STRATHAM, NH--(Marketwire - September 2, 2010) -  Building on a rich history of environmental action and innovation that includes planting one million trees in China's Horqin Desert, developing the Earthkeepers™ line of environmentally-forward products and launching an online "Earthkeepers movement" to motivate environmental behavior change, The Timberland Company (NYSE: TBL) today announced its biggest and most environmentally-focused marketing campaign yet -- Nature Needs Heroes™.

Launching globally over the next several weeks, the campaign showcases Timberland's Earthkeepers collection. Made with materials like recycled rubber and recycled PET (one and a half plastic bottles are used in each pair of Earthkeepers boots), Earthkeepers product is one of the company's leading and fastest growing product collections. The Nature Needs Heroes campaign also seeks to inspire consumers to consider what actions they might take to be "heroes" for the outdoors themselves. 

"This campaign marks the culmination of our work to connect consumers to what we're doing as a company to have a positive environmental impact," explained Jim Davey, Timberland's VP of Global Marketing. "It's our biggest and best effort to date to not just share our own stories and initiatives, but to also engage consumers in a broader effort to care for the environment."

Our Nature Needs Heroes campaign employs outdoor imagery and light-hearted humor to help convey the serious message of environmental accountability -- the notion that even small acts of environmental action make a difference. The campaign is being executed through a variety of channels, including TV and print advertising, 3D displays in select Timberland retail stores worldwide, social media and an interactive microsite. 

"We hope the variety of elements in this campaign -- from digital and social to in-store to more traditional media -- might encourage all consumers, no matter where they see us, to be drawn in," said Davey. "We want to give consumers the opportunity to learn more about what Timberland is doing to help protect the outdoors, as well as support them in taking environmental action themselves -- whether that action is buying a pair of boots or planting a tree."

Specific elements of the Nature Needs Heroes campaign include:

• "Lost Bottle" Advertising -- Depicts how even small acts can make a difference when one environmentally-heroic moment (recycling a runaway water bottle) becomes an adrenaline-fueled outdoor experience. Television ads will air in Europe, Asia and North America during high-profile live sports and prime time and late night programs. Print advertising will appear in Europe throughout the fall.

• Nature Needs Heroes Microsite -- Playing off the humorously heroic focus of the "Lost Bottle" advertising, the microsite suspends time and takes site visitors into a frozen moment using 360-degree imagery and high definition 3D technology. "The Nature Needs Heroes campaign is the first time a major brand blends this combination of leading-edge technologies to challenge the way audiences can experience a story," said Mads Holst, creative director and managing partner at Holst Digital, the creative agency that designed the microsite. "By focusing on the simplicity of the idea, but executing it in a uniquely progressive way, we have created an experience that perfectly complements Timberland's approach to product innovation and stewardship of the outdoors."

• Retail Windows -- Timberland takes the 3D technology from the Nature Needs Heroes microsite straight to the street in select Timberland retail stores worldwide. Store windows feature oversized 3D graphics which consumers can experience using complimentary 3D glasses (made with recycled materials) available in store. Point-of-purchase displays depict an x-ray into the Earthkeepers 2.0 boot -- a visual representation of Timberland's commitment to product transparency, which also highlights the company's use of recycled and renewable materials.

• Virtual Forest -- Under the Nature Needs Heroes banner, consumers can create their own heroic moments on Facebook with the new Timberland Earthkeepers "Virtual Forest" application. Users are invited to create their own forest (or join a friend's), which will result in Timberland planting live trees in Haiti to supplement its reforestation project there. Due to launch in late September, the application will also showcase a series of videos that chronicle the tree planting projects that Timberland has established in Gonaives, Haiti.

The campaign breaks today (September 2), when the Nature Needs Heroes microsite launches and store windows are unveiled in the U.S.

About Timberland
Timberland (NYSE: TBL) is a global leader in the design, engineering and marketing of premium-quality footwear, apparel and accessories for consumers who value the outdoors and their time in it. Timberland markets products under the Timberland®, Timberland PRO®, SmartWool®, Timberland Boot Company®, Mountain Athletics®, Howies® and IPATH® brands, all of which offer quality workmanship and detailing and are built to withstand the elements of nature. The company's products can be found in leading department and specialty stores as well as Timberland® retail stores throughout North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, South Africa and the Middle East. Timberland's dedication to making quality products is matched by the company's commitment to "doing well and doing good" -- forging powerful partnerships among employees, consumers and service partners to transform the communities in which they live and work. To learn more about Timberland, please visit www.timberland.com.