Four years ago, one man’s cosy puffer jacket sent a tremor through the fashion industry.
It was January 2019 and fashion’s glitterati had congregated in Paris’s Tuileries Gardens for the Louis Vuitton fashion show – a sea of elegant earth tones and sumptuous natural fabrics. But then came American rapper Frank Ocean, wearing tattered jeans, hiking boots, a woolly hat and an orange down jacket by the very un-chic adventure-wear brand, Mammut. It was a style better suited to the Lake District than Paris Fashion Week, but one that’s a near-universal look now.
At its height, this trend was known as “Gorpcore” – a reference to an American hiking snack – and basically meant wearing extremely expensive clothing designed to keep you alive in the harshest possible conditions.
“There’s an appetite in the fashion and lifestyle market to buy into that super technical look,” says Fiona Taylor, head of design at British outdoor brand Berghaus. “They’re not going up a mountain; they’re going down the pub on a Friday night. But it’s a jacket that looks really good – and you could go up a mountain in it if you wanted to.”
Founded in Newcastle in the mid-60s, Berghaus is a heritage brand now benefiting from the trend. Its turnover in 2022 rose to £81.1m, with European turnover rising 63%.
Since the pandemic, our love for the outdoors and outdoors clothing has grown. According to its recent annual forecast, made in partnership with McKinsey, industry news platform The Business of Fashion reported that almost 50% of people in the UK are spending more time participating in activities such as hiking, camping and boating than they did before 2020.
This post-Covid shift in behaviour has collided with a fashion trend for functionality and outdoorsy design. Now office commuters wear Gore-Tex shell jackets instead of classic raincoats, and our day-to-day wardrobes are flecked with esoteric trail-running shoes and micro-fleece gilets. This is a way of dressing that has spread from fashion to the mainstream. Like trainers and leisurewear, cagoules and hiking shoes are now acceptable for all social occasions.
“Can you wear outdoors wear to the office?” wonders Olie Arnold, style director at retailer Mr Porter. “Well, that depends where you work, but brands like Veilance, a [clothing line] from Arc’teryx, even offers a suit made from technical fabrics now. Their coats and jackets are super modern and minimal; they would easily pass in the City – but also survive sub-zero conditions.”
On fashion resale platform StockX, trade in adventurewear label Salomon, winter sports brand Arc’teryx and American climbing brand The North Face grew by around 800% between 2022 and 2023.
In footwear, two once-niche brands in particular have enjoyed massive growth. Swiss shoe brand On Running reported a 69% year-on-year jump in revenue to $1.3bn for 2022 and France’s Hoka, which makes training and hiking shoes, is on track to hit $2bn annual revenue.
In 2024 as the trend continues, expect to see not only more fashion houses investing in the look – Chanel, Jil Sander and Gucci have collaborated with outdoors brands in recent years – but also new interest in niche but stylish kit.
Outsiders Store is a clothing and equipment boutique with branches in London and Liverpool. It was founded six years ago to bring all the weird but chic outdoors brands under one roof. It does a roaring trade in Hoka as well as Patagonia fleeces, Salomon runners and Montbell down jackets. As an example of one of the next big things, buyer Josh Rothery points to the “approach” shoe.
Designed for light climbing and the approach – or walk – to the mountain, it tends to be finished in suede, with a rubberised toe. “It’s got a much more specific intended use [than other outdoor shoes],” he says, “but it can just serve you with any outfit, for any purpose.” Consider options from La Sportiva, Keen or Danner.
Alex Bilmes, editor-in-chief of men’s style magazine Esquire, is a fan of this trend – but reserves it for walking the dog, “where it belongs”. He thinks wearing outdoor clothing for anything other than outdoor activities is just a kind of cosplay. “But the idea of urban sophisticates dressing like sherpas is innately amusing,” he says.
Bilmes opts for classic tailoring for work, and would rather people did the same.
“Turning up looking like you’re about to make an ascent on K2 when you’re about to go through Q4 results is just silly,” he says. “Are you going to open your backpack and take out some Kendal Mint Cake, too?”