MUNICH — Spectators at the Winter Games who want to look like Olympic athletes will have plenty of opportunities come next winter.
Trendy, high-tech gear for the slopes dominated the offerings at International Trade Fair for Sports Equipment & Fashion, also knows as ISPO, which ended its four-day run at the Munich Messe Feb. 1.
Breaking attendance records, the show drew more than 60,000 visitors, a 10 percent increase compared with last year.
Bright colors, such as pinks, citrus tones and crisp whites, emerged as a strong palette for next season, while natural tones, including khaki, chocolates and denim will also make their way to the slopes. Technological innovations such as special compartments and wiring for iPods and cell phones are key for many collections, and soft-shell jackets and low-rise ski pants are also important items.
“Women want to look sexy, but sporty,” said Lee Keating, co-owner of Performance Ski, the 2,000-square-foot epicenter of high-end ski apparel in Aspen and Vail, Colo.
Keating said fitted jackets worn over straight-leg pants with a loose fit would be an important look next winter.
“They want to look like they skied the highest peak even if they didn’t,” she said.
European labels offered the hottest choices for looking cool on the slopes, said Keating, citing brands such as Germany’s Matador as being “young and beautifully made.”
Style and substance were recurring show themes.
“Women don’t want to stand at the bar and look good; they want excellent insulation and waterproof fabrics,” said Sharon Campbell, buying director for Snow & Rock, the U.K.’s largest independent outdoor and mountain sports store, with 14 doors, including three in London.
Overall, retailers reported business was steady and some said they would increase their budgets slightly, forecasting a boost in sales, partly from the Olympics.
“Skiwear has changed dramatically,” Campbell said. “Before, in order to be warm you needed bulk. However, with the technology boom, stretch fabrics and insulation only centimeters thin have resulted in much slimmer silhouettes.”
Meanwhile, retailers agreed that the boundaries between board sports and ski apparel are disappearing. The “freerider” look, a more relaxed approach to skiwear, has helped increase sales in the snowboard category.
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“It’s not just about skiing or snowboarding anymore,” Campbell said. “It’s a new, emerging ‘adventure travel’ category where all styles are meshed together.”
She noted that there is a new trend for ski wardrobes in which customers do their own mixing and matching, changing at least one element each season.
Emblematic of the new direction is freerider Karina Hollekim. The 29-year-old Norwegian bills herself as the only women in the world to fly off cliffs with skis and a parachute, for a living.
“You don’t have to look like a mountain goat just because you are one,” quipped Hollekim, who showed off videos of her gravity-defying stunts dressed in ultrafeminine pieces with an athletic edge by The North Face.
“Ski and snowboard styles are coming together,” said Ludovic de Rorthays, managing director of Au Vieux Campeur, a French outdoor retailer.
De Rorthays said he would increase his budget about 5 percent for the coming season. Au Vieux Campeur, which has nearly 40 stores in France, generated sales of 87 million euros, or $103 million, in 2005, based on current exchange rates.
Retailers also noted the resurgence of European outdoor brands and a particular rise in Scandinavian labels.
“Scandinavian outdoor brands are having a huge comeback,” said de Rorthays. “They are cold countries with a rooted history in the great outdoors.”
De Rorthays said Sweden’s Haglofs, Norway’s Norrona and Switzerland’s Kjus brands were both stylish and innovative. Meanwhile, the show’s 1,806 exhibitors applauded the attendance of buyers from Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Switzerland and Spain.
“We increased the size of the stand by 35 percent to accommodate the increase in customers at the show,” said Topher Gaylord, president of Outdoor International for VF Corp.
The North Face, which is owned by VF, is preparing to open its first company-owned European flagship in Chamonix, France, next October, and the company intends to open 10 additional stores in Europe over the next five years. Gaylord also unveiled the brand’s new Prodigy line for next winter.
“The line targets a younger customer with a freeriding edge,” Gaylord said. “It’s more about self-exploration than just winning. Customers want authentic, aspirational products.”
Gaylord said The North Face’s women’s wear category grew to 38 percent of total sales in Europe, and should reach 45 percent by next year.
Other vendors cited fast growth in women’s sports apparel.
“In 1993, women’s wear represented 15 percent of sales,” said Paul Goldstein, president of London-based Killy Sport. “Today we have nearly reached 60 percent.”
The collection has three lines ranging from stretch materials, seamless jackets for a slim fit and thin linings with Primaloft, a down material. The fashion line includes a slim-fitting jacket belted at the waist for 759 euros, or $903, at retail. Goldstein noted that a large number of Russian and Eastern European clients visited his stand.
At Rossignol, acquired last year by Quiksilver, low-rise ski pants and cargo pants were popular among retailers.
“The principal evolution is the fit of the pants,” said Jean Holvoet, head of apparel at Rossignol.
Along with the Emilio Pucci and Jean-Charles de Castelbajac collaborations, Rossignol’s own brand features three separate lines with jackets ranging from 250 to 600 euros, or $300 to $715, at retail.