Kanuk without polar winters | Press

In the midst of the international summit on climate change, it’s rather odd to learn that the manufacturer of ultra-warm coats Kanuk will be opening a store in New York in 10 days. In a city, therefore, where days at -25 ° C and snowstorms are as rare as the clothing missteps of the characters in Sex and the City.

Rather than selling his creations in a polar climate like that of Quebec, Kanuk will find himself in an environment filled with big names in fashion. Its neighbors, rue Greene, in the SoHo district, are called Alexander McQueen and Yves Saint Laurent. Quite a change for this brand which has long promoted its parkas with a catalog full of quidams.

In 2010, Kanuk founder Louis Grenier explained to me why he didn’t want his business to grow. He was making 30,000 coats a year in his workshops on Rachel Street, on the Plateau Mont-Royal, in Montreal. And it has been for over a decade. The status quo was fine. Exporting would have forced him to relocate production while his employees were happy to be able to come to work by metro or by bike, he said.

The sole objective of this outdoor enthusiast was to create the best coats “for the climate of Quebec”.

It is clear that at 51 years old, Kanuk is elsewhere.

Since its acquisition in 2015 by Champlain Financial Corporation, a private fund that also owns the Ogilvy department store, the Neptune baths and the Pro Hockey Life chain, the jacket manufacturer has grown rapidly. In transformation, too.

The store in New York is perhaps the most striking example.

Kanuk is now following the big trends. And not just in terms of design, colors and ethical materials.

The company wants to make its place on the international scene, as Canada Goose did before it, by opening stores in Milan, Italy, and California. Two places where winters aren’t particularly harsh… which doesn’t matter, Kanuk president Richard Laniel tells me.

The leader explains that these are three wealthy states, populated by people who can afford luxury goods – like a $ 1,800 Kanuk – and travel north to ski or ski there. ‘other winter activities.

New York is also a city that attracts a lot of tourists from all over the world, which inevitably includes countries where the weather is sometimes freezing. That said, the Kanuk store will not only be a showcase or a marketing tool, but indeed a source of income.

“We’re going to sell everything there. Parkas – 40 and coats for + 10, ”predicts Richard Laniel.

This is the other big news: Kanuk has recently sold coats that are not at all adapted to the winter climate in Quebec. Its new collection, called KANUK + 0, offers raincoats that will be easily recognizable thanks to the orange logo (without owl) on the bottom of the sleeve or the pocket.

Richard Laniel confides that global warming is “one of the reasons” behind this diversification. Even if there are still “a lot of cold climates on the planet”.

On the one hand, therefore, Kanuk is adapting its offer to climate change. On the other hand, the brand adopts strategies to slow them down, such as reducing its carbon emissions. With this in mind, more than 50% of coats are made with recycled fabric. In addition, synthetic materials, which generate emissions, are gradually being abandoned in favor of down, considered more ethical and sustainable.

Kanuk has also made a commitment to become carbon neutral by 2025.

We often forget it, but the fashion industry is extremely polluting. It produces 10% of all greenhouse gases and consumes 10% of the world’s water reserves, according to the World Economic Forum.

Of course, you have to keep warm in winter, but making coats is no exception. In October, the magazine Protect yourself gave 12 coat manufacturers a “durability rating”. Kanuk scored 76% there. This compares to 92% for Patagonia, 90% for Vancouverite Arc’teryx and 26% for Montrealer Point Zero.

Transforming, rejuvenating and ensuring the growth of a brand that has dressed several generations of customers since 1970 is certainly no easy task. You have to find a way to convince a 20-year-old girl that her grandmother’s favorite brand of coats is still cool. But by moving to New York, the manufacturing company is signaling that it is on the right track to win its bet.

If the winters change, so does Kanuk.