There isn’t much that Jussi Oksanen hasn’t achieved in 17 years of professional snowboarding. In 2008, Jussi co-founded Mizu; an internationally renowned company determined to reduce single-use waste. We all use Mizu products both when riding and in day to day life, and, likely, you do too. We spoke to Jussi about his best achievements in snowboarding, how Mizu was created, a typical day in his life and lots more.

Article by Tom Kingsnorth

You had 17 years as a pro rider and in that time, you went to the Olympics, US Open, had 20 well-received video parts, pro model boards, 7 X Games medals, etc. That’s a lot of achievements. Do you have a favourite stand out moment?
It’s hard to pinpoint one moment as there were so many great moments. But I think it would have to be my first video part with Standard Films, which won the TWS best video part of the year. It had been such a dream for me to be filming with one of these big snowboard crew. Finally, getting a chance to film with these guys and then win the best video part of the year was pretty unreal.

Many people talk fondly about the Robot Food movies. Were you guys aware at the time that the movies would be that well-received?
I don’t think we had any idea – and we didn’t really care about that either. We just wanted to do things our way. That’s why I think it worked so well, as we weren’t too worried about the success part of it. We were just a tight group of friends going on trips – the best time of my career!

Do you still ride a lot today?
I don’t get to ride as much these days, but I get to go up to Mammoth as often as possible with my family – that’s also my favourite riding crew. It’s so fun to see my kids shredding and falling in love with the mountains!

Mizu was way ahead of the curve, already making reusable water bottles in 2008. Why water bottles and how did you initially get started with Mizu?
When I moved to the states, there was a shocking amount of single-use plastic bottles people consumed daily, so we wanted to create a brand that was an alternative option to reusable bottles. It seemed like a random concept at the time, but it's pretty much an essential product now in people's lives, which is so awesome to see. It feels great to have a small part of all that.

It seemed Mizu blew up really quickly. Were you surprised with how quickly it grew from the start, and what has been the key to the brand's success?
Well, honestly, it took a while to get it off the ground. I think we were a little early in the game, but as soon as a few other brands came into the market and that whole space blew up, we were able to be part of that movement. We have always focused on simple quality products that we have perfected over time. I just got pictures from a friend who still uses our original bottles 12 years ago, which is such a statement for what we are all about.

What does a typical day in the life of Jussi Oksanen look like nowadays?
I went back to Mizu full after I retired from snowboarding. It was great to be part of the marketing team and help to shape the brand and our mission. It also took me back into shooting photos, my lifetime passion and hobby. After two years at Mizu, I transitioned into commercial photography, which I have been doing full time for the past five years.

Mizu has grown from reusable water bottles to a whole collection, including cutlery sets, cups and even a bottle with a water filtering system. What other items can we expect to see soon, and what items are you most stoked on?
We are only focusing on the reusable product market, so we have some really exciting new products coming out this spring that is a natural evolution to our line, so keep your eyes open for a new product launch in the spring!

What advice do you have for someone reading this that might want to start their own brand but isn’t sure how to get started?
If you find something you are truly passionate about, that’s the first step. Then find out your strengths and weaknesses and partner with smart people who can help you with stuff you lack experience or skills. It takes a lot of manpower to get a brand of the run way, but it will be one of the most rewarding things once you get it up and running and see people using your products!

What does the future hold for Mizu?
We’ll just keep going with the reusable fight. Enjoy the journey, leave nothing behind.

You can find Mizu products on their website here.
Follow Jussi on his Instagram here.

So, what’s Jussi Oksanen doing these days?

#VIRGILWASHERE

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