Inside Canada Goose’s High-Fashion Migration
Close BannerClose00Days:00Hours:00Minutes:00SecondsSEE THE BEST DEALSShop the Best Sales Before Black Friday's OverStyleAn exclusive first look at Snow Goose, the stalwart outerwear brand’s new Haider Ackermann-helmed luxury line.By Max BerlingerNovember 26, 2024Photographs: Canada Goose, Getty Images; Collage: Gabe ConteSave this storySaveSave this storySaveWhile designing his first collection for Canada Goose, the designer Haider Ackermann stumbled upon an image in the brand’s archives that stopped him dead in his tracks. It was a photograph of the Canadian climber Laurie Skreslet, who scaled Mount Everest in the 1980s while wearing a fluorescent pink parka. “It is so beautiful,” Ackermann says. “The story goes that Canada Goose was supposed to make a coat for him, so he asked his daughter, who was around five, ‘What color should it be?’ She said pink.”There’s a direct homage to that piece in the debut capsule from Snow Goose—Ackermann’s new “heritage” sub-label for the Toronto-based outerwear specialists—a lightweight pink shell jacket, albeit rendered in slightly paler shade. In fact, there’s a surprising splash of vibrant colors throughout the line: pastel purple, electric blue, chartreuse, lemon yellow, emerald green, mocha brown. “You go into those archives, and there’s so much energy there, so much color,” Ackermann says. “It’s electrifying.”Courtesy of Canada GooseWhen it was announced in May that Ackermann would become Canada Goose’s first-ever creative director, it caught the fashion world by surprise. Through his celebrated namesake label, a three-year stint at Berluti, and iconic red carpet designs for the likes of Tilda Swinton and Timothée Chalamet, the 53-year-old Ackermann has established himself as one of the industry’s great romantics, crafting garments imbued with a certain headiness and sensuality. Canada Goose, meanwhile, is best known for its hunkering, utilitarian, frost-impervious technical parkas. On paper, the chasm between them seems wide.“It’s a bold choice to want me, and 10 years ago, maybe I wouldn’t have accepted this,” Ackermann muses over Zoom from London, where he’s working on designs for his other new gig—his forthcoming first collection for Tom Ford. His hair is expertly disheveled into Romanesque curls, with a gray sweater neatly draped over his shoulders.“But I’m in a moment in my life where I need nature, and nature is becoming a part of me much more than in the past.”Courtesy of Canada GooseToday marks the first of three initial drops from Snow Goose, a capsule encompassing more than 60 items ranging from $125 socks to a $2,395 parka. Under Ackermann’s watch, Snow Goose will operate separately from the Canada Goose main line, complete with its own logo—a sinuous stroke that evokes a bird in flight. Ackermann chose the new moniker—which was a name previously used by Canada Goose in the 1970s—because he liked that it referenced the environment, had a peaceful energy, wasn’t pegged to a single location, and was connected to the brand’s history.“There was a poetry about Snow Goose,” he says. “I’m known as this romantic, nomadic guy, and you’re asking me to be more anchored in reality. It’s a more mass product, dressing people on the street, and I’ve always been niche. That was interesting to me—to dress people, on the street, in their lives.”Courtesy of Canada GooseMost PopularGQ RecommendsVans Surprise-Dropped the Gnarliest Deals of the WeekBy Reed NelsonStyleThe 13 Best Celebrity Watches from the GQ Men of the Year Red Carpet 2024By Cam WolfGQ RecommendsTodd Snyder Just Put an Absurdly Handsome Jacket on Sale for $75By Reed NelsonAll this is a marked shift for Canada Goose, which was founded in Toronto in 1957 as Metro Sportswear Ltd. and remains family-owned today. The company spent its early years known primarily for dressing actual mountain explorers, before later developing a reputation as a celebrity favorite—in part through a savvy sponsorship of the Sundance Film Festival, where A-listers were often spotted trudging through the snowy streets of Park City, Utah, in the brand’s hardy wares. While Canada Goose’s outerwear was already held in high regard in both style and outdoorsy circles alike, Ackermann’s appointment sprinkles an extra bit of fashion magic on top that allows the label to better compete with luxury players such as Moncler.“This is an important moment for Canada Goose,” says Dani Reiss, the brand’s chairman and CEO, and grandson of its founders. “We’ve made investments across the board—brand, design, operations—all intended to help us take our place among the world’s most enduring brands. Introducing a creative director role is a big part of that shift, delivering the next phase of design and brand. Haider's role helps us ensure consistency and his vision aligns perfectly with ours—evolving the brand, not reinventing it—which is something that was especially important to me.”Courtesy of Canada GooseMost PopularGQ RecommendsVans Surprise-Dropped th
While designing his first collection for Canada Goose, the designer Haider Ackermann stumbled upon an image in the brand’s archives that stopped him dead in his tracks. It was a photograph of the Canadian climber Laurie Skreslet, who scaled Mount Everest in the 1980s while wearing a fluorescent pink parka. “It is so beautiful,” Ackermann says. “The story goes that Canada Goose was supposed to make a coat for him, so he asked his daughter, who was around five, ‘What color should it be?’ She said pink.”
There’s a direct homage to that piece in the debut capsule from Snow Goose—Ackermann’s new “heritage” sub-label for the Toronto-based outerwear specialists—a lightweight pink shell jacket, albeit rendered in slightly paler shade. In fact, there’s a surprising splash of vibrant colors throughout the line: pastel purple, electric blue, chartreuse, lemon yellow, emerald green, mocha brown. “You go into those archives, and there’s so much energy there, so much color,” Ackermann says. “It’s electrifying.”
When it was announced in May that Ackermann would become Canada Goose’s first-ever creative director, it caught the fashion world by surprise. Through his celebrated namesake label, a three-year stint at Berluti, and iconic red carpet designs for the likes of Tilda Swinton and Timothée Chalamet, the 53-year-old Ackermann has established himself as one of the industry’s great romantics, crafting garments imbued with a certain headiness and sensuality. Canada Goose, meanwhile, is best known for its hunkering, utilitarian, frost-impervious technical parkas. On paper, the chasm between them seems wide.
“It’s a bold choice to want me, and 10 years ago, maybe I wouldn’t have accepted this,” Ackermann muses over Zoom from London, where he’s working on designs for his other new gig—his forthcoming first collection for Tom Ford. His hair is expertly disheveled into Romanesque curls, with a gray sweater neatly draped over his shoulders.“But I’m in a moment in my life where I need nature, and nature is becoming a part of me much more than in the past.”
Today marks the first of three initial drops from Snow Goose, a capsule encompassing more than 60 items ranging from $125 socks to a $2,395 parka. Under Ackermann’s watch, Snow Goose will operate separately from the Canada Goose main line, complete with its own logo—a sinuous stroke that evokes a bird in flight. Ackermann chose the new moniker—which was a name previously used by Canada Goose in the 1970s—because he liked that it referenced the environment, had a peaceful energy, wasn’t pegged to a single location, and was connected to the brand’s history.
“There was a poetry about Snow Goose,” he says. “I’m known as this romantic, nomadic guy, and you’re asking me to be more anchored in reality. It’s a more mass product, dressing people on the street, and I’ve always been niche. That was interesting to me—to dress people, on the street, in their lives.”
All this is a marked shift for Canada Goose, which was founded in Toronto in 1957 as Metro Sportswear Ltd. and remains family-owned today. The company spent its early years known primarily for dressing actual mountain explorers, before later developing a reputation as a celebrity favorite—in part through a savvy sponsorship of the Sundance Film Festival, where A-listers were often spotted trudging through the snowy streets of Park City, Utah, in the brand’s hardy wares. While Canada Goose’s outerwear was already held in high regard in both style and outdoorsy circles alike, Ackermann’s appointment sprinkles an extra bit of fashion magic on top that allows the label to better compete with luxury players such as Moncler.
“This is an important moment for Canada Goose,” says Dani Reiss, the brand’s chairman and CEO, and grandson of its founders. “We’ve made investments across the board—brand, design, operations—all intended to help us take our place among the world’s most enduring brands. Introducing a creative director role is a big part of that shift, delivering the next phase of design and brand. Haider's role helps us ensure consistency and his vision aligns perfectly with ours—evolving the brand, not reinventing it—which is something that was especially important to me.”
That concept of evolution over reinvention is key. In other words, there’s no master plan for Canada Goose to become the next Balenciaga. “Canada Goose is not a fashion brand,” Reiss says. “What we are is timeless, built on a strong foundation of function, craftsmanship, and style. We create real products that have a purpose—products that work.”
That being said, Ackermann's contributions do impart an aura of fashion onto the brand, best demonstrated with Snow Goose’s first campaign. The images feature a diverse collection of models, headlined by a steely-eyed Ethan Hawke, styled in the collection and juxtaposed with majestic images of nature. What strikes the eye is how—with just the quick flip of a zipper and pull of a rip cord at the waist—the brand’s familiar parkas are given a silhouette worthy of a runway. Or the way the Ackermannian gesture of the draped sweater layered over some light outerwear effortlessly elevates a look. Other highlights include reflective waterproof and quilted coats; slouchy squall pants with taped seams, ties, and zippers for customization; a series of sweaters and jackets with an Aztec-like zigzag motif; and trapper-style hats.
It’s here that one can best see where the brand and its new designer overlap: in their shared sense of wanderlust and appreciation for the natural world. Ackermann is always searching the world for beauty, while Canada Goose wants to dress you for the journey.
“The more I’m getting older, the more I’m getting back to what I’ve learned,” Ackermann says, somewhat wistfully, thinking back on his childhood years in Ethiopia, Chad, and Algeria, where he played along desert dunes. He tells me of his recent trips to Namibia and British Columbia, which served as a reset from the glamorous sprint of his life and career.
“We live in quite a hectic world today. The idea to just breathe in nature, it’s very comforting,” he says. “It’s beautiful because you’re really far away from home, but somehow you’re much closer to yourself. You have time to ask yourself questions—the right questions.”
