Big Chocky tags Bonds with a counter offer and then Heston Russell says "let's do it"

While most Australians were boycotting, Chris "Big Chocky" Katelaris picked up his phone and made Bonds a direct business proposal via Instagram: drop the "dei hire route" and sign someone from the other side. Katelaris has 610,000 followers and has never told anyone to die. The reel tagged @bondsaus, racked up 4,802 likes and 416 comments, and then former Special Forces Commander Heston Russell, a man who actually defended this country, showed up in the comments with three words: "Let's do it." Russell has 159,000 followers. He also has never told anyone to die. Bonds has not responded yet.

Katelaris, who goes by Big Chocky online and has built a following as one of Australia's unfiltered voices on men's issues and culture, posted a reel tagging @bondsaus directly with a counter offer to the brand's current ambassador deal with Adam Hyde.

Big Chocky's exact words to Bonds: "Be open-minded to everyone, not just one side"

His message to the brand was direct.

"I've got a counter offer for you Bonds," he said. "If you only want to stay with one side, stay the dei hire route, it's going to crash and burn within the next five years. Or, be open-minded to everyone, not just one side."

He invited his followers to post their own photos in the comments, turning Bonds' silence into an open casting call.

Heston Russell's "let's do it" comment

Heston Russell is not a man who needs an introduction, but he deserves one. A decorated former Special Forces Commander with a chest full of medals earned in real conflicts, he ran for the Senate in 2022 representing Queensland with the Australian Values Party, a party he founded because he believed someone who'd actually served this country should have a voice in running it. He has 159,000 followers and has spent his post-military career advocating for veterans, speaking plainly about men's issues, and refusing to be told what he can and can't say. He has never told an Australian to die. And if Bonds is looking for a man who's actually earned the right to stand for something, he's ready to go.

The exchange is sitting in Bonds' public mentions. The brand has not engaged with it, and has not publicly addressed the boycott calls that followed its decision to sign Adam Hyde, who filmed a video with his partner Abbie Chatfield telling people who'd marched against immigration to "just die", calling them "scum" and "a stain on this country".

Who is Big Chocky: the Colombian-born, Greek-Cypriot Australian who wants Bonds' business

Katelaris was adopted from Colombia and raised in a Greek-Cypriot Australian family. He built his following on a no-filter take on men's culture and what he sees as the left's grip on Australian media and advertising. He's been featured on Mark Bouris's Straight Talk podcast, and describes himself as Australia's controversial voice. He referenced Step One underwear in his reel as a competitor already picking up the customers Bonds is losing. He's not wrong. Rival brand Tradie, fronted by Nick "Honey Badger" Cummins, has already moved to capture the defectors, with fans publicly declaring they're switching brands. One News covered the Tradie counter-campaign here.

The comment section is already running the casting call without Bonds

Alongside Russell, other commenters have piled in. "Haha f*** yeah Hesto. Run it up," wrote one. "Come on Heston... Bonds needs youuuuu," wrote another, with a string of green hearts. The tone is not angry. It's cheerful, competitive, and it's growing without Bonds' involvement.

That's the problem for the brand. The backlash that followed the Hyde campaign wasn't just negative sentiment, it produced an organic counter-campaign that's now writing itself in public. Tradie underwear, fronted by Nick "Honey Badger" Cummins, already moved to capture the defectors. Now two named public figures are publicly applying for the job Hyde currently holds, and the comment section has 291 people watching.

How Bonds gets out of this: sign someone from the other side, or open it to everyone

There are two realistic plays from here. The first is to sign a face the other half of the country actually likes. Russell and Katelaris are both putting their hands up. Either would signal that the brand understands the damage and is prepared to rebuild with the customers it lost.

The second option is to open it up. Run a national competition. Invite every Australian to submit their photo in Bonds for a chance to become an ambassador. The campaign writes itself, the user-generated content does the work for free, and the brand stops being a political statement and goes back to being everyone's underwear.

Bonds built 100 years on being the brand in every Australian household. One ambassador pick fractured that. The competition is already running in the comments without them. The only question now is whether anyone in Bonds' boardroom is watching their own mentions.

One News is available to consult. We're just saying.

For more on the Bonds backlash, read Adam Hyde's "just die" rant and the Bonds boycott, and Lucy Zelić on why the wind only blows one way.