Day Coolers

This week Ade and Tim unpack one of the biggest — and most surprising — trends from last week’s Outdoor Trade Show in Liverpool: the explosion of day coolers.

While the industry has spent years obsessing over multi‑day, expedition‑grade cool boxes that promise to keep ice frozen for 3, 4, even 5 days, this year the pendulum swung the other way. Everywhere the lads turned, brands were showing off coolers designed for real life: the beach afternoon, the park picnic, the long drive, the spontaneous day out.

Soft coolers, hard coolers, self‑inflating coolers (yes, really), premium ones, budget ones — every price point, every style, every brand seemed to be in on the shift. And honestly? The show was buzzing about it. So were Ade and Tim.

It’s not glamorous gear. It’s not headline‑grabbing. But it’s the stuff people actually use, and this year it finally got its moment.

DISCLAIMER: Casual Camping Podcast accepts no liability and does not officially recommend any products or endorse any techniques discussed in an individual podcast episode or shown on Casual Camping Podcast social media accounts. Individuals should make their own informed decision and risk assessment of any products or advice prior to any purchase or use

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:04

Welcome to season four of Casual Camping Podcast, the home for the best camping discussion both in and out of the field. Here are your hosts, Tim and Aid.

SPEAKER_02 0:27

Welcome to this week's episode of Casual Camping Podcast, where we are going to talk about all things camping related. Sort of. I'm Tim.

SPEAKER_01 0:39

Is it is it not just a big uh uh this is Tim and Aid getting drunk in a different city podcast? That's what it felt like last week, Tim. Oh my god, did it feel like I made by the way?

SPEAKER_02 0:55

Yeah, it did feel like that last week. We were we were Liverpool last week, and um and I hope everybody enjoyed the um the longest episode ever put out by this show of 92 minutes of uh of of new camping goodness that we put out last week. If you haven't listened to it, who the hell are you? What are you doing here?

SPEAKER_01 1:18

Yes, well, it's there was a lot to get through. We saw an awful lot, there was some great stuff there, and yeah, I I'm just I'm really pleased that we can share that with people. I think there's uh quite a lot of uh people liking the Yeti 8.

SPEAKER_02 1:37

Yeah, yeah. I um and that's really what we're talking about this week, isn't it? Is um uh we're talking the the trend from the show was was really day coolers, wasn't it? They the term day day cooler um was being used by a lot of different brands, and um and that Yeti 8 uh that that's uh was it Sarah from Yeti was talking about Day Cooler? It was yeah, yeah. The day cooler. Um yeah, it it was cool, it was really cool.

SPEAKER_01 2:09

It's um uh I mean I I think you know it it it had gone back to that original kind of shape with the handle and just I I really liked it. Um, and you know, is it something that you'd pop in your car if you're like going on a long journey? Is it something that you'd use for work? Uh what are those things? Is it that you're going to the park and you're meeting up with mates? I mean, I'd lose that butt blum and thing later. You'd be like, Well, what do I do with my Yeti cooler? Like, you know.

SPEAKER_02 2:40

Well, yeah, that's I mean, we lost each other in Liverpool, so how gutted would you be if you'd lose if you lost a Yeti cooler? Oh my god, oh my god.

SPEAKER_01 2:50

It's uh has anybody handed that in? No, of course not.

SPEAKER_02 2:53

It's a Yeti. To be honest, it was it was that small. People would have gone, yeah, it's a bit of a fake. It's not a real it's not a real Yeti, it's too small, it's not usable. Only joking Yeti. Only joking Yeti. What was what was funny was I'm sure Sarah said it's not available to next next year. I've I've seen it in a shop online already. Have you now? Yeah. So that really good camping shop, um, an outdoor shop down in Falmouth, um, where I've been a couple of times, called the bosun something or other. Um down in Falmouth, the name I you think I should remember it because I do a podcast. Um they had it on their um on their website today. The Rode H in stock now was um was what they were saying.

SPEAKER_01 3:48

Well, because we talked about it, and then I I realized, oh, was that one of the ones that we weren't supposed to take pictures of and stuff? And then she talked about it as well. So I was like, you know what, let's just put it out there. I think it's available late summer. Yes, yes. Bosun's locker in Falmouth, Bosun's Locker.

SPEAKER_02 4:08

Well, obviously you can get some uh some uh head of the what they do it in different colours, they do it in different colours, they do it in different colours, they've got it in a grey down in the bosun's locker. It's um yeah I saw the white.

SPEAKER_01 4:23

Please tell me they do a uh crab snatch deadliest snatch colour crab snatch, we just call it crab snatch from the out now on Tim King Crab Snatcheroo.

SPEAKER_02 4:42

It's a bit nippy. Oh well brilliant.

SPEAKER_01 4:50

There was loads of coolers there, wasn't there? And uh I guess that's prompted us to to think about you know some of the things we talked to people about, some of the yeah uh interesting facts.

SPEAKER_02 5:02

Uh oh well, not interesting to anybody that doesn't like coolers, but you know the in the interesting thing I thought, and not to just hover on on Yeti, but you know, day coolers to me are predominantly soft coolers. They're things that you're you're not wanting to keep cold for more than about 10 hours, you know, at the absolute most. It's a cooler that you're putting, you know, uh some some lunch in it, you're putting some cold drinks in it, you might be just putting beers in it for the beach or something like that. And and they're they're cold things that go in, so you don't need to pack it with loads of ice because you're not expecting to keep it cold for like two or three days. Um but Yeti of, you know, they do the soft coolers, but they've purposefully gone with a hard cooler and called it a hard day cooler, which I think they're probably they're certainly the only well no, actually, I was gonna say they were the only day cooler ones that were doing a hard one, but they weren't at all, because some the uh the igloo were doing um hard day coolers as well, which which again is kind of a kind of a new and a newish concept, really. It's um it was just interesting that some companies are kind of moving away almost from the the really soft coolers to to to the hard, you know, rotor moulded, um, you know, high performance cooler, but a cooler that you can only fit you know a pack lunch and a and a four-pack in.

SPEAKER_01 6:34

Yeah, yeah. Because that's all also, you know, there were some smaller like lunch pack kind of stuff, so that you know you were going on a uh, like you say, day cooler, stuff for for lunches, meeting up at the park or or whatever. Uh I I think um and I've we were talking to somebody about their coolers, which uh they they had some real good things, but they were saying, What's the things that people hate about soft coolers? It's no zips, those zips that lock up and stuff, yeah. Um, and so they they had different kind of uh uh wasn't it uh magnets that they've got to open and clue so that like the cooler that you've got where it's got a bit at the top that you can dip into, so you're not opening the whole one. I also liked I really really like the fact, and and this is a top tip for anybody out there at the minute, because I messed up a couple of weeks ago when we had the really hot weather and my Yeti was warmer inside than it was outside. I thought I'd put hot food in there.

SPEAKER_02 7:45

But didn't it hiss when you opened the lid?

SPEAKER_01 7:48

It did, it absolutely did, but like I'd opened a can. I was like, oh my god, I'm never gonna live this down. Um but you know, I know my mistake, and I guess uh what in talking about it on here, you know, you can get it wrong sometimes. You know, I didn't expect it to be that hot. Uh I'm not justifying myself here, but I'm just saying, you know, actually, don't don't, you know, um those Yeti coolers are not dead to me like most other things would be if they failed. You know what I mean? I'm like I I still love them, I just need to get better at flipping doing that. But it was a mixture of I didn't have enough ice to start with, I had chilled down my beers, but I should have chilled them down even more um and thrown stuff in. But we were talking to one guy who was saying that they developed these uh blankets to go in the top. Um, from he said we'd seen uh in North America people using uh yoga mats, cutting them up to the exact size of their coolers. So air in your cooler is the worst thing. So as your ice starts to melt and you get this uh warmer pocket above, that will make your ice work uh melt quicker. So people have been doing that and it sort of compresses so that you it slows your ice down from uh going all the way. So I um yeah, I love that idea, and anybody can make it, even though that company are going to uh bring theirs out. So, Tim, are you going to remember what that company was called? Because I'm sure as hell can't. Thanks for throwing me under the bus. That threw us both under, to be honest.

SPEAKER_02 9:50

We spoke to them for ages, and they were really nice and and Canadian company. Canadian and uh new in the UK, and we we said we're gonna come back and speak to you the following day. We didn't take any damn pictures, and we were that busy the following day we never actually got back to speak to them before we had to leave for the train.

SPEAKER_01 10:09

So when we're on busy, hungover. We were on a bit of a go slow then, weren't we?

SPEAKER_02 10:15

You're literally throwing me under another bus there.

SPEAKER_01 10:20

You busted the picture of us having the best night out in Liverpool with the best people. It was it was a good night out, wasn't it? Um I can't remember. Yes, I can remember. I can remember that uh that £45 breakfast the following morning.

SPEAKER_02 10:37

Bloody hell, bloody hell. Anything with a smear of avocado on, and it's just like there's like a 20-pound tax on it, isn't it? It's like Jesus. I don't even like avocado.

SPEAKER_01 10:50

Um, but yeah, uh, we'll post pictures of that said company because we can ask a few of that breakfast.

SPEAKER_02 11:01

The coolers, let's get back to it. No, I really I really liked their coolers, and we will we will get the name of the company um because they were made of um the coolers themselves were self-inflated the same technology or similar technology to self-inflating sleeping mats, so they really collapsed down to absolutely nothing, they folded in a very unique way and had certain clips on them that meant they were incredibly stable cubes when they were made and inflated. Um, and because they were a self-inflating mat with a decent R rating, uh similar technology, it actually meant that thermal properties-wise, they they were really good coolers, but completely collapsed to next to nothing for um for when you're not actually using them, which um which which was brilliant. But their their idea for actually this you know, taking the air out by by putting a layer a layer down on top of your um what you'd got in your cool box, separating it from you know, because as you're taking things out, there's more and more air in there, and the ice is melting. What that did was it's it sort of gave a new lid to where the um where where your your items and ice was still in there, which meant that the the slightly warmer air that was sitting above all of that actually wasn't melting the ice and warming things up. Really good idea. I mean they're gonna patent that and bring that out and um for their coolers, but actually if you haven't got their cooler, you know, a a yoga mat, some some some foam, a um a self-inflating seat mat, you know, um again thermal properties, lay it lay that on top of stuff inside your cool box and um and you'll get even more performance out of it. Massive top, particularly for day coolers where actually you aren't carrying all that volume of ice, your your cooling properties are coming from the items that you're putting in and how cold they are, because you haven't got room really for a load of ice and and cool packs and things like that, because day coolers by nature are smaller.

SPEAKER_01 13:08

Um, yeah, so so yeah, I think a a layer of you know, some something that will, whether that's foam, whether it's uh insulation kind of uh board or or whatever that's cut to size, brilliant. But I think they were also talking about the fact that they had uh an ice gel pack that would fit their coolers as well, which was amazing. And we were like, Oh, you were trying to sell them that you know that'll do yours, but maybe you should sell for others. And I don't think I think it was a good idea, Tim. But he was there to sell his products.

SPEAKER_02 13:43

He was. I was just trying to say, if you did if you did that in in the general searches of if you own the paper, yeah, if you own the patent for it, yeah, yeah, then bring it out in in other companies' sizes, and um and suddenly you're you'll sell more of that than you will the cooler, because actually people have already got a cooler, they don't always want to go and buy another cooler. But if you can sell me something that will make the cooler I already own even more efficient, then suddenly your product is gonna that product is gonna fly. Maybe that's the products we paint and really quickly aid, the universal uh cooler gel pack that uh that we do really quick, and that's the thing that means we can retire from our day jobs.

SPEAKER_01 14:29

Yeah, yeah, no. Uh I mean, like, you know, I've got to 55 years old, and I was like, Yeah, okay, let's agree to do that, Tim, and then not do it.

SPEAKER_02 14:41

You know what you know what I mean. We've reinvented so many things and come up with so so many brilliant ideas on this podcast, and not one single one of them have we carried forward.

SPEAKER_01 14:53

Yeah, you know, we've got day jobs, we uh we like talking about stuff, and I think what being at the show was really you know, everybody else was quite serious. There's a lot of seriousness with buyers, and I'm trying to sell you this. Um, I hope our energy came across that we were the consumer that people want, you know, that we're the end user, we want to go and buy it, we like the new shape, we like the um the differences of stuff. Uh and you know, we were kids in a toy shop.

SPEAKER_02 15:26

Yeah, yeah, we we were we were the excited puppies. We um we were just very, very excited to be racing around and looking at looking at everything. I um and I and I hope I think that came across in the episode last week, and I and I hope that came across to the companies that we met because they were very gracious in giving us their time, because actually the time was really precious because they they're very expensive stands there, and you know, they need they need to sign contracts and sign deals for the next 12-18 months, and uh, and there's you and me there going, tell us tell us about that fridge with my microphone with its very hamster cover on.

SPEAKER_01 16:06

Uh it's um yeah, I I I think as well, you know, the the coolers were were the big thing, and certainly the the the soft coolers that folded down into them, which also was very much like the snap and go from Coleman that we saw earlier in the year, those collapsible that pushed down. This was a soft cooler that we uh saw, but I think that in itself was just so much thinking outside the box to you know fix those problems that people got. You know, I've got a whole sort of uh side of my shed that's got Yeti in it because they're blooming big boxes, yeah. Okay, most of them have stuff in, but you know, it's um it is just that, you know, people are thinking about those those differences, and if you you know, most people are going away for a weekend, you know, it's it's not like you're going away for uh two weeks every single time, so you need the massive coolers, yeah. Most people are going away for a night or two, um, I think that's the difference. If you're looking at like a new cooler or something else, you know, hold on, there's some things coming.

SPEAKER_02 17:22

There are, there are, and it and and and but specifically that sort of day cooler, um that that seems to be like the emerging part of the market because they've they've done, you know, they've everybody sort of raced initially, didn't they, at making a cooler that could go four or five days, um, and the big coolers, and everybody, you know, bigger was better. Um, and then everybody's kind of gone for the the soft coolers and the and the slightly smaller coolers that can go um go sort of 48 hours, the the 40 48 hour coolers, and now suddenly at the show it was all about the cooler that you're just taking down the park for for the afternoon. It's um and it's like that's the emerging market really of of that that real sort of social thing that that doesn't take the big planning, doesn't take the the massive effort. I need a piece of equipment because I need to take this, I need to keep my keep this cold for the next two to four hours because I'm going down the park with some mates, or I'm going down the beach, or like you say, I'm going on a long car journey, and I just need this food to stay stay fresh and stay and and be alright for me to to eat when I I pull over in two hours time. It's um a lot of companies were bringing out that cooler, which really surprised me because it's like, well, how many coolers do people need? But then I kind of, as you say, you've got a wall of Yeti. I've I've got I've got more I've got two big coolers. I've got my big Stanley, which is always my go-to, you know, safest option for food, keeps everything far colder than anything else I own. I've then got a Demetic, which if I'm going away for a number of days, uh my food is all in my Stanley, and my drink is all in my Dometic. And then I've got a soft Coleman cooler, which is really got next to no thermal properties in it. It's it's something that I'm gonna keep stuff cooling for I don't know, yeah, an hour really. It's it doesn't do much more than that, really. It's it's um it is it is poor. I am looking to to probably upgrade that to a soft a better soft cooler. Um, or maybe I it's about time I pulled the pin on a Yeti and got myself a Roadie 8. Dum dum dum.

SPEAKER_01 19:46

You wouldn't dare.

SPEAKER_02 19:50

You dirty rat. You dirty rat. But it's it's just funny how there's suddenly a new market. You know, somebody's obviously looked at it and thought, how how what do we do next with coolers? What what part of the need isn't being met? And um, and clearly there's been a focus group somewhere because several brands are going, let's make a cooler that lasts that that people can use for you know up to 10 hours and and take it out in the field that doesn't take any ice.

SPEAKER_01 20:19

And and if if you are the sensible person, you know 80 to 90 percent. Don't quote me on those facts, these this is not where you get facts, but you would imagine 80 to 90 percent of the time it's a night or two camping. You know, for for our purposes, yeah, yeah, yeah. And I know we're talking about day cooler, but that would go into night time as well, wouldn't it? So yeah, yeah, it would be a good time. Yeah, and and and so that should be the largest market, whereas, you know, for me I've got something that should go um uh a good week, um, depending on how I'm using it and how I prepped it, which I didn't do particularly well. But you know, make sure that you've got those thoughts and and go, you know what, do I need that rotor moulded uh cooler with the big brand name on it, or is it one of these you know soft coolers that the only time I'm going away is for a couple of nights. If I'm going longer, maybe you can choose the site that you go to. Maybe there's that place that's got a fridge in the shed that you can go freeze your ice blocks uh and continue the life of your chilling uh a little bit longer, you know.

SPEAKER_02 21:39

Yeah, yeah. It's um you know, it's all up it's all about buying more gear, isn't it, really, Ed? It's uh I mean it was all pretty stuff. Why wouldn't you want to? I know it is it is all about, you know, do you need do you need that next item? Are you gonna get that next one? And um And and is is that gonna be is that is that gonna be that? I um yeah, I I think I think I think I've got a gap, you know, if uh uh and and w we are influenced by what is out there, but I I'd already been thinking, well my my Coleman cooler is is just the it's the absolute most basic cooler. It's great because it's got a a um a reach-in flap on the top to get drinks out of, but that totally always a good thing. It is always a good thing, but that in and of itself really damages the thermal properties of the cooler because it's always just got this easy open flap on the top. Um, so I'd already been thinking I need I need a better soft cooler that that will last a day or or the the one overnight rather than having to take my big coolers. Um and it's interesting that actually the industry has also jumped onto that idea and they're they're really running with day coolers. And um and they've jumped on your idea.

SPEAKER_01 23:01

Did you have the idea?

SPEAKER_02 23:02

Yeah, I did. Oh I'm always here to to take take um take credit from things.

SPEAKER_01 23:17

I uh no, I I think you should do really. Um yeah, I I mean for me, the way I came at it, I mean I've been looking at Yeti coolers for for ages. I started off with one of those little £10 coolers that really didn't cool anything, you know. I think your Yet uh your um Coleman has got more thermal properties than that had because all it was is a double layer of plastic with nothing in between. Yeah, yeah. Um it wasn't even a vacuum, was it? It was just no, no, it was just that that was it. Uh and as good as or not, you know, then you know the thing is whether you love them or not, I uh for me I I love them, but as soon as you start putting ice and and if you put the right ratios of ice to cans in there, um they're heavy plumming things, aren't they? Yeah, they are, they really are. And and and then you've also got to consider, well, I'm away for two days. Is that enough beer in there? What do I do with my food? These are all the problems I had. Um, and so I've doubled it up. I you know, I went big, I've then gone smaller again, and then I've now got two sizes, which actually works pretty well for me if I you know figure out how to actually chill them down properly. Um but you know it's it's just one of those things, and you know I think what they're really missing a little bit from the you know from my point of view for the rotor moulded ones, I think they're sexy as anything. I don't think they've quite got there yet with the prettiness of the soft coolers.

SPEAKER_02 25:05

Yeah, I I think I think Yeti are ahead of most people. I I will say that. I do like the fact that they've got magnetic closing tops to them and they snap really firmly closed, so you know that that's that's a real good seal on them. Um the uh the company that we can't remember the name, which I think was was it Explore? Might be Explore. Do us do a quick search. Um they they had a snapping lid that closed that had inside the soft lid, it was a hard lid, and it made a really good seal. So they they they'd kind of come up with a good idea for that. Um, and theirs did their new range that isn't out till next year with the the self-inflated matte technology. They were really sexy. Um, but I you know it's quite hard to make coolers sexy, um, you know, particularly, you know, the the big coolers, it's really great, it's really easy to make them sexy, you know. Particularly if they're powered, you've got one half of blooming freezer and you can keep ice creams in it, you know, they're cool as smaller ones, and like you say, particularly the soft ones, it's quite hard to make them look anything other than a massive man bag um or um or a big sort of happy shopper carrier, and um, and that that's quite a challenge. That you know the the Roadie 8, the Yeti Roadie 8, did look really cool, but because it's rotor moulded, it's really thick, you know, and doesn't take a lot inside for what is actually still quite a large cooler. Um, you know, it was cool that it cool, pardon the pun. It was good that it had sort of the um the the retro handle from you know mirroring the the original Yetis.

SPEAKER_01 26:58

Uh the old metal one, yeah, but it's it's now plasticized. I think you're right with the name, Tim Explore XP L O R. And you can get them in the UK at the minute if you uh buy from Georgie Nazda. You only got one size, but a 40 can one. Uh but they were they're going come into the UK big style. I think they're a Canadian company, and uh certainly uh they had quite a big range there.

SPEAKER_02 27:28

So there were there was some really innovative stuff that they were bringing, which um are a bit miles ahead of those ones that are currently available in the ASDA. But um, so watch watch the space for them coming next year, and uh and I know they've teamed up with a couple of other um sort of big outdoor companies, so so they're they're gonna get a lot more footfall than just um supermarket stuff, I I would imagine. It's um it's just it it's it's fascinating really going to a show like that and seeing the innovation and seeing what's coming in um in in the next sort of 12-18 months, and um, and that's why we love to go to that show because it's just it's amazing. It's amazing to see where where things are progressing to, and that there's always companies that are pushing the boundaries, even of things that you think are you know that's as far as that could be pushed, but they're still going, no, actually, we think we could, you know, what we think you need is something for the next day.

SPEAKER_01 28:29

Yeah, you know, like I say, I think um you know, for most trips where you use a cooler, it's for an event, it's for a a night, it's for a weekend, you know, the day cooler kind of market should be much, much bigger than those longer-term kind of trips, and yeah, you know, the the other things maybe people overshoot with those or you know, just like them uh um like me. Anyway, should we go for uh a minute mindfulness? Go for it. Go for it.

SPEAKER_00 29:05

Welcome to the casual camping minute mindfulness. Let the sounds of nature take you back to the camping field.

SPEAKER_02 30:15

Ah, there you go. Get your day cooler and go sit in in the countryside somewhere, even if it's just for like two, four hours, you know, and just and just chill. Chill with your cooler and eat your pack up and eat your lunch and have a couple of beers. Or a non-alcohol uh alternative, you know.

SPEAKER_01 30:35

You've been drinking.

SPEAKER_02 30:40

You have you've been off today, haven't you? You've been deer drinking. I've not been daer drinking. I did go out for lunch, but I uh I resisted having a pint. It's um it was I was tempted though. I was tempted though.

SPEAKER_01 30:53

Right. Well, just a uh short one this week. We uh know we over egged it last week. Uh thank you to everybody. Remember, socials, please subscribe, please like, please share some of your stories.

SPEAKER_02 31:06

Cool, and uh and share the podcast, people share the love, get get more people listening because that's uh that's what we really like. All right, but have a have a good week, everybody, and we'll see you next time.