Whether you love carving out fresh powder in backcountry routes or are mainly there for the molten cheese and aprés beers, snow holidays are officially back, baby! Whichever type of cold weather enjoyer you are, a new collaboration from Jil Sander and Arc’teryx is taking sportswear-infused mountain gear to stylish new heights.
This first joint project sees Jil Sander, known for its refined, precise simplicity, teaming its Jil Sander+ collection with Vancouver’s Arc’teryx, a brand loved by hiking pole-toting outdoorsy types as well as red carpet-goers (with fans in Frank Ocean, Travis Scott, Virgil Abloh, and Drake).
Lucie and Luke Meier, Jil Sander’s husband-and-wife creative directors, both grew up enjoying winter sports but “could never find garments that balanced high performance with high aesthetic quality,” they say. “Eventually, with Arc’teryx, a company we have always admired for their rigor and commitment to research, we had the chance to design them.”
The debut capsule includes three jackets: one unisex, one for women, and one for men, a pair of bibbed trousers, and a one-piece suit, both unisex. Tapping Arc’teryx’s technical knowledge, the designs see new volumes and shapes engineered especially for winter sports but with chic, flattering silhouettes. Using a palette of ice-white, carbon black and a blue-grey found in the depths of glaciers, the items also feature contrast detailing in bright orange and red.
Each piece is optimised for function when temperatures drop, with waterproof and breathable Gore-tex Pro fabric accented with overlays of luxe weatherproof leather. Small details like trims, pockets, and zippers, have all been carefully studied and tweaked for maximum slope performance.
In line with the collection dropping, there’s also an atmospheric campaign video shot in grainy black and white that captures the essence of being knee-deep in untouched snow but protected from the harsh elements – watch it below.
The collection will be available online at jilsander.com, arcteryx.com, ssense.com, Jil Sander and Arc’teryx stores and at select retailers worldwide from November 10.
