spanning marketing channels, digital and physical worlds, brand and retail, strategy and tactics.

During his time leading marketing, Graham played a crucial role in positioning the Helly Hansen brand for a North American audience and charting the go-to-market direction that paid strong dividends, and continues to today. Graham helped guide the Helly Hansen Management team to a brand position, a go-to-market strategy and a promise that delivered relevance, discovery and storytelling to the retail end-consumer, resulting in a clear growth trajectory.

The multichannel strategy he put in place allowed for coherent brand-building effort while at the same time allowing for differentiated storytelling across channels. With this base established, Graham launched the segment-based campaign platform that, in cooperation with selected retail partners, has delivered continuous sell-through driven growth in the years since.

A natural leader in his own right, a formidable marketing subject matter expert and a strong commercial mind are qualities rarely found in one and the same individual, but Graham carries all of these and more. At the same time, on a more personal note, he is firmly grounded in values of service, community and overall human goodness.

Filip Francke

CEO, RAVENSBURGER na
FORMER GM, HELLY HANSEN US

Charlie Lozner

pARTNER, Backbone media

I hired Graham 14 years ago to lead the marketing team for several outdoor brands with K2 Sports. At K2, Graham directly managed three brands and contributed to the multi-brand strategy for several more, eventually taking over the global brand management for six brands. Graham developed his approach to brand architecture and brand hierarchy during his years at K2, while honing his product marketing and ingredient branding skills. Graham was an early leader in content marketing, seeing the power of delivering entertaining and educational content as a way to break through the marketing clutter.

Over the years, I've continued to work with Graham across other roles. Graham is a thoughtful and empathetic leader and practitioner who can guide any brand through the steps they need to take to connect with today’s consumer. He’s a gifted mind in the marketing world and a true pleasure to work with.