With its broad popular appeal, Functional clothing is the strongest category of outdoor products in European retail. From its origins in alpine and hiking clothing, it has found its way into everyday urban life. But fashion aside, functionality remains the central feature of outdoor clothing, even in travel wear and urban outdoor clothing. At this year’s OutDoor trade show (14th to 17th July 2011 in Friedrichshafen), the world’s outdoor brands will presenting their new clothing collections for the coming season for the first time.
Outdoor clothing is cool, outdoor clothing is trendy – but above all, people enjoy the functionality of outdoor clothing, even if if they are not out hiking, climbing or camping. “Functional jackets are now just as popular in the pedestrian areas of German cities as they are in the great outdoors”, says Laura Hoppe, PR and communications representative of Patagonia. “The trend towards wearing our products in everyday situations as well on the weekend hike continues to strengthen” she says. Function is important, confirms Marc Fischer, Head of Adidas Outdoor for Austria, Switzerland and Germany, but not only function. “The market is getting younger, that means that outdoor clothing is also getting more and more attractive for young consumers”. His conclusion: “Function is important, but not the only factor. I would consider colour and a casual fit just as important”. Kathrin Pelzner, Product Manager at MaierSports, agrees. She is convinced that “very few fans of outdoor clothing want to look like they are gearing up for an 8000 metre climb”. Wild Roses, the Italian women’s brand, also is showing more colour. With batik inspired prints and eye-catching plant, animal and comic designs, Wild Roses has moved far beyond staid monotones.
Despite an increasing willingness to show colour and style, the functionality of outdoor clothing continues to develop. Moisture management and water-resistance are already indispensible, odour and UV-protection are essential to many clothing lines and even mosquito protection is becoming more popular. Columbia is also showing its innovative side in 2012. The American company is bringing its “Omni-Freeze Ice”, a remarkable innovation and the first of its kind in the world, to the OutDoor in Friedrichshafen. The new material makes it possible to lower the skin’s surface temperature by up to 5 degrees Celsius, improving comfort on warm days. “Ice crystals in the polymer of the fibres react with sweat and cool the skin down immediately”, explains marketing director Monika Schneider. In discussing consumers’ expectations of outdoor clothing, Thomas Zimmerling, Senior Manager of Communications at Jack Wolfskin, Germany’s largest supplier of outdoor products, stated: “Comfort is becoming more and more important, from breathability on up to true air permeability, a soft feel, light weight, and stretch”.
Regardless of style and function, two other things are important to manufacturers of outdoor clothing. Every year, more and more companies are addressing questions of social standards and sustainability in their production processes. The industry pays close attention to what is produced where and under what conditions. By considering social issues and finding real solutions, the outdoor industry is not just following the trend, but setting it.
