Arc'teryx Equipment Inc
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryTechnical apparel
Founded1989 as Rock Solid
1991 as Arc'teryx
FounderDave Lane
Jeremy Guard
HeadquartersNorth Vancouver,
British Columbia, Canada
Number of locations
  • 80+ branded stores
  • 3,000+ retailers
Area served
Worldwide
Number of employees
1,200 globally (2020)[1]
ParentAmer Sports
Divisions
  • LEAF
  • Veilance
Websitearcteryx.com

Arc'teryx is a Canadian high-end design company specializing in outdoor apparel and equipment headquartered in North Vancouver, British Columbia. It focuses on technical apparel for mountaineering and Alpine sports, including related accessories. The company's name and logo reference the Archaeopteryx, the transitional fossil of early dinosaurs to modern dinosaurs (birds). Arc'teryx is known for its waterproof Gore-Tex shell jackets, knitwear, and down parkas.[2][3]

Founded in 1989 as Rock Solid, the company re-branded in 1991 as Arc'teryx to produce outerwear and climbing gear for the Coast Mountains in Canada. The company was sold to Salomon Group in 2001 and Amer Sports in 2005. Arc'teryx maintains two divisions: Veilance, their luxury streetwear retailer and LEAF, their retailer of technical gear for law enforcement and military forces. The company is a major influence in the "gorpcore" and "normcore" fashion movements, the wearing of minimalist, technical apparel in urban settings.[3][4] It is prominent in streetwear fashion, a variety of youth subcultures, and global outdoor culture. The brand is colloquially known as "dead bird".

History

An Arc'teryx boutique on Mercer Street, London in July 2016

Originally named "Rock Solid" by co-founder Dave Lane, the company's first line of products was climbing gear.[5] Dave Lane sold his 50% interest to Blair Murdoch and Tim Duholke who became silent partners in 1989.[5] Then-principal and co-founder Jeremy Guard changed the company name to Arc'teryx in 1991. The name and logo reference the Archaeopteryx, the transitional fossil of early dinosaurs to modern dinosaurs (birds).[6] Guard chose the name to represent the idea of accelerating evolution as characterized by the geologic time scale of fossils.[6][5]

Guard was president and principal of the company from 1991 to 2001.[5] Using a heat laminate (thermolamination) technology, the partners designed and marketed the Vapor harness, which would become the company's most popular item.[5] In 1993, after a series of relocations and staff additions, Arc'teryx released the Bora backpack using the same Vapor technology. In 1996, the company introduced technical apparel featuring Gore-Tex after obtaining licenses from W. L. Gore & Associates.[5] Arc'teryx re-located its headquarters to Burnaby, British Columbia in 1999 and then to North Vancouver in 2005.[5]

In 2001, Arc'teryx was purchased by Salomon Group, a French subsidiary of the German retailer Adidas.[7] In 2005, Arc'teryx was sold to Finnish retailer Amer Sports.[8] In 2019, Chinese retailer Anta Sports bought a controlling stake (56%) in Amer.[9]

The Arc'teryx head office is located in North Vancouver with harnesses, backpacks, and other apparel made in its factory in New Westminster. As their apparel line expanded Arc'teryx began manufacturing in international markets, specifically in China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Bangladesh, El Salvador, Laos, and Greece.[10]

Since the early 2020s, Arc'teryx has co-produced collections with high-fashion brands and designers which expanded their consumer market beyond outdoor enthusiasts.[11][12]

Divisions

Their garments, accessories, and apparel is organized into various product families differentiated by the Greek alphabet, e.g. Alpha, Beta, Delta, Gamma, Rho, Sigma, and Zeta.[6]

  • Veilance: their luxury formal streetwear line was founded in 2009, branded as Arc'teryx Veilance.[13]
  • LEAF: their Law Enforcement and Armed Forces (LEAF) line is aimed at the military and police market.[14] In the consumer and Internet market, it is often referred to as "military birds".[15]

Subculture

Arc'teryx is seen as a high-end status symbol among youth, "just shy of Stone Island and Moncler."[16][17][18] The Atlantic noted the brand as selling "premium-tier outdoorsiness"[19] while the Financial Times noted one of their largest demographics as "urbanites" in 2022.[20] Labeled a cult brand by Fast Company in 2021,[21] Arc'teryx is worn by "[both] hikers and hype-beasts" according to The New York Times.[22]

The company is a major influence in the "gorpcore" and "normcore" fashion movements – the wearing of minimalist, outdoor apparel in urban settings, along with Mammut, REI, Marmot and Patagonia.[23][3] Throughout 2022, a TikTok trend emerged where individuals would shower, fully clothed with an Arc'teryx jacket, as British rapper YT's song "Arc'teryx" played in the background.[2] Arc'teryx is a staple of Generation Z and zillenial fashion, particularly in the U.S. and Canada.[24][25][26][27] Luxury fashion houses that have minimalist aesthetics collaborate with Arc'teryx to produce capsule collections, according to The New York Times.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Corporate factsheet, newsroom.arcteryx.com, May 01, 2018
  2. 1 2 Gallagher, Jacob (January 17, 2022). "Why Are All These People Showering in Their Arc'teryx Jackets?". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 Gallagher, Jacob (January 2, 2021). "Gorpcore: How Arc'teryx Parkas and Salomon Hiking Boots Became High Fashion". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  4. ↑ Dacre, Karen (November 26, 2021). "Gorpcore trend peaks again as extreme outdoor wear hits pub and park". The Guardian. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Servantes, Ian (February 18, 2022). "Beyond the TikTok trend: How Arc'teryx became the It-brand of fashion". Input. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 "Arc'teryx Naming Scheme". Arc'teryx Equipment. August 24, 2023. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
  7. ↑ Nowakowski, Natasha, "Arc'teryx a perfect fit for adidas' Salomon business", The Portland Business Journal, November 8, 2002.
  8. ↑ Crane, Leah, "Salomon Sold to Amer Sports" Archived March 10, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Transworld Business Magazine, August 9, 2005
  9. ↑ Baigorri, Manuel (December 7, 2022). "Anta Sports Weighs IPO of Wilson Racket Maker Amer". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Supply Chain Partners | Arc'teryx". Arc'teryx Equipment. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
  11. ↑ Servantes, Ian (February 18, 2021). "Beyond the TikTok trend: How Arc'teryx became the It-brand of fashion". Input. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  12. 1 2 Testa, Jessica (July 11, 2021). "Jil Sander Ski Wear, Coming to a City Block Near You". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  13. ↑ "10 Years of Performance Evolution | Veilance". Arc'teryx Equipment. Retrieved 2021-10-01.
  14. ↑ "About Arc'teryx LEAF". Arc'teryx Equipment. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  15. ↑ Cheng, Christina (January 21, 2014). "Arc'teryx Takes You Through the Process of Making its LEAF Collection". Complex. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  16. ↑ Servantes, Ian (February 18, 2021). "Beyond the TikTok trend: How Arc'teryx became the It-brand of fashion". Input. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  17. ↑ Webb, Bella (May 4, 2022). "Early Majority: Fashion's first degrowth brand". Vogue Business. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  18. ↑ Newcomb, Tim (January 21, 2015). "High-end outdoor brand Arc'teryx launches footwear line". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  19. ↑ Mull, Amanda (September 4, 2022). "Yeti Coolers Are Luxury Goods for Bros". The Atlantic. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  20. ↑ Cook, Grace (August 31, 2022). "Vibram's path to becoming fashion's go-to sneaker sole". Financial Times. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  21. ↑ Beer, Jeff (February 19, 2021). "In this brutal winter, escape mentally with the cult brand Arc'teryx's first-ever surf film". Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  22. ↑ Testa, Jessica (November 7, 2021). "Jil Sander Ski Wear, Coming to a City Block Near You". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  23. ↑ Gallagher, Jacob (January 1, 2021). "Gorpcore: How Arc'teryx Parkas and Salomon Hiking Boots Became High Fashion". WSJ. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  24. ↑ O'Connor, Michael (March 3, 2021). "How functional outdoor clothing became fashion's next big thing". TU Dublin. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  25. ↑ Ortiz, Gerald (January 16, 2023). "A complete, gorp-nerd's guide to Arc'teryx jackets". British GQ. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  26. ↑ Sidell, Misty White (March 21, 2023). "Arc'teryx Opens Up About Growth Strategy, With U.S. Seen Key". WWD. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  27. ↑ Mussen, Maddy (April 4, 2023). "Unpacking Gen Z's obsession with pickles". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved August 26, 2023. It's not often that Goretex, Tekla, Stussy and Arc'teryx are mentioned in the same breath as dill pickles, and yet they're rapidly reaching a similar status. That's right, the newest obsession among taste-making, metropolitan Gen Z-ers.
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